No Rejection!

We were both delighted and surprised to get our report from Duke. Delighted that Lee in NOT in rejection and surprised that we received the report the next day.  Our experience in the past has been to get the report the following week, usually by Monday or Tuesday.

This was a relief because our conversation with the doctor on Thursday indicated that if he would show rejection again, the treatment this time would have to be another hospitilization @ Duke and the treatment would be with "horse" serum rather than the rabbit serum.  This caused some anxiety on my part because I had been given access to some information regarding some others who had this treatment and it did have lots of complications.  We are hopeful that the anti-rejection medications ( both the myfortic and the prednisone have been doubled ) are keeping his rejection under control.  The down side of this much medicine is that it is very hard on the kidneys and the liver when maintained over a long period of time.  His rejection began when he was either taken off some of his medicine in June of last year, or the dose had been reduced to one-half.  At any rate, we are glad this is working now!

I will be getting my second cataract procedure on Wednesday.  This will be eagerly anticipated!  I have experienced some really bad headaches from eye strain on the cataract-affected eye, and a great deal of difficulty trying to drive at night!  I discovered this nightmare when we were discharged from the clinic on Thursday, after dark, and I was the DD.  My new lens showed a glare of haloes around the on-coming lights, and my cataract lens showed starburst.  Because I had no depth perception at that time, I was a disaster behind the wheel!  Somehow, I managed to get us to a local restaurant (Lee was starving....a long day with no food!)  After we settled into the restaurant, he announced that he would be driving back (even though I had signed his release signifying I would be responsible for his not driving for 24 hours ), I did not argue with him and he drove the 4-5 blocks back to the condo.  I know now that I absolutely will not drive at night until I get the other lens in place.

Actually, I am vey pleased with the restore lens!  I can read with one eye, and discovered that I can read the piano music now with NO glasses..............I love it!  Strange that now all our adult children are experiencing presbyopia (old age vision) while I am now experiencing normal eyesight.  I even have to hold print closer to read!  The bad news is that I am seeing for the first time an older me!  In fact, I did not realize how blind I was until I began to see things I had missed.  For example:  While sitting in the clinic last Thursday, I happened to see something white on my favorite red winter jacket.....on closer inspection, I discovered it was part of the jacket's deterioration.  By that, I mean, the jacket was literally coming apart in several places!  I had not been able to see that!  After that discovery, I began to look at the rest of my attire, and my comfortable tennis shoes showed more signs of wear and tear than I usually allow!  I really do have nicer clothes, but always wear the most comfortable ones on our clinic days!

I am now shopping for another coat and some more comfortable sports shoes..........The others will just have to bite the dust!

More Later..............................Brenda