Ambling Along

Monday's appointment was upbeat.

My blood counts were a little lower than before the weekend, but that can be caused by either GVHD or sampling error. My doctor seconded the earlier visual diagnosis of my rash being GVHD, saying it had a classic appearance. By then the rash was still visible over much of my body, but it wasn't itchy enough to cause me to lube up, and it has continued to subside.

A week ago, on Thursday, the transplant team had discussed my case and was preparing to take me off the immunosuppressant drugs in order to trigger GVHD, possibly as soon as this week. On Friday, I showed up in the clinic with GVHD, so we're going to stick with the current dosage.

I am no longer getting magnesium supplements, which are given intravenously, so I will have my PICC line removed this coming Monday. This will be a big step toward normalcy. I can forget about the line dangling out of my arm for long periods of time, but it creeps into my consciousness at night when I change sleeping positions, and it makes showering difficult because it has to be kept dry. I won't miss it. Potassium levels are also OK, which means one monster pill a day I no longer take.

Today, when I pulled my arm out of my long-sleeved T-shirt so that my brother and I could flush the PICC line, the hairs on my arm — just about the last part of my body to have hair — looked like they were dusted with frost. It was enchanting for the second or two it took me to realize the frost was dead skin cells that had accumulated since I got up in the morning. I assume the rash has caused more than the usual number of skin cells to slough off. (Note to self: Wash the sheets.)

My brother the professor has been my minder this week. For now, he has more hair on his head than I do. He is taking the week between his school's January term and the start of the spring semester to keep an eye on me, keeping up my family's superb support. He does his professor stuff, prepares meals, shops, cleans, and takes walks with me. I do a little work, eat, sleep, take walks. This week's new walk was to get all the way to the lakeshore from the apartment. It was dark, so we got to see downtown Chicago's skyscrapers all lit up, off to the north.

My next minder is Jan, for a whole week. I feel well enough that it should feel like a couple spending time together instead of a patient being cared for by a round-the-clock nurse. Sounds good to me!