0.0 Leila done lost her spunk

Day 8 

01.13.2023

Friday the 13th

WBC 0.0

Neutrophils, eosinophils, basophils, lymphocytes, monocytes, macrophages - all nil, nada, zilch, zip, zero

RBC 3.4

Platelets 3.0       

They gave her a bag of platelets today because her nose started bleeding.  Nothing there to help it clot.

What does it look like when someone has minimal blood?

This was yesterday:

This was this morning:

In actuality she's looked like this the majority of the past 3 days:

    

When asked how she was feeling, Leila told the nurse, "I feel like I am on my period, with the flu, and I ate bad sushi last night, after running a marathon in high heels."  Nothing like some good imagery to help us understand.   

So, maybe she hasn't totally lost her spunk - it peeks out from time to time throughout the day.  They switched her to phenergan for the nausea today and she started having wild dreams, talking in her sleep and having mild hallucinations.  But it kept the nausea at bay.  Guess you have to choose your poison sometimes.  

It's so hard so see Leila lifeless.  That's just not her.  She's probably been awake only a few hours each day since Wednesday.  Looking forward to those numbers starting to climb back up so the Leila we all know and love starts to feel more alive.  Right now she feels pretty punk, but the doctor said that should shift this weekend.  The good news is her mood is good, her spirits are good and her sense of humor is intact - when she is awake.  

I got a real good description today from the APRN overseeing her care.  He said the stem cells she received last week went into the bone marrow and planted themselves, much like you'd plant seeds in the garden.  The growth hormone shots she's been getting in her belly since day 3 are like the fertilizer, nurturing the seeds.  Now that the dead cells are finding their way out of her system, the new cells will start to flourish, push out of the bone marrow, and into her blood stream.  The rate of production will determine how soon she can leave the hospital.  We'll be watching and waiting, sending all our intentions for lots and lots of heathy productive stem cells.  Here's hoping they procreate like rabbits and mice. 

Neutrophils, eosinophils, basophils, lymphocytes, monocytes, macrophages, platelets and erythrocytes - multiply!!!

Nows the time we expect her hair to start falling out, as the new cells come in and push out the old dead ones.  Her skin is tingly, which is a sign that is happening.  Oh my.