Swamp Thing

Hey, everyone. Long time no blog!

It's been seven weeks since the surgery - not a long time in the normal world, but an eternity in a post-op existence. There's no way to sugarcoat this: recovery is a bitch.

Eddie has had a couple of infections since being home, one of which landed him back at Memorial on August 4th with a fever, shakes, and a high white blood cell count. While infections are common during recovery, I don't think any of us was anticipating Eddie would get one - much less that it could take so much out of him. To be back in the hospital so shortly after the surgery was dispiriting to say the least (in a recent email to me he called in the "kidney infection swamp"), but he weathered it like a champ.

The good news is that the doctors did a lot of testing in order to give him a super targeted antiobiotic, the infection has been eradicated, and he is feeling much better. His recovery is back on track and he's gaining energy. His appetite, both literal and metaphorical, is growing (which is good, because he lost quite a bit of weight). The juicers are whirring. He is training his new bladder, which is a slow business, but medically he is right on track.

Perhaps best of all - his hair is growing in. Brother Don is visiting this week, and then Eddie will return to the dacha for some country living.

 

Eddie and the water lillies

 

Seven and Three Quarters Inches

That's the length of Eddie's new scar, extending roughly due south from his bellybutton. The staples came out today, and the doctors say Eddie's abdomen is healing nicely.

I saw him today for the first time since July 4th (Aaron and I were traveling in the UK). The atmosphere at home was cheerful, and there are good reasons for it.

For one, Bruna (the dog) is back home, and a new inducement for Eddie to do all the walking the docs are recommending.

Even more important, preliminary pathology on the tissue removed in Eddie's surgery shows no residual tumor.

So - lots to celebrate!

Freedom

Happy July 4th everyone. Eddie came home today. Fitting that he would be released from the hospital on the anniversary of the country's independence. Wheee!

We are relieved to have him home, as is he. We've got two giant bags of supplies for home care of his apparatuses, and a visiting nurse will come every one to three days, starting tomorrow. His next appointment with his surgeon is on Monday, when his stents will be removed. This is all very good news, but of course it's not all fireworks and celebrating around here - there is a lot of rest and recovery ahead. So: onward.

Enjoy the hot holiday. We will write again soon.

Peekytoe

Hi folks,

This is just a quick note to let you know Eddie's recovery is moving along nicely. Aaron and I visited him this afternoon - Hana and Leda were already in the room.

Earlier in the day, Eddie did some laps around the fifth floor of the hospital (close to half a mile, we figure) and was pretty lively when we arrived.

He's sharing a room with a loud French Canadian, who apologized for being too loud.

Tomorrow, we're hopeful he'll be allowed to drink liquids. Everything in time.

Give his toes a mental squeeze if you will.

Surgery complete, succcessful

Sorry for not updating the blog yesterday. Today's post is long, but if you don't feel like reading it all, just know that the surgery went well, everything was as planned, and Eddie is recovering at the hospital. If you want the longer version of how the whole day went, read on.

Groupthink. The good kind.

Hi, all. It's been a while, in a good way. I think we have all enjoyed the break between the final round of chemo and the next step of surgery on Saturday the 29th. While we like to joke that we have to give Eddie whatever he wants because he has cancer, it has also been nice to spend some time forgetting about sickness and treatment. But, time passes. As much as we wish it weren't so, we know that the surgery is a necessary part of recovery.

 

We are writing to let you know and to ask you to think good wishes for us. My dad loves hearing from all of you, so anyone who wants to comment here or write him a note is really encouraged to do so. 

 

Our mom is also inviting all his friends and family who are so inclined to share in a meditation for his surgery and complete recovery on Wednesday the 26th, from 9pm to 10pm Eastern. In her words: 

Our joining together multiplies manyfold the power of our intentions. You can join us at any point in that window; or you can do it individually if that is better for you, or again at the time of the surgery from 8am to 1pm.

I'll plan to post an update here later in the day on Saturday, once he is out and in the recovery unit, or early on Sunday. 

Thank you, always, for all of your warm wishes and support. They keep us buoyed.

Early June Thoughts

Hi everyone,

Yesterday at the farmer's market, some stalls were selling vegetable seedlings at a discount because it's the end of the planting season. Can time really be moving so fast?

On Friday I accompanied Eddie to one of his pre-op appointments. The entire effort now is at preparing for major surgery, the first in Eddie's life, on June 29th.

Recovery and recuperation happens in stages, measured first in weeks, then months. And we are planning for it. Don and Harriet (brother and sister in law) have kindly volunteered to stay at my folks' Pennsylvania cabin and look after the domestic fauna, while Eddie recovers in the city. Hana, Leda, and I will all be in New York with him.

One perhaps unexpected aspect to this health crisis is the re-appearance of Eddie's mother's letters. Dorothy Marritz had a degnerative nerve disease from the time Eddie was born, and died shortly after he reached adulthood. In the last few months, Eddie and his older bothers Robert and Don have been scanning and circulating via email various letters she wrote. These illustrate the unique Marritz family dynamic - all families have one, similar almost to a fingerprint - and also Dorothy's very personal thoughts on pain and health. It amazes me again and again that a voice on the page can have so much power, many years later.

After the appointment on Friday, Eddie and I stood in torrential rain, waiting for a crosstown bus. Then we caught "Before Midnight". Great movie, I think he and I would both recommend it.