Home Again

Sweet Dreams Tonight,

I'm sleeping in my own bed tonight at home.  It's truly wonderful.  I have a team of doctors coming by tomorrow morning at 10:30 a.m.  I will need the morning to prep for them.  I look forward to catching up over the weekend.

We will have to discuss my dilemma soon.  Should I use Dr. Scholl's brown shoe polish on my head or have a colorist come in.  I will share the details next time and why I will need some coloring.

Dr. Spock  to Elf Ears,

Pleasant dreams.

Love and God's blessings...........

Sheryl

Grand Tuesday to you All!

Thank goodness there's a Tuesday that comes  after a Monday. I don't want or mean my days to slip by .....Monday had to be over so that I could start Tuesday.  And, a grand day it was today.  I hope the day was awesome for you.  My pain was on a scale of 2 to 3 out of 10.  I am temporarily at hospice so that they may formulate a drug specific to my needs.  I'm learning a great deal about hospitals and hospices practices and procedures.  Interesting, I'll share it some time!  Right now, I'm trying to get as much rest as I can fit into my day.  I miss all of you and can't wait to visit with you soon.  Tomorrow, I'm going to try (operative word) to get at some of my 543 back emails.  It won't be so bad.........half of them  are from Crate and Barrel (describing my body shape) and half of  them are from Boot Barn describing the smell.  Where is the Harry and David and Honey baked ham?  I'm going to choke.  Love you, God Bless.  Sweet dreams.  Sheryl 

Happy Birthday Deb!  Wish I could wait on you today!  I'm looking forward to taking a spin in Buttercup with you soon.  VVvvvrrroooooooooom!  You are great!  Thank you for everything you are doing!

Love,  Sheryl 

Hi this is Jon. Matt and I were with our mom today. She is still funny as ever. This is what she said about being at Hospice, "I want to get as well as I can as soon as I can so I can get out of here as fast as I can."    

Change of Scenery....

Sheryl is temporarily visiting the San Diego Hospice, where they will focus on bringing down her pain levels.  At this time The Duncan Family requests no visitors so that Sheryl may recover quickly and return home soon.  Thank you in advance for your consideration in honoring this request.  Sheryl misses you all and looks forward to resuming visits soon.  Until then, please feel free to continue sending cards, notes, prayers and blog posts.  Sheryl sends her love and gratitude for all you continue to do to support her and her family during this time.

Once again....

Just a short post to let you all know that Sheryl was admitted to the hospital on Monday afternoon to bring her pain levels down and to have some tests run.  She has been catching up on rest and expects to be released soon.  Her sister Lisa is taking great care of her while she is here visiting this week.  Thank you all for your notes, cards and blog posts.  Sheryl appreciates all of your thoughts and prayers, so keep them coming!  We all look forward to reading her next blog post!  Sending you all love and hugs from Sheryl.

Today was chemo,  another treatment out of the way.  Time will shine a light.  I will up date you tomorrow,   I'm having some really cool radiology treatment on Saturday.  Will share tomorrow.  I'm tuckered out tonight and have a clear schedule (schedule??) tomorrow.  We can talk about Madonna's concert,  the election, me and you too!  Sweet dreams.  Love,  Sheryl

Happy Halloween all ghouls and globlins

Thank you for checking back on this  frightful night of Halloween.  Bless those who won't or can' t be celebrating.   Tis a night that lends itself to gallows humor!  My sister has suggested going to the library instead of purchasing books from now on!  And, no books with more than 200 pages!  One of the items going in my gratitude journal is short-term magazine subscriptions!  I hope this kind of humor is not offensive to you because I find that laughter truly does help ease the pain.  If any of you have some humorous ditties you would like to share with me, please send them along.  Matthew dressed up in a bunny costume and won 2 awards today at school...one for the "funniest costume" and one for "best over-all".  It truly fits his demeanor!  Jonathan dressed up as Hillary Clinton with a beard and mustache!  Don't ask!  On a more serious and medical note the recent CT scan showed more lesions on my liver and growths on some of the existing lesions.  So for several reasons I now have a knew chemo cocktail.  I'm back on the Avastin and Xeloda and Novalbine have joined the short list.  My body has been mapped out for upcoming radiation targeting a couple spots on my vertebrae.   In all honesty, a couple of housekeeping issues...given the entire family has now adopted my sleep hours, please refrain from calling after 7:00 p.m. or before 8:30 a.m.  As much as I appreciate the love coming my way one message/call per day will suffice and I'll get back to you as soon as possible.    Good night all my angels.  I feel and cherish the strength of your love and well wishes.  Forever in gratitude and love, Sheryl

Home Again

Good Saturday evening to you all.  I'm home from the hospital after a brief overnight stay.  I had to get my pain under control so that breathing wasn't so difficult.  Quite a quandary!  My goals are to remain on Taxol and Carbo chemotherapy agents once a week, blood draws and counts to make sure the body will withstand the agents, and doctor appointments to discuss progress and options as needs arise.  So far reports show there is less cancer in the the previously affected areas now than when initial testing was done.  That's the good news.  Bad news, there are so many variants, good and bad that have an influence.  Ah,   I'm getting boring.  Enjoy your Saturday night and Sunday.  May God Bless You and Your Family and Loved Ones.  I promise I will work on getting new pictures up very soon, so if I do get boring on my blog, you will have at least something to make you smile or laugh.  I smile when I think of all of you.  Thank you again for your generosity in giving, supporting, praying, and raising me up.  I love you.  Sheryl 

Pain...Breathe...Pain...Breathe...Pain...

...Which do I choose?  Thank you for your patience.  Sorry I haven't blogged lately.  I've been in a "pain-med blog fog".  I was admitted to the hospital on Friday to have further testing (CT scans).  The nurse asked me if I was farting.  My dignity is gone!  Thank you everyone for your kindness and generosity.  I appreciate your patience on holding off on the phone calls and the visits.  I'll have a report after talking with the doctors tomorrow.  I hope everyone has a wonderful weekend.  I'm enjoying some pumpkin pie right now.  (These are Sheryl's words as spoken to Deb tonight.)

SATURDAY From Sheryl at Home

Hello beautiful, faithful friends and family!  It's me, Sheryl.  Thank you so much for your thoughts, prayers and lifting my spirits and ongoing determination.     It truly gives me  feelings of hope and strength, especially when the news has been of a roller coaster nature.  I came home on Tuesday evening this week.  The criteria was getting pain under control, I have nine broken ribs due to the weakened integrity of the cancer on the bones, being able to take full breaths and of course going to the bathroom.  Once I heard the criteria, I had laser beam focus on these three things.  I came home with a pain pump and I'm not using as much pain meds as I have access too.  I'm taking small walks and using my spirometer to  expand and dry out the lung field.  The other area, let's just say I have options.  Upon my arrival home I had the nicest surprise.  The first floor bedroom had been feminized for me with candles, flowers,  balloons, books, pictures, lot's of my favorite things.  I have a beautiful outside sanctuary set up with the beauty of Mother Nature, a waterfall and just the best southern California weather anyone could ask for.  Thanks to Todd and Jane along with a couple super moms who went far beyond the call of duty.  Thanks to the chef who is making sure I'm eating cancer fighting foods.  Thanks to LuAnn's daughter from New York who traveled cross country for two days to visit and provide me with Raw Organic Juicing.  I will explain more about that later.  Oh, and also, a couple pair of pajamas sent to me, caught me a little more attention than I think my vital signs did!!  I will be writing and responding to emails in the next couple of days.  I am sporting the hot new "bald" look.  Jonathan and Matthew came into the house after school yesterday and said, "Oh no!, there is a  a bald eagle in the house."  I just reminded them  how strong that bird is!  I've had a couple of home health nurses come in to check on me.  Instead of using my "walker"  I'm carrying it in front of me.  Slows me down!  Doc visits on Tuesday and chemo on Wednesday of this week.  I miss talking to you directly and will keep in touch.  The Doctors are still stressing that I hold off on visitors  until I gain more strength.  Oh, for all the BOOBLYNS in the neighborhood, The Duncan's have been been BOOed.  So look out!

While I have been writing and concentrating on my own recovery efforts during this time, I have been keeping a keen eye and prayerful mind on Mindy Trinidad's trials.  It is with great sadness  to hear of her passing and my heart goes out to the beautiful, supportive family and friends.  "Mindy, you fought and gave all you had...you are a hero of mine."  Love,  Sheryl

"Exceeding Expectations!"....

"Exceeding Expectations!" Those were the exact words the doctors said to Sheryl earlier today during their visit.  She learned that her cancer markers have declined and that some of the tumors are gone!  She couldn't be more thrilled!  She hopes to be returning home on Tuesday.  Chemo will resume again on Thursday.  More later, so stay tuned..... and once again, feel free to join in the Happy Dance!

Seeing Improvement...

Sheryl is feeling the best she has felt since she entered the hospital on October 2nd.  Her pain levels have come down and her breathing is improving.  The restrictions on hospital visitations remain in place, so that she can continue this positive momentum in healing.  Thank you again for your consideration.  Sheryl really appreciates all the notes, cards and blog posts that you have sent.  Sending you all a big hug from Sheryl.

Restrictions on Visitation Continues

The restrictions on visitation continues until further notice.  Thank you for your patience.

Restrictions on Visitation

Sheryl's pain levels have crept up over the past day and a half and need to be brought down again. As a result, the Duncan family has requested no guests at this time.  Guest visits will be on an invitation only basis until further notice.  Please be advised that if you arrive at the hospital for a visit without an invitation you will be asked to leave so that Sheryl may continue to recover. Thank you for your patience and understanding, as we assist Sheryl in getting her pain under control.  Notes, cards, and blog posts are always welcomed during this time.  Sheryl loves you all and can't wait to visit with you again soon.  With much appreciation for your consideration,  The Duncan Family

"Happy Dance" Fatigue

Sheryl needs to rest today - too much "Happy Dancing" yesterday.  Please understand the need to restrict visitors today to family members only.  Again, thank you for your understanding.  -Deb

"Happy Dance"

Sheryl has improved tremendously! Her pain level has been reduced to a 1.5 to 2 on a scale of 1 to 10. She has literally been doing the "Happy Dance" in bed all morning. Her doctors are extremely pleased with her progress. Today's goals are to continue to increase lung capacity with breathing exercises and to start becoming mobile by taking some short walks. She's begun eating again and is eating everything in sight! She is alert, conversational, and is cracking us all up with her sense of humor! The hope is that she will be able to return home on Wednesday, so stay tuned on that front. All good news today! We have been asked that visitors be restricted to immediate family members today, due to Sheryl's susceptibility to infections right now. She also needs to continue to rest, so that this progress in her recovery will continue. Thank you in advance for understanding and respecting this limitation. Sheryl looks forward to the day visitors will be allowed again. In the meantime, notes and cards are welcomed. Join in the Happy Dance! Love and Hugs from Sheryl to you all. -Deb

Breathe....

Sheryl remains in the hospital for now, but hopefully not for much longer.  We learned that her rib fractures are the root of the severe pain she's been feeling. The trouble is that the pain was so unbearable that it impaired her ability to breathe. The inability to breathe led to a concern of pneumonia developing. The key to solving this vicious cycle was to get the pain under control.  Kudos to Dr. Mark Wallace and his Pain Management Unit for reducing Sheryl's pain!! She's gone from a pain threshold of 10 down to a pain threshold of 5, just since this afternoon!  Sheryl has had a tough couple of days, but I'm happy to report that she has made great strides towards managing this pain.  She continues to have that fighting spirit!  Tonight, she is resting comfortably, catching up on 3 days of lost sleep.  We hope that she'll be able to return home by the end of the week.  Sheryl continues to be grateful for your prayers and well-wishes.  She continues to be an incredible inspiration to all of us!  Sending you all a hug of love and gratitude from Sheryl.  -Deb

Chemo...and then....

Hi Everyone -  Deb Finnegan here to provide a quick update on behalf of Sheryl.  During Chemo on Thursday, Sheryl began experiencing severe pain in her right shoulder and her rib cage.  When the pain medicine administered during chemo failed to reduce the pain, Dr. Barbara Parker admitted Sheryl to the hospital on Thursday night to get the pain under control.  During that time Sheryl had a chest x-ray and an MRI scan of her spine.  Additionally, Dr. Mark Wallace got the pain under control with IV medications that Sheryl could self-dose.  The x-rays and MRI scan indicated there has been no growth in the tumors and there are no new tumors, which is good news! However, they also revealed that Sheryl had fractured 2 ribs on her left side, which was causing the pain in her ribs.  The shoulder pain is being attributed to pressure on the nerve endings.  Today Sheryl is moving off the IV meds into oral medication.  The doctors expect she will return home on Sunday - although Sheryl is campaigning hard for an early release on Saturday.  With her charming ways, she just might get her wish!  Sheryl thanks you from the bottom of her heart for all your prayers and well wishes.  I'm printing the comments you all are posting on the blog and am taking them to the hospital, so she can see them.  Sorry I'm not as funny with words as Sheryl is....she can't wait to be posting this news herself again soon.  Sending you all love and hugs from Sheryl.  -Deb

not the best of days..........chemotherapy tomorrow.

Today was not a great day.  Darn it!  Yesterday I felt the best I ever have.  I ran errands, went to a school function in the evening.  I told everyone that other than the label of the diagnosis, I felt 100 percent charged, energized and ready willing and able to kick this thing.  Today I woke up in the pain that caused me to seek a doctors counsel in the first place.  I went to have my blood drawn, a prerequisite to chemotherapy tomorrow.  By 11:00 I was back in bed.  I called the doctor and she had me come in immediately.  I had headaches today, something I hadn't experienced until now.  I went in for a chest x-ray, abdominal CT scan, chest CT scan and brain scan along with an EKG.  They wanted to test me for side effects (blood clots in the lungs and/or brain) of one of the chemo agents.  Good news, brain is still clear, rah rah shish boom bah!  No signs of clotting.

I will be updating my blog tomorrow with new pictures and doctors report.  Sorry about the bummer news overall.  Please refresh your prayer requests.  I'm counting on a great day tomorrow.  I still have so very much to be thankful for.  God Bless you and Thank You!

Love,  Sheryl

Walking the dog......

I experienced a little piece of heaven on earth (oh..other than the three pieces of pumpkin pie I had today...with heavy whipping creme) tonight walking my dog after dark.  It was quiet and still.  He seemed to stay in perfect step with me the entire time.  There was a slight breeze, almost warm.  Today was a great Monday.  Up early with the boys, seeing them off to school.  Ah, more quiet time.  LuAnn and I began little projects I've been wanting to get to.  Honestly, after the rush and blur of the first two weeks, I'm settling into a very nice, nurturing, comfortable schedule.  All of you have made it too easy on me!  We lunched at a French sidewalk cafe and shared personal experiences trying to interpret the meanings for us now.  We wondered through a couple local shops eyeing all the pretty things.  Tonight Todd took us down to the beach for dinner.  We watched the boys skin board over the waves.  Everyone's asleep.  Thank you for my day.  Thank you for your loving thoughts and prayers.  Goodnight.  Goodnight Freckles.  Sweet Dreams Everyone.  Love,  Sheryl