Feeling Pretty Drowsey

I'm on my 2nd to last day of my chemo treatments and I'm starting to hit the point where I feel sleepy. I slept most of this morning, went on a walk for about 1/2 a mile and ate breakfast. I can just now start to feel my taste buds change as foods start to taste funny for about the next week or so. You just have to listen to your body. If your tired take a nap. If you aren't hungry then just eat small portions of items that you really like. What I usually do when I start losing my appetite is just order up several things that I like and then just pick at them. That way you can find out what tastes good on any particular day. :) I also have a weird craving for hot dogs when the Chemo starts to hit. Hahaha!

A big thanks to everyone who came to visit me yesterday too! My fantastic sister Lindsay had the day off and came with her friend Laura for a surprise visit!!! It really brightened my day. I have definitely gotten even closer to my wonderful sister throughout everything that has gone on. She's an amazing person!! Love ya Lindz!

For supper our good friends Jordan and Chelsea came with seasoned grilled chicken, green beans (with onions and bacon), corn and pasta salad. It was unbelievably good, I had 2 helpings of everything and a chocolate cookie to top it off. Stacey and I have a tradition with Jordan and Chelsea that we have a "last supper" before I go in for my treatments. We were all busy the week before so they just decided to bring it to me! You guys are the best! And Katelyn is super cool too! Sublime Rules!

My cousin Aaron and Mandy are coming to visit me for lunch so I have to sign off for now.

Brian Pritchard

PS thanks for getting my mail for me Quam!!

Now Walk It Out

I have had much more energy so far during this round of Chemo. I think it is due to the fact that I have been walking a lot more on this round. I walked 3 miles yesterday and already have 2 miles in this morning. I am going to do at least 4 total today. You definitely see a trend with the people who get more exercise. It becomes easier to recover after your treatments. Staying in your hospital bed all day makes you weaker when you get out. It is my goal to go at least 3 miles everyday of my treatments.

Status Update: Yesterday I felt great after I got about 10 hours of sleep. I was pretty tired from a big fun weekend. Also on Friday the doctors said that they when they felt my arm pit region (where the softball sized cancer was) they could only feel muscle instead of a tumor!!! What great news!!! God is good!!! This doesn't mean that I am out of the woods or that the cancer is gone but it does mean that the Chemo treatments are going very good so far.

Also if you know anyone that is going through Chemo treatments, has just been diagnosed with cancer or could just use a pick me up. Feel free to pass this site on to anyone. If I can just help one person learn about Chemo treatments, Cancer or just what to expect than this blog has truly done its job. Thanks to everyone that has passed it along, helped create it, posted on it or just read it. Thank you all.

If you need a pick me up today here are the albums that I have been listening to on my IPOD: Bob Marley -Greatest Hits, The Beatles - Sergeant Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band, John Mayer - Continuum, Kings of Leon - Only By The Night, O.A.R. - Any Time Now and Jack Johnson - Brushfire Fairytales.

If you can think of anything that I should listen too while I'm doing my walks leave me a post and I will get it on ITunes. I love discovering new music!

Laugh Everyday!

Brian Pritchard

Happy Monday Everyone

I had a great weekend hanging out with my college friends at CJ and Sonja's wedding in Okoboji. We got there Friday night, checked in and headed out to eat and have some fun in downtown Okoboji. It was great to see Doudna, Jeffy, Jones, CJ, Sonja, Peter, Dan, Jacobs, Longner and Watts. It's always good to get to see people that you haven't seen for so long.

Saturday we got up and headed to a Sports Bar in Okoboji to cheer on our USA soccer teams as they played in the World Cup. They lost... It was disappointing but I am still very proud of our boys to make it past the group stage. Maybe in 2014 we won't have to play Ghana. (We have been knocked out the last two times by the Ghanaians) It was still fun and there were alot of US supporters there. GO YANKS!

The Wedding was beautiful because it was held outdoors overlooking the lake by this big beautiful oak tree. Kudos to CJ and Sonja for a beautiful ceremony and a fantastic reception. You guys did a wonderful job! Love you both! I had some troubles dancing because I have developed some large blisters on my feet. I did do a little bit of dancing but mainly I was just catching up with old friends at the reception.

Aren't weddings one of life pure joys. You get to see two people dedicate their lives to each other. What could possibly be more amazing than that? Plus I'm a big fan of the receptions! Dancing and Complementary drinks. Win Win!

I hope everyone has a fantastic Monday because I know I will.

Schedule today: Eat breakfast, go on a mile walk, watch the Dutch vs Slovakia game (Go Dutch!), nap, eat lunch, go on a mile walk, watch Brazil vs Chile (Go Chili!), go on another mile walk, eat supper, watch Cubbies and go to bed. Sounds like it might just be the perfect day in the hospital. And a great way to start my 4th round of Chemo! Only two treatments to go after this! Woo Woo!

God is Love ~ Rev Run

Brian Pritchard

Keep the comments coming! It gives me a boost everytime I hear from all of you!

The Pursuit of Happiness

Today I woke up and I realized that on Sunday I go in for my 4th Chemotherapy treatment. It's become routine for me at this point. I know the nurses and staff by name. I know what Chemo drugs and how I react to them etc. I also know that starting Sunday and for the next two weeks I am going to feel run down, tired, my fingers will be numb, food will taste weird, I will have heartburn, my appetite will fluctuate, I may need another blood transfusion and the Nueprogen will make my bones hurt. But that is why I need to really take advantage of this weekend while I am feeling good. I am going to be going to CJ and Sonja's beautiful wedding in Okoboji. I will get to dance, sing, see friends that I haven't seen in forever, golf, swim, eat great food and enjoy the beauty that is Iowa.

One of my favorite saying is that the bitter makes the sweet taste that much sweeter. Translation: The rough times in our lives make us appreciate the really good times. All of us have things that we are going through and having problems with but good times are ahead. We need to appreciate how blessed we all are and not dwell on the negative.

I am lucky because I know when I am going to have rough times. The Doctor schedules the Chemotherapy treatments and I go. Most people don't know when the rough patches are going to hit. That's why it is so essential to take advantage of the beauty that is life when were feeling good. I challenge everyone to make it a fantastic weekend. Were all on the pursuit of happiness this weekend! Whatever you are doing make is special and make the people that you are with feel special too. It's your life, you only get one, live it to the fullest!

Just Try and Ruin My Day!

Brian Pritchard

P.S. I cried on my laptop when I wrote this. They were tears of joy.

Story Time!

I was just thinking of all of the funny stories that we have had during our little journey and one stuck in my mind today imparticular. Anesthesia makes people do weird things and I was no exception. I have had 4 minor surgeries during this affair and one of them was a biopsy of my Lymph nodes where they just clean knocked me out. Here is the dialog between my family and the nurse while I was in the recovery room.

Door opens and the nurse walks in with a big smile on her face trying not to laugh

Nurse: Everything went great with the procedure and Brian is recovering just fine in the recovery room
(A sigh of relief from Stacey and my family)
Nurse: But is Brian a bit of a talker? (she says with a smile)
Family and Stacey: Oh god yes! He will just talk to anyone.
Nurse: I thought so... Well when he woke up he made it his duty to talk to both of the patients that were in the recovery room with him. (Bigger smile from the nurse)
Stacey: Oh no... here we go...
Nurse: (Laughing) He first let the lady next to him know who was also on drugs that his name was Brian and that he would be here if she needed any help. He told all of the nurses in the recovery room to take extra special good care of this lady because she seemed nice. The lady just rolled her eyes. Then he turned to the younger boy who next to him who clearly just had his tonsales taken out and asked him if he was doing ok. The boy didn't respond for obvious throat surgery reasons but Brian asked again to check the status of one of his fellow patients. Again no response. Finally he tries one more time but to no avail. All of the nurses in the room were trying not to laugh when Brian turns to us and says with a confused look on his face"Man that kid must be a mute or something" WE LOST IT!
Stacey: Oh my God... Yep that was Brian for sure...

So in conclusion if you or someone you know was harassed by someone post surgery in the recovery room just let them know that I am sorry. Hahaha!

Status Update: I'm feeling good and working a full week this week again! Woo Hoo! It's like Woody Harrelson says from the movie Dazed and Confused: "Just got to keep on Livin' Man! L-I-V-I-N!"

What a Wonderful Weekend

First of all, HAPPY FATHER'S DAY!

Brian and I had a lovely day with his family. We enjoyed a nice lunch with his dad, mom, and sister at Rock Bottom Brewery. After we were completely stuffed (and yes Brian did eat a juicy, fully loaded hamburger with NO berries) we headed off to the Des Moines Botanical Center. It was so gorgeous and it was PACKED! I guess everyone took advantage of the free pass for dad today. After being educated we headed out to Summerset Winery in Indianola. Brian and I love this place because it offers patrons something fun to do on a Sunday afternoon. We stumbled upon this gem last year when I was on break from school and were looking for something fun to do. We took a chance and went out for wine and live music. Today was the most people I had seen there thus far. The band was a blues band and it was so nice to sit, relax, and visit with family.


To answer everyone's burning question (and according to posts/texts Brian and I received today everyone wants to know) YES Brian (and I) had so much FUN wedding dancing at Nic and Jessica's reception (CONGRATS you two!!!). He may or may not have been the last person on the dance floor...actually he wasn't our good friend was, Brian had blisters. It took Brian a little bit to get into the groove but with the help of a friend he was easily persuaded to the dance floor. The first song he challenged one of the groomsmen to a dance off, Brian won (at least in my book).

For those of you that have not had the pleasure to see Brian and I wedding dance, you are missing out. In February we were in Sunny San Diego and went dancing and a random stranger came up to us and asked for our picture because 'we had made his night'! Our dancing consists of 95% Brian and 5% me!

After dancing for hours Brian accumulated multiple blisters (which has been an odd side effect of chemo for Brian) and slept until 11 am today. We were wiped but excited to do it all over again next weekend. Our oncologist pulled some strings and gave Brian permission to go to a wedding next weekend so his next round of chemo has been bumped to Sunday instead of Friday. Our oncologist felt it was important mentally for Brian to attend so he worked it out that as soon as we return Sunday AM he could go to the hospital for round 4.

It was a GREAT weekend. It is weekends like these that most people take for granted however Brian and I have learned to brace these weekends and enjoy EVERY little second. We have a great appreciation for what the Lord has provided for us. We have been blessed.

I hope every father had a great day and I want to wish my near and dear father a Happy Father's day as well as my father in-law!

Love,
Stacey

P.S. Brian would have posted but he was exhausted and went to bed REALLY early (before the sun).

Status Update: TGIF!!

Hello Everybody!

Stacey is feeling a little better today, thanks for all of the prayers! I am really excited that it is Friday. It is going to be a great weekend for Stacey and I. We are going to Nick's wedding on Friday and on Sunday my family is coming in to town and we are going to the Summerset Winery in Indianola. On Saturday Stacey and I are going to participate in one of our favorite things.... Wedding Dancing! If Wedding Dancing was a reality TV show we would have already won the Disco Ball Trophy! We Love it! Life is Good!

Status Update: I am feeling fantastic! Getting that Blood Transfusion was just the ticket for me. It's way better than Starbucks!

I hope everyone has a wonderful weekend! You gotta live it up when your feeling good!

Brian

Chemo Gas And The Human Response

So to keep up with the upbeat theme of my blog I will be adding funny stories from my experience and here is a little anecdote about a side effect of my Cheomo treatments. Enjoy!

After my first treatment things were going great, I had a little bit of heart burn but no major side effects. I went to work that one day feeling good, made it through lunch with no problems and then I learned about one of Chemo's silent side effects. :) I had Chemo Gas as it is known by the Doctors. Due to the Chemo your stomach produces a lot of acid which explains the heart burn too. This is an exact conversation that I had with a couple of my teammates at work after I released some of the pressure.

Cubicle Buddy One: What is that smell ?!??!?
Brian: (No Response)
Cubicle Buddy Two: Yeah what is that SMELL?!?!?! Brian do you SMELL that?!?!?!
Brian: (Embarrassed but still silent)
Cubicle Buddy One: Brian? You over there?
Brian: Uhhhh Yeah.... What is that? (Then I blurted out) I think that maybe our air vents need to be cleaned.

So If you or someone you know is a janitor that complained about having to clean vents that seemed to be completely clean. Then tell them my story and tell them that I am sorry. I learned my lesson and never gambled on my Chemo Gas since then.

Sometimes we all need to laugh at ourselves because what we do is just plain hilarious! Hope that this little diddy brightens your day as much as it did mine!

Brian

My New Blood

My buddy Nick from work told me not to worry about the blood transfusion because all they were doing was just "Changing my oil!" (Hahaha!) :) He was right for sure because there was nothing to worry about. I'm feeling as normal as I have felt since my treatment over a week ago. I had lots of strength and energy today for work. I did get a little sleepy at 2:30 but who doesn't? Hopefully I am at full strength for Nick's wedding this weekend. It's gonna be awesome. Also on Sunday my wonderful family is coming to visit and we are going to our favorite winery in Indianola. Red's have lots of antioxidants!

I did have a bummer tonight though when I came home. Stacey was in our bedroom with the heating pad and told me that she went to the doctor and that she might have strep throat. Don't worry Sandy (Stacey's Mom) I am taking good care of her. It's nice to take care of her instead of the other way around all the time. One thing is for sure that she is a much better patient than I am. I hope she feels better soon though. She's my Rock!

Go Hawks and Cubbies!

My First Blood Transfusion!

I just had my first Blood Transfusion today and everything went very well. I was feeling pretty weak and tired before the Transfusion but I do feel better now. They gave me two small bags of O+ blood from the Blood Center of Iowa. Thanks to all of you who donate blood. It goes to help people like me!

I did take the day off from work because I was feeling so tired. I took a big nap this afternoon and I think that the new blood has helped my energy already! :) I don't feel as winded now because I have my new red blood cells with their extra oxygen cells. I am going to go walk on our treadmill in our little apartment complex to get some exercise ! Hopefully tommorow I will feel good enough to go back to work! Woo hoo! Life is good!

Also keep the comments coming! I love to hear from everyone it really keeps me going!!!!

Update!

Hello all,
This is Stacey! I'm posting for Brian tonight because he is EXHAUSTED. We found out today that his red blood cell's have officially hit rock bottom and aren't coming up so they decided to go ahead and do a blood transfusion tomorrow morning. This is a new adventure for us but we know it is best. His low blood count explains why he has been so tired this weekend. I thought he was being lazy when he wouldn't load the dishwasher, but it turns out that he REALLY was fatigued. We had a nice visit from my mom and sister Friday as well as cheering on USA Saturday with some good friends. All of this accumulated and led to him being completely tired and barely able to move back and fourth from the couch yesterday.

I did make him do light house work such as folding laundry while sitting down, dusting the table while seated, and cutting vegetables...do not let him fool you that I'm a slave driver. I didn't want to wear him down more but the PT in me knew he couldn't lay for the entire day (1 day bed rest = 3 days of loss strength).

He was able to return to work today and even worked a full 8 hour shift! This is amazing but I know it is because he wants as much normalcy as possible and he will battle all in order to achieve his normalcy. However, this did result in him going to bed at 6:10pm after I grilled him a HUGE T-bone steak topped off with a baked sweet potato, and steamed veggies (the Dr.'s said it wouldn't help his blood counts but I think it helps a little (at least last time it did)).

Once again, I must thank you all for the continued support. It is so comforting knowing we are not alone in our fight and that hundred's of people have our back. I feel so blessed and am speechless by the number of people that have touched Brian and I's life. I have come to realize in my recent PT internship that what we are going through is just a small bump in the road compared to the mountains that others must climb. My experience through Brian has renewed a passion to help others and help encourage them to keep on with the fight for life!

Dr. appt @ 8 am and Brian wants to attempt work afterwards!

We are trying to do a better job of continually updating so please visit frequently as well as LEAVE Brian comments so that he has something to look forward to!!

Frequently Asked Questions (Part 1)

Do you have any pain from your Lymphoma?

Good Question Everyone: I don't nor have I had any pain or discomfort in the areas that I have cancer. I am very lucky because many people will feel the pain even before their diagnosis and many times it can get progressively worse as Chemotherapy is administered. This is not the case with me. I haven't felt any pain from my cancer. It is one of many answered prayers.

However: I do feel some discomfort from a shot that I receive called Neuprogen (I warmly refer to it as Newp!). Stacey gives me the shot once a day for 7 days after I get home from my Chemo treatments. It helps my bone marrow produce more white blood cells so that I keep my counts up which is great. But it does produce some long bone pain. I first noticed that my jaw hurt after my first treatment and then it comes and goes in my arms, legs and jaws. It really doesn't hurt all that much, its just more of nuisance than anything. If it is the worst pain that I will have throughout my treatments I will consider myself to be very, very lucky.

Feel free to submit or ask any questions. I would be more than happy to answer any of them and there is no question to silly especially on my blog! Hahaha! :)

Status Update

Hello Everybody! I just thought I would take a moment to update everyone on my current health status. The lump under my arm has gone down in size considerably since I first started my treatments. Thank God, because it was pretty big when I was first diagnosed. I am feeling pretty good right now and should feel a lot better by the end of this coming work week. Chemotherapy wipes out all of your blood cells so for about a week to 10 days after your treatment you feel weaker. But after that period my blood cell counts go up and I just feel normal again. Since the end of my treatments last Tuesday I have felt good just tired. (I take a lot of naps! Hahaha!) Don't we all feel better after a good nap! :) I have had a great weekend watching the World Cup and hanging out with my wonderful wife Stacey. Today is cleaning day at our house (Gotta keep it clean when my counts get lower, hahaha!) and I'm about to take another nap. Hope all is going good for everyone else too. I had a great weekend and I'm glad to be at the halfway point of my Chemo treatments. It's certainly feels like a big mile marker and I couldn't have come this far with out everyone's help.

Thanks to everyone! I am so blessed!

Our 1st Weekend With Cancer

Early April - We had just found out that I had Lymphoma two days earlier and didn't know what to do. The biopsy that they did was at the Mayo Clinic so we didn't know what type of Lymphoma. There are two categories Lymphoma, Hodgkin's and Non-Hodgkin's. Both types had their own treatment plans and curability rates. Do we tell our parents? Do we tell our friends? What should we tell people?

We decided to just wait to find out what type of Lymphoma it was before we told everyone about it. After all my wife and I needed time to wrap our heads around this situation before we freaked everyone out.

Stacey was amazing. We literally spent the entire weekend just appreciating each other and appreciating life. I am so blessed that I have my best friend as my spouse and can't express how that weekend and your love gave me strength.

It's funny how something that is seen as so dark and negative can breathe life and light into our lives.

We just waited for the results from Mayo...

The Story Of Just Try And Ruin My Day!

It was a phrase that I would say to all my friends in college. What it means is that no matter what happens all day long I am going to have smile on for the world to see. I firmly believe that a positive attitude is a choice and that there is nothing big or small that it is going to ruin my day!

Normal

I don't ever want to forget my battle with cancer. So I am going to keep a writen record of it on my website to remind me of what I have gone through both good and bad. It will stand as a constant reminder of how blessed I am. So lets start at the beginning and thanks for reading!

April Fools Day 2010 - I was waiting for a call from my Dr about an MRI that I had recently had done. We thought that the big lump under my right arm was a torn muscle from trying to itch my back in the middle of the night. It sounds funny now but that's really what we thought it was. I didn't have any pain in that area (and still don't, Thank God) so it was bizarre.
Lunch Hour - I was eating some left over veggie stir fry that Stacey had made for me the night earlier when my cell phone rang. It was my Dr. I went into the hallway and over the phone my Dr told me that I had Lymphoma. I didn't even know what it was but I knew that it was cancer. My heart dropped. I was scared and confused. I got off the phone and tried to call my wife Stacey who I knew was in class. She didn't answer, so I called her again. Finally I just emailed her ANSWER YOUR PHONE. On the third time she picked up and I told her that I had Lymphoma. She cried and I could tell that she was just as scared as I was.
The Car - I told my boss that I had a family emergency and that I had to leave for the day. She was fine with it. I got in my car and somehow drove the three miles over to meet Stacey at DMU. As I pulled up in the back of her school I could see her just standing there alone. We made eye contact and she cried again.
In The Car - She held my hand tight as we drove home and asked if I had cried. I hadn't. I was too scared. And I have trouble crying if Stacey is crying. I always think that I have to be the strong one if she is crying. She kept telling me that it was okay to cry but nothing came. I was still too scared.
At Home - We laid down together and just held each so tight. She kept telling me that it was okay to cry and that its good to get it out. She asked me what I was thinking and that's when I cried. I turned to her with tears in my eyes and I said that all I wanted was to be Normal. The tears poured out of me as I held my wife close.

All I could think about at that exact moment in time was how much I wanted to just be Normal and how many people in the world took their Normal everyday lives for granted.

Humbled and Blessed

Hello Everyone!

I just recently found out about my blog and I am yet again amazed and humbled by everything that people have done for Stacey and I. On Sunday the surprise benefit was unbelievable and yes I definitely was surprised. Thank you so much for everyone who went to the benefit, donated their time or money and anyone who has just said a prayer for me and Stacey. We love you all and my heart is filled with hope and love!!!! Words cannot express the feeling of gratitude that we have for our amazing friends and family. We are truly blessed. You are all Amazing!!!!

Medical Status Report: I am feeling great and I am ready to start my 3 round of Chemo treatments. Once this round is done I will be at the half way point of my treatments! I also have a CT scan on Friday to check how the treatments are going. Pray for good results. The Dr has been impressed so far and we just need to keep going.

GO HAWKS!!!!