Thinking Out Loud

My time to awake each morning is usually between 7:30 and 8:00 am each morning and I go to bed at night around 10:00 pm so I am receiving about 8-9 hours sleep minus the 2-3 times that I get up each night to urinate which is rather normal for a person of my age; although, I have heard that as we get older that we actually need less and less sleep.

Each morning when I awake, I still feel a little sleepy but rather than go back to bed, I force myself mentally to get up and begin my day and within minutes my sleepiness has faded and oftentimes has disappeared completely.  First, I give our 3 cats a treat, then take my thyroid pill, then put a little food in the cat's 3 bowls, then prepare my coffee...  all of this takes about 15-20 minutes.

Cable FOX News is selected on our big screen and I sit on the couch, drink coffee, and begin to write...  and this, is my daily routine unless I have an early morning appointment with the doctor.  My appointments at UT Medical at usually in the mornings so I can find a parking space and are in the afternoons at all my other appointments.

I have been mowing the yard once a week on Thursdays, vacuuming our above ground pool every Saturday, weed eat every other Friday, take the recycle out every other Thursday, and the trash out every Friday, and whether I need to relax or not, I get into the hot tub for about 45 minutes every other night.  The time in the tub is fine because I have turned the temperature down to 98 degrees...  it is the massage jets that I really want to use.

My life is like this now because my cancer treatments are preventing my two cancers from growing as I get a CT scan or a PET scan every other month.  Regardless of my cancer(s) and their diagnosis, I eat healthy focusing on fish, chicken, beans, vegetables, fruits, nuts, and Pita bread.  I consume no alcohol, minimal soft drinks...  but, I do treat myself to a loaded PIZZA every other month.

My  daily nausea and fatigue has disappeared as have my night sweats although there is always the fear and/or concern that they could always return on day.  I also live with the THREAT that my cancers either one or both could TURN AGGRESSIVE as well.  My treatments are all immunotherapies plus my monthly infusion of IVIG to help bolster my immune system to fight infections.

My12 year treatment has left me with a damaged Thyroid and a very low immune system along with anemia.  My skin is blotched all over my arms, neck, and face as if I had suffered burns from a fire.  My vision is slightly less than it was along with a reduction in my hearing.  My teeth seem to be unaffected by all the treatment.  The thinning of the hair on my head is due to old age not my cancer treatments.  Fortunately, all my internal organs seem to hold steady with their functionality, including my heart which was damaged 12 or so years ago.

I am a 73 year old man that seems to have the health status of a rather healthy 73 year old man...  the only exception is that I am not exercising like I should be exercising and if I do not return soon to that exercising, my body will pay the price over the next few years.  However, I am still doing yard work from time-to-time which is good but hardly makes up the difference.