Friday
- They say Brian's tumor is big
- We meet with a neurosurgeon
- We find out Brian will have surgery in 1-2 weeks
- We learn he may be paralyzed on his left side and wheelchair bound
- The doctor notices Brian's slight limp and tells us it is a result of the tumor and there is a chance of seizure
- We drive to Tampa and Brian goes to a hotel for work
- Harper and I have a great day at the zoo with my parents
- Brian comes back and has regressed.
- Brian is walking more weirdly and he notices slower processing on his left side
- I freak out, worry all night long, and constantly am scared
- We drive home
- I text Dr. B. He tells me to call the neurosurgeon
- The neurosurgeon on call tells us to come to the ER and they wills end us home with meds or admit us after scans
- OUR neurosurgeon calls us on our way to the ER and is excited because he was struggling to figure out how to get us into the ER and now surgery will be tomorrow
- We get admitted
- A bunch of friends join us
- Brian has an hour and a half MRI
- We are sent to the neuro ICU to save our room for after surgery
- We meet amazing nurses
- WE ARE CONSTANTLY LOVED AND SUPPORTED BY OUR VILLAGE
- Brian is taken down for surgery
- Right before he leaves they explain the scary risks again
- We wait all DAY! 7-3:30
- The doctor comes out and explains that he did the best he could
- He explains Brian's brain was already swollen and the tumor had grown since Wednesday
- He had to go through the motor processing part of his brain (different than expected)
- He wasn't sure if Brian had stroked or not
- He knew he got 80-90% of the tumor but wasn't sure about the rest
- He didn't know the extent of the damage to the left side of Brian's body
- Our group of friends and I waited and waited and waited
- Around 6:00 they came and said Brian woke up and his smile was symmetrical meaning no stroke but he hadn't moved his left side. We were all so relieved. At this point I didn't care if he ever moved his left side again
- At 6:30 they came and said he had moved his left arm and gripped their hands!!!
- At 6:45ish I waited in a hall to see him where his first words were divorce!
- We got to his room and his left side was slow to respond to a command but got better throughout the night
- Throughout the night they woke Brian every hour for neuro checks
- We made it through the first night with no complications
- WE WERE CONSTANTLY LOVED AND SUPPORTED BY OUR VILLAGE
- The surgeons came in and were shocked by Brian's improvement
- He moved his legs and feet
- His strength was a 3 out of 5 on his left side
- He couldn't bend his knee
- By 9:30 they had him sitting up in a chair
- At 10:30 I am in a waiting room with my parents and Zak and see Brian walking down the hall with a PT team!!!!
- Throughout the day his body responds more and more
- A bunch of people at work donate hours to Brian and overwhelm us
- WE WERE CONSTANTLY LOVED AND SUPPORTED BY OUR VILLAGE
- The surgeon came in and say they got the WHOLE tumor.
- There is clear excitement but the tumor was aggressive
- We still have to be worried about seizure, bleeding, and such
- Brian gets up and walks again. He even climbs up and down stairs!!!!
- Brian is amusing everyone in the ICU
- WE WERE CONSTANTLY LOVED AND SUPPORTED BY OUR VILLAGE
- The surgeon explains how much he was worried about the surgery and how it is the best possible result possible
- We get moved to a private room (thanks to our excellent nurse)
- We walk more
- Brian has barely any pain
- Brian requests food other than hospital food. A clear sign he was feeling better
- WE WERE CONSTANTLY LOVED AND SUPPORTED BY OUR VILLAGE
- Brian's strength is 5 out of 5 on his left side
- He walks unassisted.
- We come home!!!
- I have a slight breakdown (I think a release of all the stress finally hitting me)
- Our baby is so happy to see us
- WE WERE CONSTANTLY LOVED AND SUPPORTED BY OUR VILLAGE
- We are home!!
- I ran a 10K in just over and hour
- Brian is moving better and better
- We went out to eat as a family
- Brian has no pain
- WE ARE CONSTANTLY LOVED AND SUPPORTED BY OUR VILLAGE
- We go to church!
- We watch football
- Life almost feels normal!
- WE ARE CONSTANTLY LOVED AND SUPPORTED BY OUR VILLAGE
We know we are blessed. So many prayers have been answered. We will keep hoping and praying and knowing we are loved.
What's next?
Tomorrow we have a simulation for leg radiation. We call to schedule PT. We find out when we start immunotherapy. We find out when our surgical follow up is to get the staples out. We get to make our next plan (knowing that it will probably change before I can even blog about it). We start to be on the offensive again against cancer.
Love you all!
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