Honey's biopsy results are back, and it's Nasal Chondrosarcoma. Our appointment with the radiologist is at 3:40 today, and they told us not to give her any food for 8 hours before the appointment, and no water for 2 hours before. I hope this means they're going to start treatment STAT. The weird thing about this is she's not acting at all sick, except that I think the antibiotics (clavamox, causes vomiting and nausea sometimes) is getting to her in the mornings, and the other day coming off the general anesthesia was tough. she’s tired, ill give her that, but last night, I believe 43 hours after her CT scan and two large biopsy samples taken from the roof of her mouth, she was bringing me her ball and catching it in midair.
Apparently Chondrosarcoms has a 10% metastasis rate, and this has not gone to her lymph nodes or her lungs, but the vet did say it was "locally aggressive" I wonder if that means she'll lose her nose? Anyways, I've only had about 25 minutes to do research so I don't have any really good sources yet, but I'm a librarian and believe in the value of facts, so ill ask the oncologist for some info and ill dredge some reliable current stuff up online from somewhere to make available to anyone else who needs info on this.
Thursday, January 31, 2008
Wednesday, January 30, 2008
Honey's sick, I'm an Idiot.
So Honey has had some issues with her nose for a while, since we boarded her when we went to Florida for Christmas. She went through 2 courses of Clavamox and they didn't fix it, so the vet sent us to get a CT scan, which was done Monday, and they discovered a "mass" in her sinuses, which went through her hard palate. Aside from being completely beside myself because my baby is sick, I'm also having trouble handling the fact that I have to wait for a diagnosis, because that not only keeps me from doing research and figuring out what can be done, it also means that all the research I do is really broad and I keep reading these horrible doomsday predictions and the fact that they were written in 2000, and even though logically I know there is newer better information, and treatment of these HAS to have been improved in the last 8 years, I can't stop myself from imagining the worst scenario possible.
she's having trouble breathing through her nose, as the tumor (or 'mass', whatever) is taking up a lot room, and naturally the area is all pissed off and therefore inflamed and there's a secondary infection. So although she can breathe completely fine through her mouth, she won't, and there's a constant noise of her inhaling, sometimes punctuated by gasps when she is really low on air. She can't sleep because every time she begins to drift off, she remembers she can't breathe and jerks her head up and starts over. Thankfully, we have some more antibiotics, and hopefully that will help her clear an air passage. The vet said there is no way she will pass out from lack of oxygen and suffocate, and Cameron keeps assuring me that her body will take over and if she needs to, she WILL, in fact, open her mouth to breathe, but she sounds awful.
Monday she had a CT scan (and the best vet in the world - http://www.asecvets.com/) and had to stay in their ICU overnight, not because she was really in need of it, but she has never been under general anesthesia, and she had a little bleeding from the biopsies they took. Tuesday we picked her up and brought her home and she was pissed off and sick. General didn't make her feel good and she was groggy but couldn't sleep because of the breathing. Awful. Cameron had a workshop at 7:30 and I went home around 5, so she was never alone, but I screwed up royally; I decided to let her dictate what we did all evening, which to me sounds like a nice thing, but I think it freaked her out that I was getting her to decide which way we walked when I opened the door, and where we sat, etc. she has the pack ranks instilled in her so deeply, I think it was like I was asking her to lead, and while she was sick. Terrible idea and it never dawned on me. I also gave her a pain pill, which I guess she had when she was spayed, but not since, and she wigged out – racing around the house and she actually HOWLED, I’ve never heard her do that before. I seriously considered either having a nervous breakdown or taking her to the emergency vet, but she chilled out. I called the vet and they said some dogs just can’t handle opiates and she may be one of them, I swear I almost told her it was probably inherited because I’m the same way. I’m sure they already think I’m insane.
so I’ve been thinking about it, and I need something to do because I don’t care about John and Kate's plus 8, or who got arrested on Hermosa beach, and that kind of low-involvement crap makes me stress out about her more, as I’m basically just staring at the TV waiting for the next 'inhale' noise. Great, now I’m feeling guilty for doing that to her last night. That’s it; I’m printing knitting instructions off the internet and learning lace tonight.
Her appointment with the oncologist / radiologist (one of 16 board certified in the US – in the Hills, of course, - http://www.cityofangelsvets.com/) is Thursday afternoon, and I really have my fingers crossed her biopsies will be back by then because I doubt we can get another appointment before next week and I cannot sit through another weekend like last one, I’ll lose my damn mind.
I would go into the millions of possibilities about her tumor, but there are literally millions. I do know that it’s probably a malignancy, because it went through the bone of her hard palate, and I know that nasal tumors in dogs aren’t uncommon. I swear, if they had told me that years ago I would have added it to the list of stuff I worried about daily and maybe this wouldn’t have snuck up on us. I hope we got in time to do something – it’s apparently not in her lungs and not in her lymph nodes, so maybe there’s still hope.
she's having trouble breathing through her nose, as the tumor (or 'mass', whatever) is taking up a lot room, and naturally the area is all pissed off and therefore inflamed and there's a secondary infection. So although she can breathe completely fine through her mouth, she won't, and there's a constant noise of her inhaling, sometimes punctuated by gasps when she is really low on air. She can't sleep because every time she begins to drift off, she remembers she can't breathe and jerks her head up and starts over. Thankfully, we have some more antibiotics, and hopefully that will help her clear an air passage. The vet said there is no way she will pass out from lack of oxygen and suffocate, and Cameron keeps assuring me that her body will take over and if she needs to, she WILL, in fact, open her mouth to breathe, but she sounds awful.
Monday she had a CT scan (and the best vet in the world - http://www.asecvets.com/) and had to stay in their ICU overnight, not because she was really in need of it, but she has never been under general anesthesia, and she had a little bleeding from the biopsies they took. Tuesday we picked her up and brought her home and she was pissed off and sick. General didn't make her feel good and she was groggy but couldn't sleep because of the breathing. Awful. Cameron had a workshop at 7:30 and I went home around 5, so she was never alone, but I screwed up royally; I decided to let her dictate what we did all evening, which to me sounds like a nice thing, but I think it freaked her out that I was getting her to decide which way we walked when I opened the door, and where we sat, etc. she has the pack ranks instilled in her so deeply, I think it was like I was asking her to lead, and while she was sick. Terrible idea and it never dawned on me. I also gave her a pain pill, which I guess she had when she was spayed, but not since, and she wigged out – racing around the house and she actually HOWLED, I’ve never heard her do that before. I seriously considered either having a nervous breakdown or taking her to the emergency vet, but she chilled out. I called the vet and they said some dogs just can’t handle opiates and she may be one of them, I swear I almost told her it was probably inherited because I’m the same way. I’m sure they already think I’m insane.
so I’ve been thinking about it, and I need something to do because I don’t care about John and Kate's plus 8, or who got arrested on Hermosa beach, and that kind of low-involvement crap makes me stress out about her more, as I’m basically just staring at the TV waiting for the next 'inhale' noise. Great, now I’m feeling guilty for doing that to her last night. That’s it; I’m printing knitting instructions off the internet and learning lace tonight.
Her appointment with the oncologist / radiologist (one of 16 board certified in the US – in the Hills, of course, - http://www.cityofangelsvets.com/) is Thursday afternoon, and I really have my fingers crossed her biopsies will be back by then because I doubt we can get another appointment before next week and I cannot sit through another weekend like last one, I’ll lose my damn mind.
I would go into the millions of possibilities about her tumor, but there are literally millions. I do know that it’s probably a malignancy, because it went through the bone of her hard palate, and I know that nasal tumors in dogs aren’t uncommon. I swear, if they had told me that years ago I would have added it to the list of stuff I worried about daily and maybe this wouldn’t have snuck up on us. I hope we got in time to do something – it’s apparently not in her lungs and not in her lymph nodes, so maybe there’s still hope.
Monday, November 5, 2007
Scarlet Fever
Apparently it's 1842, because I have scarlet fever. Freakin L.A. - it makes you sick any way it can...
Tuesday, October 16, 2007
so is it 'my' city yet?
I go through phases when I’m ok with the fact that the only wildlife anywhere near me is a squashed worm on the sidewalk, and then other days I wake up and I’m so depressed about the lack of trees that I have to immediately drive to the nearest home depot and lurk in their potted palm section. I think this explains why I have like 8 potted plants in my office. Anyways, this weekend when I woke up instead of making breakfast I decided I was going to start taking advantage of the new coffee bean a few blocks away, and I even remembered to NOT walk on the block with the dumpster that smells like hot Tijuana cesspool at noon. So I walked to the coffee shop, got my latte and sat around for a few minutes trying to guess what language these people were speaking and watching the news, then I walked home. Then I realized I was wearing a camo waffle-weave long sleeve shirt. Maybe I should have left that one in FL.
Monday, October 1, 2007
Vodka watermelon
I started making these at parties where there are those annoying girls who say things like "I don't drink...... I'll just eat the fruit..."
yeah, ok, you do that ;)
1 liter of cheap vodka
Medium sized watermelon
3 limes
1 bag of sweetened coconut flakes
cut the watermelon in half, use a melon baller to get all the yummy redstuff out.
let the bite-sized watermelon balls sit in a colander as you hollow out the rinds, so some of the natural juice drains off
put the balls in 2 ziplocs and add 1/2 a liter of vodka to each bag o melon. Let this glorious mess sit in the fridge overnight. Or don't, whatever.
when you're ready to serve it, pour one of the ziplocs into an empty rind (presentation is everything) and top with the juice from half a lime and a handfull of sweetened coconut flakes (you might have to top it off again as it gets eaten).
The best way to rescue the balls of glory from the watermelon - vodka lake that forms as people eat these seems to be (after intense, careful study) bamboo skewers for shish kabobs.
yeah, ok, you do that ;)
1 liter of cheap vodka
Medium sized watermelon
3 limes
1 bag of sweetened coconut flakes
cut the watermelon in half, use a melon baller to get all the yummy redstuff out.
let the bite-sized watermelon balls sit in a colander as you hollow out the rinds, so some of the natural juice drains off
put the balls in 2 ziplocs and add 1/2 a liter of vodka to each bag o melon. Let this glorious mess sit in the fridge overnight. Or don't, whatever.
when you're ready to serve it, pour one of the ziplocs into an empty rind (presentation is everything) and top with the juice from half a lime and a handfull of sweetened coconut flakes (you might have to top it off again as it gets eaten).
The best way to rescue the balls of glory from the watermelon - vodka lake that forms as people eat these seems to be (after intense, careful study) bamboo skewers for shish kabobs.
Wednesday, September 26, 2007
Stressball?
So I've started having pains in my jaw, which means one of three things according to WebMD -
1) I'm having a heart attack
2) I have TMJ (which i DO NOT Have, or if I do, I'll never know, because that requires a trip to the doctor and/or dentist)
3) I'm stressed out
so I’m goin' with #3, which is odd because I've had a pretty packed and hardcore 2 weeks at work, but I thought I was being remarkably calm. Evidently, I'm being calm during the day while grinding my teeth for like 8 hours a night. Awesome. So like any good librarian, I did research on how to reduce stress levels. Apparently massage, baths, lavender smellie things, puppies, chocolate and meditation all reduce stress. My apartment is too small for a puppy (DAMN), baths are really boring, and usually too hot or too cold, my boyfriend gives lame massages, I'm not wild about chocolate, and whenever I've tried to meditate I've fallen asleep. So it's off to the aromatherapy store conveniently located in the building next door.... where the woman behind the counter tried alternately to sell me a $45 candle – "I think that watching that burn would actually INCREASE my stress level"- and portable lavender roll-on body scent - "I don't want to smell like lavender, I want to small like Chanel. I just want to calm down"- but she just kinda cocked her head to one side like my dog does when i make a cat noise, and wafted by in her fuggy haze of dirt and gardenias to show me a twig diffuser or some such nonsense.
1) I'm having a heart attack
2) I have TMJ (which i DO NOT Have, or if I do, I'll never know, because that requires a trip to the doctor and/or dentist)
3) I'm stressed out
so I’m goin' with #3, which is odd because I've had a pretty packed and hardcore 2 weeks at work, but I thought I was being remarkably calm. Evidently, I'm being calm during the day while grinding my teeth for like 8 hours a night. Awesome. So like any good librarian, I did research on how to reduce stress levels. Apparently massage, baths, lavender smellie things, puppies, chocolate and meditation all reduce stress. My apartment is too small for a puppy (DAMN), baths are really boring, and usually too hot or too cold, my boyfriend gives lame massages, I'm not wild about chocolate, and whenever I've tried to meditate I've fallen asleep. So it's off to the aromatherapy store conveniently located in the building next door.... where the woman behind the counter tried alternately to sell me a $45 candle – "I think that watching that burn would actually INCREASE my stress level"- and portable lavender roll-on body scent - "I don't want to smell like lavender, I want to small like Chanel. I just want to calm down"- but she just kinda cocked her head to one side like my dog does when i make a cat noise, and wafted by in her fuggy haze of dirt and gardenias to show me a twig diffuser or some such nonsense.
Tuesday, September 25, 2007
I'm a slacker, I know, I know...
ok, I know it's been forever and frankly, not posting makes me feel guilty and its easier to just completely ignore this blog.
But I'm going to honestly make a real effort to post, I promise. So far this month I have started going to the gym again and using those festively hued ankle bands the physical therapist gave me and now I can (DRUMROLL) actually wear (low) heels again :)!! The downside is that working out makes me eat everything I can see. Today (it’s 11:30) I’ve eaten a stuffed pepper, 2 cups of edamame, green beans, a slim fast, coffee, and two bananas. In the immortal words of Lewis Black, piggy piggy piggy f*ck piggy piggy.
I am so glad it's finally football season, even though the Seminoles are playing about as well as my VJ soccer team did in 9th grade. We went to some guy's house (a friend of a friend through Cam's work) to watch the Alabama game Saturday, and it was almost like being at a frat party. There were like 5 fat labs begging for food, lots of hotdogs that had been sitting out far too long, somebody's half-good homemade sauce, Vidalia onion dip, and everyone who lost their halftime predictions had to eat a spoonful of dogfood. Plus, I may have actually met some cool girls in LA, which seemed until now to be virtually impossible.
I'm also getting frequent calls from my mother, who is in south Florida helping her parents move to Tallahassee. It's a clusterf*ck of truly mythic proportions, she hasn't moved in about 35 years so her version of 'change the address on their ID cards' involves not only a two hour wait at the DMV but also the joy of being lost in a orange grove. (fyi, http://www.hsmv.state.fl.us/dhsmv/900.html). About two years ago someone told me that men and women didn't get along because of a difference in their approach to problem solving. According to him (and I have seen no evidence to the contrary) men solve problems, and women share. Although I sound harsh towards my sex I have to completely agree. My mom's a sharer, I'm a solver, so when I get a phone call saying she's "lost in the wilderness" my instinct is to googlemap her out, her instinct is to giggle incomprehensively until she mistakenly drives herself back to civilization. Meanwhile, my 89 year old grandparents are in the backseat pretty sure she's become completely unhinged. I'm serious; woman called me this morning to tell me she didn't know where the Salvation Army was. Not to ASK where it was, just toe tell me she didn't know.
In other news, Pear Vodka + blueberry Italian soda = :)
But I'm going to honestly make a real effort to post, I promise. So far this month I have started going to the gym again and using those festively hued ankle bands the physical therapist gave me and now I can (DRUMROLL) actually wear (low) heels again :)!! The downside is that working out makes me eat everything I can see. Today (it’s 11:30) I’ve eaten a stuffed pepper, 2 cups of edamame, green beans, a slim fast, coffee, and two bananas. In the immortal words of Lewis Black, piggy piggy piggy f*ck piggy piggy.
I am so glad it's finally football season, even though the Seminoles are playing about as well as my VJ soccer team did in 9th grade. We went to some guy's house (a friend of a friend through Cam's work) to watch the Alabama game Saturday, and it was almost like being at a frat party. There were like 5 fat labs begging for food, lots of hotdogs that had been sitting out far too long, somebody's half-good homemade sauce, Vidalia onion dip, and everyone who lost their halftime predictions had to eat a spoonful of dogfood. Plus, I may have actually met some cool girls in LA, which seemed until now to be virtually impossible.
I'm also getting frequent calls from my mother, who is in south Florida helping her parents move to Tallahassee. It's a clusterf*ck of truly mythic proportions, she hasn't moved in about 35 years so her version of 'change the address on their ID cards' involves not only a two hour wait at the DMV but also the joy of being lost in a orange grove. (fyi, http://www.hsmv.state.fl.us/dhsmv/900.html). About two years ago someone told me that men and women didn't get along because of a difference in their approach to problem solving. According to him (and I have seen no evidence to the contrary) men solve problems, and women share. Although I sound harsh towards my sex I have to completely agree. My mom's a sharer, I'm a solver, so when I get a phone call saying she's "lost in the wilderness" my instinct is to googlemap her out, her instinct is to giggle incomprehensively until she mistakenly drives herself back to civilization. Meanwhile, my 89 year old grandparents are in the backseat pretty sure she's become completely unhinged. I'm serious; woman called me this morning to tell me she didn't know where the Salvation Army was. Not to ASK where it was, just toe tell me she didn't know.
In other news, Pear Vodka + blueberry Italian soda = :)
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