Doing a Fundraiser for Kulicks Kicking Cancer

As you know if you've been following the blog, Jimmy and I are self-employed and we own a roofing business.  Jimmy is the crux of the business and with him unable work during the treatment, we have decided  to have a fundraiser on June 21st to help defray the astronomical medical costs associated with Jimmy's cancer treatment.  I've never done anything like this before, so it should be interesting.

I have had a couple of people offer to help but what we really need now are volunteers, donations for food and items for the silent auction.  If you, or someone you know, or even a business would like to help, please comment below to let me know.  You can also find updated information about the fundraiser on the Kulicks Kicking Cancer Facebook page.

For those of  you who are unable to make to the fundraiser, we have set up a couple of different ways to help aside from the fundraiser.  If you can, please help support our family while we go through this crisis in our lives.  Donations can be easily made at the following online link http://www.youcaring.com/medical-fundraiser/Kulicks-Kicking-Cancer/42802 or mailed to the TD Bank benefit fund, 450 York Road, Warminster, PA 18976.

We also ask for your continued prayers and support.   We truly believe in the power of prayer.

Here's our new fundraiser logo...a family of three intertwined for support...we love it!

 

April 27, 2013 - A Very Emotional Week

Since Jimmy got home from Round 4, he has been more tired than ever and more emotional as well.  So have I.  As usual, he is sick and very fatigued.  His body is also very sore all over.  He didn't really get out of bed until Monday, April 22.  He took the dog out and came back exhausted.  It is so hard to see him that way.  I hate that he is weak and feeling so crappy.  Wednesday he planned to get out of the house and felt like he was going to pass out just getting ready to do so.  He did go out but it was not an easy day for him.  The treatments are getting worse and the recovery time is getting longer after each treatment.

On Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, we were completely on each other's nerves.  Then, the blame game began.  Jimmy wondered why this was happening to him and hating the way the treatment was making him feel all of the time.  He said I wasn't supportive of him and that I thought this was about me.  He said he didn't understand why I was depressed since he was going through the chemo, not me.  I hated the fact that our life has changed so drastically and I am wishing for things that once was.  To see friends go out to dinner and families go on outings is painful for me to see.  I am feeling guilty for going out and doing things for myself even though I need to do that.  I have started seeing a therapist to help me sort out how I feel and to be able to say things out loud that I can't say to Jimmy.  We all are depressed that vacation was cancelled and the one thing we really look forward to each year won't happen this year.  We both are worried about the business as income is basically nonexistent and bills keep coming in.  We are both worried about Logan and how he is handling all of this.  We sat down with Jimmy's parents just to get an outside opinion about life as we know it now.  It was helpful to just talk it out with someone other than the two of us.

We went to a follow-up visit for blood work on Thursday, April 25 and talked to the doctor.  Jimmy's bloods were extremely low...hemoglobin was 9 (normal for him is 14) and white blood cells were .5 (normal is about 12)...they are getting lower after each treatment and he is now anemic and completely immunosuppressed.  We talked to the oncology nurse, the social worker and the doctor about how we have been feeling too.  The doctor's response was..."it's about time you hit this wall".  The nurse and social worker both agreed and said that this was hard on, not just Jimmy, but his entire family, including his parents, but especially on Logan and I.  Just by the fact that his bloods are so low isn't helping how he is feeling physically, since his physical and emotional states are so intertwined.  The doctor reiterated how the chemo affects his mind as well as his body.  Hence, the nightmares he has the first couple of days after treatment, coupled with the way the chemo makes him feel physically.

Basically, this sucks.  Cancer sucks.  But, we WILL get through this...together...as a family.  I know this week has really been a downer of a week but  it can only make us stronger, right?  We do know there is a light at the end of this long tunnel but, right now, it is a dim pin of a light in the distance.  Yes, I have resorted to cliches.

I pray for strength for our family and that God will heal Jimmy so he can be whole again.  I pray that Jimmy and I will continue to think positive and support each other through this journey, unconditionally.  I pray that Logan is able to understand that life as we now know it is temporary.   To those reading this blog, I ask that you pray for our family too because we believe in the power of prayer and how much it can help.

April 20, 2013 - Halfway scan results...good news and not so good news and Round 4 begins

I have not blogged in a while.  It is often times cathartic but in the last few weeks have been rather depressing for me and I just didn't feel like writing.  I was very anxious about the halfway scans and wondering whether the tumor has spread and whether the chemo was working.   As hard as this process is for Jimmy, I'm finding that it is very hard for me too and I feel guilty when I try to do anything for myself.  I am constantly tired and stressed but I feel like I need to concentrate on Jimmy and Logan, making sure that they are okay.

Jimmy was sick during the end of Round 3 and dealt with a botched PICC line insertion and pain it brought as the days went on.  As usual, recovery took a little longer than the last time and blood counts were lower than the last treatment.  By the end of the third week after Round 3, Jimmy was back to feeling good and got out of the house more and more.

Halfway through the chemo treatments (after the 3rd treatment),  CT scan and an MRI was done to determine how/if the chemo was doing its job.  We got the results on April 15, just before Round 4 started.  The good news is that the cancer has not spread...what a relief.  Spreading would mean to the lungs and I don't even want to go there.  The bad news is that the tumor has not gotten any smaller.  The doctor said that this can sometimes happen but at least the tumor has not gotten any bigger. We don't know if the chemo is killing the tumor (we won't know until surgery) but we are optimistic that that is what it is doing.

Then, Round 4 began.  PICC line went on pretty much without incident...thank goodness.  Even before the chemo drugs started on day one, the pre-meds made Jimmy extremely sick.  After they got that under control, the rest of the week went pretty smooth.  He was eating well the first couple of days and even did some laps around the oncology unit on the first day. The hydration they give him constantly makes him very bloated and uncomfortable and by the last day in the hospital, he is wiped out and not very hungry.

As for Logan, the weeks when Jimmy is in the hospital are especially hard on him.  He was really missing his Daddy this week and I let him play hooky on Thursday to spend the day at the hospital with Jimmy (with his teacher's permission of course).  Jimmy didn't know he was coming and it was a nice surprise for him.  It was good for Logan too to just hang out with Daddy for the day.

On Friday, April 19, 2013, once we got home from the hospital, Jimmy is tired and just wants to lay down.  He is feeling nauseous and he says he extremely emotional and feeling like his body wants to explode.  I can't imagine a feeling like that.  This morning, April 20, 2013 he has once again had vicious nightmares and did not have restful sleep.  He is nauseous again but I am hoping he starts to feel better.

Thank you again to friends who provided food and help with Logan this week.