Keeping up | SouthernPaddler.com

Keeping up

dawallace45

Well-Known Member
Hey guys , just wanted to say g'day , haven't been on the list since November, had some health problems back then , still do , been to three different specialists in three different fields and they will don't know what s causing the cough , although we did find out by accident when I was in hospital that the painkiller Tramadol lessens the coughing , had a appointment down in Brisbane several weeks ago to see a gastroenterologist at the Royal Brisbane hospital, that's about 4 hours away by car

Unfortunately about 7AM that morning I started getting severe pain in the lower chest , we were already on our way down and I was in severe pain all the way , went to the appointment still in severe pain and when the nurse come out to take my particulars she saw how much pain I was in and called a doctor , he sent me to emergency straight away and I then spent the week in hospital with Pancreatitis

While in hospital they did a shit load of tests and found out that the reason I'd been collapsing and passing out so much was because I was severely anemic, they also gave me a side scanning endoscope and found that I had a bleeding cancer , they are going to take that out on the 20th of September , actually they are going to take out my Gaul Bladder, Bile Duct half my Pancreas and half my Stomach, they seem to think the cancer contained and reckon that if all does well I probably won't need chemotherapy

But in the mean time I still haven't been kayaking and it looks like I won't be able to for some time and the down time is driving me crazy , I'm not even supposed to go out in the shed but have been sneaking out and have been turning a few pens , haven't been to the rifle range for about 12 months because I can't drive my self , pretty much all I can do at the moment I see walk around the yard for exercise

I hope every one here has been having a more interesting time that me , I'm getting to the stage I wonder if boredom can be terminal

I'm not allowed to go fishing as the last time I went when I wasn't feeling too bad I was wading out in shin deep water throwing soft plastic lures to flathead, only did it for half a hour before my knees started to buckle and when I got back to shore my wife who had been watching me like a hawk asked why I kept dipping my rod but into the water and I foolishly told her , I'd been pushing stonefish out of my way so I didn't stand on them , she looked down at my bare feet and went apeshit ,

So now not only can't I go fishing with out adult supervision, I can't go until I have a new pair of hard soled wading boots and my wife reckons I'm not getting them until after I've recovered from my operation

David
 

oldbuffpilot

Well-Known Member
May 13, 2014
629
34
80
Central Kansas and Central Texas
David, hang in there--sounds like you're plenty tough and determined to handle it. I appreciate the bored thing getting us in trouble, I've recently got back to the point where I can ease out to the shop for a little while most days. I've started another boat just to beat the boredom.
Wish you well,
Andy
 

dawallace45

Well-Known Member
Andy , I'm not particularly worried about the cancer , the doctors seem to think they will get it all and I worked out a long time ago that it was counterproductive to worry about things I couldn't change although I have taken the opportunity to start the Beck protocol

I have plenty of projects to stop the boredom but am just not allowed to do them I was all set up to cast a pile of SG pellets for my shotgun reloading but my wife is worried about the lead splashing and causing damage that wouldn't heal in time for the operation , can't have any cuts or broken skin before the opp , or any sickness or infection, can't visit people in case I pick up a cold or flu or stomach bug , can't even walk through the local shopping centre for the same reason

And to top it all off , after twelve months and three private specialists and a few at the hospital they still don't know what is causing the cough , although my doctor has told me that the cough has saved my life as they only found the cancer because of the cough , but it would still be nice to be rid of it
 

ggraham

Member
Aug 8, 2009
19
1
"the cough has saved my life as they only found the cancer because of the cough ,"

Another one of those pesky silver linings, huh!

Keep your chin up

George
 

NWDad

Well-Known Member
Oct 4, 2015
54
1
Hang in there David. You are not alone. Praying for you. Not going great here either. Fell at work the other day and now I am on light duty for a couple of months. Going stir craze myself.
 

dawallace45

Well-Known Member
Thanks guys , not long now , only 8 more days tô go , Wannabe have been on the Beck protocol for the last month , that's the one with the colloidal silver and a bit more , l feel pretty good now that I'm no longer as anemic as I was , walking several times a day to get some condition back , figure the fitter I am the easier the recovery , and I have to say my fitness level was way down but getting way better day by day
David
 

dawallace45

Well-Known Member
Thanks Bob , I'm not a patient person when it comes to waiting , just want it done so I can start recovery and get my life back on track , want to go kayaking , fishing and hunting , but I'll need to get some serious condition back on , lost so much from just being confined to the bed or the lounge for so long , first with the dizzy spells and passing out from the coughing fits then the collapsing and passing out from being anemic,

Actually I looked like hammered crap , had to have a blood transfusion my count was so low , one of the hospital doctors reckoned that he'd seen more colour on corpses in the morgue with advanced lividly

But feeling good now , gone from barely being able to walk from the lounge to the toilet to walking a mile at a time , but I want a bit more fitness for the opp next week

David
 
  • Like
Reactions: NWDad

dawallace45

Well-Known Member
Well guys I rocked up on the 20th for surgery, went in they tried for a full hour to place a epidural but because of my severe curvature of the spine couldn’t manage it , that was extremely painful but eventually they had to give up , any way on to the procedure, they made a cut across my gut over a foot long and unfortunately didn’t find what they expected , they found my liver was full of cancer too so they glued me back up and when to plan B , unfortunately there was no plan B at this time , so they are going to have a meeting between the surgical team and the cancer doctors and get back to me but this will wait until the large cut across the gut heals and will probably entail a large amount of chemo

David
 

dawallace45

Well-Known Member
My wife is holding it together but some of my family and friends aren’t doing as well , my father who is possibly the toughest man I’ve ever known broke down so did my mother and one of my brothers and several of my friends , when I get home I intend to really push into the Beck protocol big time
 

dawallace45

Well-Known Member
Go for my third Chemo on Tuesday, handlings the chemo well so far except for the constipation , that is knocking me around, still weak from the coughing , after 15 months of barely being able to walk a couple of hundred metres with out passing out coughing it’s taken it toll on my fitness so every thing is just a little more difficult but apart from that every thing is fine , between the Beck Protocol and the Chemo I tend to sleep a lot , around about 16 hours a day

David
 

oldbuffpilot

Well-Known Member
May 13, 2014
629
34
80
Central Kansas and Central Texas
Go for my third Chemo on Tuesday, handlings the chemo well so far except for the constipation , that is knocking me around, still weak from the coughing , after 15 months of barely being able to walk a couple of hundred metres with out passing out coughing it’s taken it toll on my fitness so every thing is just a little more difficult but apart from that every thing is fine , between the Beck Protocol and the Chemo I tend to sleep a lot , around about 16 hours a day

David
Go for my third Chemo on Tuesday, handlings the chemo well so far except for the constipation , that is knocking me around, still weak from the coughing , after 15 months of barely being able to walk a couple of hundred metres with out passing out coughing it’s taken it toll on my fitness so every thing is just a little more difficult but apart from that every thing is fine , between the Beck Protocol and the Chemo I tend to sleep a lot , around about 16 hours a day

David

David,
Sounds like you're handling the situation with a good attitude, from experience my advice is to keep working at the positive aspect. We all handle these differently, remember your wife is with you and together you can do the work of one! My prayers are with you and remember even far away there are those of us who care.
I find it an unusual friendship that we share on here. Kind'a reminiscent in going into a fight beside guys you don't even know. Wish you well.

Andy