SCHOOL AND APPOINTMENTS

30th July to 5th August 2011

Another week has come and gone,   the weeks go so quickly, before we know it, it will be Christmas time.  In a lifetime everyone has a dream or goal they would like to achieve.  I have been watching MasterChef on television and many of the contestants have spoken about realising dreams.  I think that if you picture yourself achieving your special dream or goal, if you really place yourself in that picture, think and hope deeply, take positive action then you will be surprised to find how your visualisation can become a reality.

I found a wonderful new craft activity on the weekend, it is called latch hook craft, you use a piece of canvas with a printed illustration on it, have coloured wool that matches the colours of the illustration, then you have a tool called a latch hook, using that latch hook you pull the wool through each hole.  When it is finished you can make a cushion, wall hanging or rug from it, they really look amazing.  You need patience and time but when you finish it you have something to be proud of.  The one that I got was a pattern of a sun and a rainbow, I will be taking it to Sydney with me to help the time I have to spend in hospital and at appointments more bearable.

At School this week I have continued with algebra in Maths looking at positive and negative number substitutions, today in English we finished reading and listening to The Merchant of Venice, in Science we are continuing worksheets on Chemical and Physical Reactions, in Textiles we are working on a design for a calico bag that will hold our work and in Christian Living we learnt about the music within us and how having a positive attitude can change the outcome of an event. 

On Wednesday I had appointments at Canberra Hospital, firstly I saw the Cardiologist who did an echo cardiogram on my heart.  Often when you have chemotherapy it can affect your heart, fortunately my chemotherapy did not cause too many problems in the area of my heart, although my heart beat has become irregular and my heart is a little smaller than average it appears to be healthy at this stage, which is terrific news. 

Then I had to see the Endocrinologist, that is when I did not receive the greatest news, my cholesterol remains high and this is of concern to him, I have to be put on a low fat diet and be monitored closely, if there is no improvement with diet then they will look at medication but because the high cholesterol is caused by the treatment there is no guarantee that the medication will work.  It has also been confirmed that I have insulin resistance which is the early stages of type 2 diabetes, this has to be watched and treated also.  My thyroid appears to not be functioning correctly either and there has been a drop in my thyroid function test.  He ordered a new blood test for that and if it has dropped again, I will need to have further tests done for this. 

We had to fill in all the paper work to apply for me to be able to have the Growth Hormone injections, it can take approximately two months for approval, that works out because when you have had a brain tumour and the treatment for it you can not have growth hormones until two years after completion of treatment and that will be on 17th November this year.  I will have an injection every day, there were various types and brands but the one best suited to me was an injection with no preservatives in it.  Once I start having the injections which will initially be at a high dose, my legs will begin to grow, they are hoping that in the first twelve months I will grow five centimetres.  I have been told before that only my legs will grow, my spine will never grow because of the high doses of radiation I had.  There are side effects from the injections and that is that in the first three to six months whilst I am on them that I will experience severe pain in my bones and muscles as they grow, I will require pain killers and physiotherapy to assist this side effect. 

The Endocrinologist also told me that the period two years to five years post treatment is when recurrent tumours occur and if the remaining tumour grows or new tumours appear I have to be taken immediately off the growth hormone treatment.  The Endocrinologist also sent me for several blood tests for some painful symptoms I have been having, he is checking out lactose intolerance, heliobactor, crohns disease and coeliacs disease. 

Today I had physiotherapy with Rhiannon, she worked on my neck which has been sore and tight, it was so tight it was making my head tilt to the side.  She then worked on my still repairing heel, my calves and hamstrings.  Rhiannon has put so much time and effort into my rehabilitation and I feel so blessed to have her. 

Mum and I leave on Sunday for a busy week in Sydney, I have so many appointments and tests, we are going to be near the beach but unfortunately won't get much time to enjoy it, I have also checked out the weather forecast and it looks rather gloomy with rain and winds predicted the whole time we are there.

Jarrett is running in a 3km race this weekend then his training tapers because on Saturday it is only two weeks until Cross Country Nationals.  We are all very excited, we are all hoping that this Nationals will be better than last year for him, when he had his severe asthma attack. 

Nalani continues to do well with her rehabilitation for her knee, she is still going to the gym and has begun running again.  She is extremely busy at School, she has four assignments at the moment all due in two weeks, as well as she is looking at options for further education next year.  She wants to do study in the area of sport, either massage, fitness, exercise science and coaching or sport management.  It is a very exciting time for her making all these decisions.

Many people comment on the wigs that I wear, some people have even thought that it is my real hair.  Although it would be nice to have real hair, I do have some but it is so sparse and patchy I feel that I am fortunate that you can get such lovely wigs,  I can have a new look, style and colour every day, not many people can do that.  I have purchased many of my gorgeous wigs from a place called Play With Hair, they are an online company and their web address is http://www.playwithhair.com/, you should see all the different wigs they have, you may recognise some of the ones that I have worn in photographs and on television.  Having acess to lovely wigs is important for many people, especially teenagers and women living with cancer because a wig can make them feel more confident and beautiful when they are going through such a difficult time in their lives.

Keep following all your dreams, never give up on them or yourself and one day you will find that your vision becomes a reality.