I am awesome...That is all

:)

I went swimming today for the first time this summer. Yes, it is Hurricane Day, BUT... I am hurricane proof

Yeah Buddy

So I went to the clinic today and got blood work done. The doctor came in and was very excited about my results. Red blood cells are starting to go up on their own. He pretty much said I was the epitome of a bone marrow patient...I guess me doing whatever I want is working out....There Laurel are you happy now?

OUT

I finally got my pickline out this week

Our Word

Steve: *Chokes on water and starts coughing*
Mom: I think the chemo made Steve get a drinking problem.

Steve: MOM! You can't use chemo jokes....THATS OUR WORD!!!!!!!

Month

It has been a month since I got out of the hospital and all is going well. My hair started to grow back. AND I can grow a beard again.

6 Weeks

Happy 6 weeks everyone. It was 6 weeks ago today that I got my new bone marrow. And to celebrate I went to the doctors today and had to get some blood. White blood cells and platelets are normal. But my red blood cell count is low. Hopefully next week my counts will be semi normal.

Oh, feel free to come and visit. I don't do anything all day and would love to see you guys. And you can bring food ........ Just saying.

There's no place like home!

Stephen came home Friday afternoon. Patsy (a nurse) came on Saturday to teach us how to give his IV medication and he takes about 20 pills in the morning and 20 at night. He has adjusted well. He plays games, watches movies, TV, and he rests. We are venturing out today to go have lab work done. It is very nice to be home (an understatement).

It's the best day EVER!

Stephen is coming home today!
A home health aid will be coming to help with the IV medicine, he still has food restrictions, he has to wear a mask and gloves when he ventures out of his room, we have to make sure his visitors are healthy, he will go to the clinic often for monitoring, blah, blah, blah.
But...
HE'S COMING HOME!

If you think yesterday was amazing...

This morning his neutrophil count is 2300! All his counts are better than when he came here. It means new cells are growing! This is so exciting!

The 'H' word

The doctor mentioned going 'home' today. Neutrophil count is 1680. All other counts are up! He is feeling good.

Counts are at 900!

They identified the virus. It was roseola. It was dormant in his body and became active when his immune system was down. His counts are up to 900 and he is feeling good. His appetite is better and he took a walk today.

Feeling the love :)

Steve opening cards from the Terryville Ward.


The Terryville Primary cards on the window :)


Steve sleeping with the blue whale :)

Come one, come all!

Today the doctor told us that the virus is three-quarters gone. His counts yesterday were around 500 and today they are up to 880!

There is no longer any restriction for visitors. So, if you would like, you can visit Stephen. Please be sure you are not feeling sick. As a bonus, you can even visit with me! :)

Please note that Steve gets very tired by 8:00pm, so if you would like to visit with him (and me), please do so before then. Thank you for your understanding.

Cards

Steve opening cards from the Plainview Primary children :)

Counts Are Up

After a few discouraging days of Stephen's counts staying the same, they are on the rise again!

After many tests, it turned out to be a viral infection. It is now being treated and Stephen is feeling better. Thank you for all the messages, cards, words of encouragement, texts, calls, etc.

He appreciates it all. Visitors are still restricted. It is just me (Darleen) and his Dad, so I know he is looking forward to seeing other people!

May 31, 2011

Stephen had a very good night last night...no fevers or rashes! He also had a very good day...getting around more and eating a little bit more. His blood counts are the same but the doctor said he is progressing nicely.

Quick Note

Hey,

There is no news as to when Steve will be able to get visitors. But, as promised, we will let you know :) We are so grateful for all the love and support!!!

Thanks again,

Love,
Jenn

Picture Update from Room 138

The before:



The after:

Update from Room 138

Steve has has a couple of bad nights. But his days are pretty good. At night he gets fevers, chills, respiratory concerns and rashes. They are able to give him medicines to control it. During the day he is able sit up in the chair and watch TV and even took a walk in the hall (without his IV in!).

Good news is that his bone marrow is growing!! YAY!

White cell count is 1.1 (up from 0)
Neutrophils is 210 (out of 1000 and up from 0)

Things are progressing :)

Sisterly Update

Jenn here.

I am sitting in Steves hospital room so my mom can get some stuff done during the day (since she sits up here all day with him). They gave him benedryl and he is sleeping right now. They are giving him platelets for a skin biopsy (just to see what the rash/hives are). The nurses come in and out a lot and I feel bad because it wakes him up. But he looks good.

The view from his room is pretty neat. Looks like you can see for miles.

The room is plastered with all the comments/cards you guys give and I wanted to say THANK YOU. We feel the love :)

Peace,

Jenn
(Steves Sister)

The Updates Continue

Steve had a pretty bad start to the day. Another rash and fever. But in the afternoon he started feeling better and actually asking for food and drinks :) A step in the right direction.

Thanks again for the comments. You are all AWESOME!

Update ...

Another update.

Steve had a better day today than yesterday. He was able to sit up and eat pretzels. He is still resting and a little weak.

Thank you for the support.

Picture Update

DAY 1 in the hospital:


They put the PIC line in his arm.


Getting Comfortable.

DAY 2 in the hospital:


Taking a walk around the floor


Resting after his walk around the floor

Day 5 in the hospital:


Ready for the new bone marrow. (cute nurse)


More bone marrow preparation.

Day 6 in the hospital:


Getting used to the new bone marrow.


Tired of laying in the bed.

Day 11 in the hospital:


Tired.

Weekend Update

Saturday and Sunday consisted of Steve battling fevers and hives. They have him on medication to help with that. He is too weak to talk so the room is very quiet. He spends his days resting.

Thank you for all the comments. I paper his room with them. Keep them coming :)

Another Update

He had a bad day today, right after a good day. Bummer!

He had a headache so they scanned his head to make sure there was no bleeding. Everything turned out to be fine.

He can hold down some liquids, but is still very nauseous.

Just all in all a pretty bad day. Hopefully it gets better soon.

Update (cont...)

Steve had a good day today. He showered. He ate a little. He was able to walk around the room and sit up in the chair pretty much all day. He is still nauseous, but he looks much better.

:)

Update (cont)

Steve had a pretty bad day today. His enzyme count in his liver was high so they ran some tests. In his throw up was a little bit of blood, and he is still very nauseous even though he gets constant anti-nausea medication. He was able to eat a little bit of dry cereal. He had an allergic reaction, so they gave him benadryl to treat it.

He was able to sit up in the chair and watch TV, but other than that he sleeps all day.

Thank you for all the comments!

Update

Steve is still feeling sick but he had a much better day today than yesterday.

All he really does is sleep.

Thank you for the support :)

Day 0

Notes from Mom:

Steve received his new bone marrow at 12:00pm today. He did fine and he is sleeping now.

Steve has enjoyed ALL of his visitors to this point. Unfortunately, starting this evening, since Steve is neutropenic, he will be restricted on visitors. This should only last a short time and then he can have his visitors back :) We will let you know when!

Thank you all for your continued support. Keep leaving Steve those messages!

Day Negative 1

Notes from Mom:

Steve had another pretty bad day, but it was made much better by the visitors he had.

He was able to eat dry cereal and take a walk.

Thank you again for all the support.

Day Negative 2

Notes from Mom:

Steve had a very bad night last night. He got a fever of 102 but they iced him down and got his temperature back to normal. He had a very bad reaction (rashes) to the ATG (medicine they give him for his blood transplant) but they gave him benadryl to help with the reaction.

He only ate once today, but the doctors say one day shouldn't hurt. He just has to start eating again tomorrow.

He has been sleeping all day.

The good news is that as of midnight tonight, everything is done. He will be done with chemo and the ATG.

Thanks again for all the support.

Day Negative 3

Notes from Mom:

Nothing happened today. Pretty much the same as yesterday.

A very boring day.

(Since Blogger was down for a day and a half, some of you might not have seen that you CAN visit, 24/7. He is on the 19th Floor South, room 138. Sorry about that and thanks!)

Day Negative 4

Notes from Mom:

Today was pretty much like yesterday.

He had his second day of chemotherapy.

He put on a mask and took a walk around the floor.

A BIG "thank you" to his cousin Ali in Las Vegas.

Day Negative 5

Notes from Mom:

Stephen spent the morning charming the female doctors and nurses. It was a day of all the staff coming in and getting to know him. Every time one of them left, they looked at me and said "he is such a sweetheart".

He had his PIC line put into his arm and an x-ray to make sure the line was put in correctly. He started his first round of chemotherapy and he is on nausea medication.

He cannot have any outside plants, flowers or food brought into the room. The good news is that he is on a 6 meal a day plan. All he has to do is call down and order food and they bring it up to him. More good news is that he can have visitors 24/7 and there is no limit to the amount of visitors in the room at one time. He is on the 19th floor South in room 138.

He spent the day watching TV, having his food brought to him and having cute nurses wait on him ... he could get used to this.

Let the Games Begin

Dear friends and family,

Jenn here. Steve is going into Stony Brook hospital on Wednesday May 11, 2011.

Good news is that he will only be going through 6 days of Chemotherapy and NO FULL BODY RADIATION!!!

Best case, he should be in the hospital for 4 weeks. So Matt and I are trying to load Steve up with a bunch of movies :) Especially since TV costs $5 a day. CRAZY!

So, again, I ask you to please spread the word amongst yourselves about this blog and PLEASE leave Steve a comment to brighten his day :) You never know when he will need it.

Thanks again for all the support.

Love,

Jenn
Steves sister

Yeah Buddy

I just figured out what I am going to do when I get out of the hospital and am all better. I am going to (mark my words).....Ride a whale. That's right, and I'm not talking about one of those little killer whales at Sea World. I'm talking about a Blue Whale in the wild. Maybe get a T.V. show of me riding every whale: baluga, sperm whale, pilot whale, humpback whale, bowhead whale. Its gonna be awesome.

When was the last time you ever heard of someone riding a whale?

Ideas are open: Names for the show, other stuff to ride, etc.

Its going down.

Party Getting Started

So the day has come. Wednesday May 11th I am going into the hospital. Mark your calendars. This is going down.

Step 2

My sister Jenn donating her "stimulated" stem cells that I will need for my transplant.

More Blood Please!

Went to the doctor the other day and found out that my numbers are coming down. So far down that today I went and got a Blood Transfusion. Went well, Rebecca stayed with me the whole time. I feel BETTER, STRONGER, FASTER. I think I will go wrestle a Bull.

Who wants to be my Health Care Proxy?

If I am unable to decide what to do, this proxy will decide what happens. ex; Pull the plug.

- Applications are now being excepted
- My pick is Jennifer Aniston. I don't have her number but I'm sure they could find it.

Your Mission ...

Should you choose to accept it.

Please leave a message for Steve. Leave a message so that when he needs encouragement, he can look at the comments made on this post and know there are MANY people out there who are rooting for him!

You guys are the best!!

Much love!

Jenn
(Steve's sister)

Bracelet

So, instead of LIVE strong ... we are Steve Strong!

If you would like a "SteveStrong" bracelet, to show your support for Steve, then please leave a message (with your address) on this post and we will send you one ... FREE OF CHARGE!

*Supplies are limited.

Ribbons

If you would like an Aplastic Anemia ribbon pin to show your support for Steve, then please leave a comment on this post (with your address) and we will send you one ... FREE OF CHARGE!

*Supplies are limited.

Step 1

My sister Jenn harvesting her unstimulated stem cells just in case I need them after the transplant.