DDA Chapter 4

[chaoscent]

Penny,

Stephanie and I will be at the meet in Camp Hill too. That is gonna be so much fun

It should be lots of fun. I just found out my Nephews can't go, so I will be by myself.

My mom just called. My grandmother has breast cancer and will have surgery on March 7th. I don't know any details (neither does my mom) as my grandmother lives by herself and didn't ask the doctor what type, prognosis, nada. She's 85, tired of living, and personally I'm not sure treatment is in her best interest. She has a myriad of lung and heart issues, and I just am wondering if 6+ weeks of radiation is a good choice. My mom agrees and is calling my grandmother's doctors to have a long talk. I'm not being crass. God knows I love her more than anything. I'm not sure she'd make it through general anesthesia. She is very lonely and depressed since she had to quit her job a year ago. My grandfather has been dead 10 years and she misses him desperately. I would rather her have a good quality of life at the end vs suffering with treatments that might not work. My mom and I said if she doesn't get the radiation, then we will plan a huge trip this summer as a family and go celebrate all together! I really thought this year would be better for our family.

Denise - you have not been having a good year. Here's hoping your mom has a good conversation with the doctor.
Karen - I will be thinking of you and shocker. We put down my dog TJ a few years ago and it was very hard, but best for him. We went with him as that's what I wanted to do. But our vet said sometimes people don't want to be there and that isn't unusual. We also just put down our cat (Chaos - the object of my screen name) in Sept. It was time, but it was hard. It so hard to figure out what is the right time as you don't want your pet to suffer, but you don't want to do it to early. So I have decided that when I think it is time, then it is the right time. My thoughts will be with you.
Penny
Chaos Cent

 

[tink2020]

I DID IT Thank you. Now I can keep up.
Why thank you. Penny



I am so excited that I can now keep up with the board without taking notes along the way.
Penny

Hooray! I'm glad that will help!

My mom just called. My grandmother has breast cancer and will have surgery on March 7th. I don't know any details (neither does my mom) as my grandmother lives by herself and didn't ask the doctor what type, prognosis, nada. She's 85, tired of living, and personally I'm not sure treatment is in her best interest. She has a myriad of lung and heart issues, and I just am wondering if 6+ weeks of radiation is a good choice. My mom agrees and is calling my grandmother's doctors to have a long talk. I'm not being crass. God knows I love her more than anything. I'm not sure she'd make it through general anesthesia. She is very lonely and depressed since she had to quit her job a year ago. My grandfather has been dead 10 years and she misses him desperately. I would rather her have a good quality of life at the end vs suffering with treatments that might not work. My mom and I said if she doesn't get the radiation, then we will plan a huge trip this summer as a family and go celebrate all together! I really thought this year would be better for our family.

for your family. It sounds to me like your thoughts might be the most peaceful decision for the family, and especially for your grandmother. I hope that you guys can have confirmation of that, and that she can remain comfortable for as long as she has!

 

[lovespoohbear]

all my life we had cats until shocker. the two cats died very differently and it didn't hit me as hard as this is. our cat BC died in 92 from a punctured lung while we were on vacation. of course when we got back and found out we all cried. when sunshine died in 2000 we knew it was coming. he had diabetes and went into a diabetic coma so we just put him down. if shocker did something like fall into a coma then i'd be more ok to put her down but her being spunky and trying and fighting its just hard to think about putting her down.

 

[Blueeyes101817]

We had to put my dog, Champ, down in April..It was so hard to do, but we knew that we had to do it..He was just in too much pain. He wasnt in a coma or anything, but you coudl tell how much pain he was in

I miss him all the time and i really miss having a dog. Hang in there, Karen

 

[lovespoohbear]

We had to put my dog, Champ, down in April..It was so hard to do, but we knew that we had to do it..He was just in too much pain. He wasnt in a coma or anything, but you coudl tell how much pain he was in

I miss him all the time and i really miss having a dog. Hang in there, Karen

the thing i hate is that she is acting like she isnt in pain. if she acted like she was or if i knew she was in pain i would be more enept(if thats the word im looking for) to let her go

 

[jackskellingtonsgirl]

My mom just called. My grandmother has breast cancer and will have surgery on March 7th. I don't know any details (neither does my mom) as my grandmother lives by herself and didn't ask the doctor what type, prognosis, nada. She's 85, tired of living, and personally I'm not sure treatment is in her best interest. She has a myriad of lung and heart issues, and I just am wondering if 6+ weeks of radiation is a good choice. My mom agrees and is calling my grandmother's doctors to have a long talk. I'm not being crass. God knows I love her more than anything. I'm not sure she'd make it through general anesthesia. She is very lonely and depressed since she had to quit her job a year ago. My grandfather has been dead 10 years and she misses him desperately. I would rather her have a good quality of life at the end vs suffering with treatments that might not work. My mom and I said if she doesn't get the radiation, then we will plan a huge trip this summer as a family and go celebrate all together! I really thought this year would be better for our family.

Denise, I am sorry! You guys are certainly having mor than your share of difficult times lately! I agree that your grandma is probably better off with quality vs. quantity. I hope you guys can help her develop a treatment plan that will facilitate that.

update on shocker- they called this morning and said so far no change but she is stable. dr keeps talking about high risk of aspiration because her esophagus is enlarged and weak. that is part of mg. she is thinking about a feeding tube so she wont aspirate. i asked what % of dogs respond and she said its 50/50. its so hard i really don't know what to do. i know if she does get back to walking where she can come home we still have the aspiration risk and have to watch her closely. then if we do have to put her down i know it will be best for her but i don't know if i wanna watch and be there while they put her down. then i think i should because i wanna show her i love her and i am there for her. i know my parents would probably go but i don't know if i want to. what do i do?

Karen, I am still hoping Shocker will improve.
I was with my dog Tootsie when we had her put down. That was when I was in high school. I was very sad, but I think it would have been worse to drop her off and walk away. DH took Alexandria to be put down while I was at work, so I wasn't there for her. I took Amanda just last year, and I was in the room with her. In many ways I think that has been harder for me because I keep replaying those last minutes over in my mind. She had no kidney function left, so she really was suffering. But it was hard and it made me very sad.

And you just had to share with us?

Think of it as a public service.

 

[my3princes]

Happy Birthday Leighanna

This is the perfect boutique looking birthday wish for Leigh. I love it therefore I must borrow it and pass it along.

Happy Birthday Leigh

Well - I decided I was going to try and keep up with this board, but it just did not happen. I tried and tried and when I came on this morning I was 20 pages behind. So I skipped here and there.
THere are so many things I wanted to say to different people and so many cyber hugs I wanted to send, but I kept loosing the names. I wish I knew how to respond to many people like I see others do.
Anyway, I see people are talking about a Philly meet. Please keep me in mind if you do. I would love to meet other Philly people.
Take care everyone one & Mrs. Heg (the mousekeeping envelope lady), good luck with your operation.
Penny

It's nice to have you aboard. I see that mutliquoting has been explained so I'm sure you will have a better chance of keeping up now.

Im gone the weekend of june 7-9..and july 10-19 i think..other than that, id love to have a philly meet!! we should definitely plan one!

When are you at WDW?

My mom just called. My grandmother has breast cancer and will have surgery on March 7th. I don't know any details (neither does my mom) as my grandmother lives by herself and didn't ask the doctor what type, prognosis, nada. She's 85, tired of living, and personally I'm not sure treatment is in her best interest. She has a myriad of lung and heart issues, and I just am wondering if 6+ weeks of radiation is a good choice. My mom agrees and is calling my grandmother's doctors to have a long talk. I'm not being crass. God knows I love her more than anything. I'm not sure she'd make it through general anesthesia. She is very lonely and depressed since she had to quit her job a year ago. My grandfather has been dead 10 years and she misses him desperately. I would rather her have a good quality of life at the end vs suffering with treatments that might not work. My mom and I said if she doesn't get the radiation, then we will plan a huge trip this summer as a family and go celebrate all together! I really thought this year would be better for our family.

When it rains it pours...

I whole heartly agree that the treatment at her age may be much worse than the disease. Get all the options and go from there. Chemo and/or radiation will take time off her life in itself and those months will be hell on her, if she can tolerate it.

denise- im sorry to hear about your grandmother and also john. i hope they are able to find out what is going on

leighanna happy birthday sweetie

update on shocker- they called this morning and said so far no change but she is stable. dr keeps talking about high risk of aspiration because her esophagus is enlarged and weak. that is part of mg. she is thinking about a feeding tube so she wont aspirate. i asked what % of dogs respond and she said its 50/50. its so hard i really don't know what to do. i know if she does get back to walking where she can come home we still have the aspiration risk and have to watch her closely. then if we do have to put her down i know it will be best for her but i don't know if i wanna watch and be there while they put her down. then i think i should because i wanna show her i love her and i am there for her. i know my parents would probably go but i don't know if i want to. what do i do?

This is not an easy decision. We struggled for many months with this decision when Tuffy couldn't walk well. It was the hardest decision that I have ever made. He didn't have a great quality of life at that point and struggled to do the most basic things. Then we had to make the decision to have Tiffany put down at the same time as her disease was progressing and we knew that dealing with the loss of her best friend would not be easy and the disease on top of it made us make the decision. Chris and I went with them and held them. It was so hard and it will be burnt into my mind forever. If your parents are willing to go, that may be the best for you and for Shocker. Trust me it is not something you want to see when you close your eyes at night.

 

[Pooh67_68]

My mom just called. My grandmother has breast cancer and will have surgery on March 7th.

 

[Blueeyes101817]

When are you at WDW?
.

If all works out, July 12-19..We are not sure yet , as we will not be able to plan for another month or so...

 

[UP Disney]

Who was sending me their coupons for the lithographs? I received two - the one from Elizabeth and the one from Deb. I don't remember who else was sending them. We leave on Thursday after work.

 

[my3princes]

If all works out, July 12-19..We are not sure yet , as we will not be able to plan for another month or so...

That is awesome. We will be there until the 18th. We can meet up

Who was sending me their coupons for the lithographs? I received two - the one from Elizabeth and the one from Deb. I don't remember who else was sending them. We leave on Thursday after work.

I'm pretty sure Tammi was sending hers.

 

[Blueeyes101817]

That is awesome. We will be there until the 18th. We can meet up .

finally!!

 

[UP Disney]

I'm making sure my shopping list is all set. This is what I have on my planning spreadsheet.

Sleeping Beauty Hot Chocoalte canister - Robyn
Passholder Pin - Elizabeth
Mickey Head Crepe maker (cookie cutter with hinged handle) - Deb
Lithographs - Deb
Lithographs - Tammi?
Lithographs - Janet?
Lithographs - for me (thanks to Elizabeth)

Is there anything that I have forgotten or anything someone else needs? I'm thinking there was another passholder pin I was supposed to get for someone.

 

[tinker1bell]

My mom just called. My grandmother has breast cancer and will have surgery on March 7th. I don't know any details (neither does my mom) as my grandmother lives by herself and didn't ask the doctor what type, prognosis, nada. She's 85, tired of living, and personally I'm not sure treatment is in her best interest. She has a myriad of lung and heart issues, and I just am wondering if 6+ weeks of radiation is a good choice. My mom agrees and is calling my grandmother's doctors to have a long talk. I'm not being crass. God knows I love her more than anything. I'm not sure she'd make it through general anesthesia. She is very lonely and depressed since she had to quit her job a year ago. My grandfather has been dead 10 years and she misses him desperately. I would rather her have a good quality of life at the end vs suffering with treatments that might not work. My mom and I said if she doesn't get the radiation, then we will plan a huge trip this summer as a family and go celebrate all together! I really thought this year would be better for our family.

Denise, I am so sorry you are having just one thing happen after another.

I sure hope by next month you and your family are planning a fun trip for the summer.

 

[tinker1bell]

denise- im sorry to hear about your grandmother and also john. i hope they are able to find out what is going on

leighanna happy birthday sweetie

update on shocker- they called this morning and said so far no change but she is stable. dr keeps talking about high risk of aspiration because her esophagus is enlarged and weak. that is part of mg. she is thinking about a feeding tube so she wont aspirate. i asked what % of dogs respond and she said its 50/50. its so hard i really don't know what to do. i know if she does get back to walking where she can come home we still have the aspiration risk and have to watch her closely. then if we do have to put her down i know it will be best for her but i don't know if i wanna watch and be there while they put her down. then i think i should because i wanna show her i love her and i am there for her. i know my parents would probably go but i don't know if i want to. what do i do?

Karen, Shocker knows you love her and if you cannot be with her at the end, it will be okay. You spent a lot of good quality time together and those are the memories to hold close to your heart. She will live on in the next puppy you get to help you get around.

 

[marcij]

they did the test on shocker and it didnt work. the doctor said that 50% of dogs dont work out so not to be worried. so they are going to start her on the meds and hope she response. so here i am crying again. i want her back so bad but i know i am being selfish and need to think about her. if she doesnt respond i guess we have to put her down. i hate it because she is still her sweet self wagging tail, giving kisses and alert and wanting to walk.

Karen -- I'm so sorry. Sending prayers to you. You do what is best for you.

Happy Birthday Leighanna

Beautiful Heidi. Happy Birthday Leighanna!

Marci & Lindsay - Do either of you guys have a subscription to DSM? I REALLY, REALLY want to take DS to "Cats" but only subscribers can get tickets. I'm afraid by the time they open up tickets to the public the good seats will be gone.

I managed to get DS to try on his new clothes. Those 12/14 shirts are HUGE! The 8/10 looked so small when I held it up, but it is a little bit big on him. Who knew children came in travel size? So I am going to return the huge shirts and see if I can find the Nike ones in the smaller size.

We switched DS's backpack from the one he has always used to one of the "Disney" backpacks. I don't know that there is much difference, really. The new one does have a little slot inside for a cell phone, though. Strange thing is that when he started pulling stuff out of the old backpack he had a huge pack of colored pencils AND a pack of sketching pencils. I thought that stuff got stolen out of the locker? So now he isn't really clear on what was stolen from the locker. I am quite certain I will be ignoring the supply lists that come home next year. I will buy the basics and keep them on hand here at home, but there is NO WAY I am sending bags of supplies to school just so they can disappear.

Elizabeth -- I'm a member. Let me know what you need.

My mom just called. My grandmother has breast cancer and will have surgery on March 7th. I don't know any details (neither does my mom) as my grandmother lives by herself and didn't ask the doctor what type, prognosis, nada. She's 85, tired of living, and personally I'm not sure treatment is in her best interest. She has a myriad of lung and heart issues, and I just am wondering if 6+ weeks of radiation is a good choice. My mom agrees and is calling my grandmother's doctors to have a long talk. I'm not being crass. God knows I love her more than anything. I'm not sure she'd make it through general anesthesia. She is very lonely and depressed since she had to quit her job a year ago. My grandfather has been dead 10 years and she misses him desperately. I would rather her have a good quality of life at the end vs suffering with treatments that might not work. My mom and I said if she doesn't get the radiation, then we will plan a huge trip this summer as a family and go celebrate all together! I really thought this year would be better for our family.

Denise -- I'm so sorry! Sending lots of prayers to your grandma, mother, you and the rest of the family. A trip to celebrate with her is a great idea.

Amy and Kevin -- congrats on your boy! I love that name. It was kind of funny when you said that, because the Last Mimzy is on now and the little boy is Noah.

 

[mommykds]

Elizabeth,
Ewww gross. I always ask for a lemon for my diet soda. I guess no more!

 

[mommykds]

Denise,
You guys need a break. I am sorry to hear about your grandma.

 

[mommykds]

Karen,

 

[PNO4TE]

Denise - I am so sorry to hear about your grandmother. That is such a tough call to make. I am glad your Mom is going to talk to her doctor. Hopefully they will work out the best plan of action for her.

Karen - I continue to send you after I am sorry you have to deal with this. I know how close you are to Shocker.