Today has been one of fluctuations. I started connected up to multiple IV drips but by the middle of the day all had been disconnected.
This is because the medical team have changed their plans to some extent. The anti-fungal drug that they need to manage my lung infection (Aspergillus fungal infection) is best treated with an IV drug called Ambisonne. And the medical team want this infection to be well treated prior to administering any further Chemotherapy.
With this in mind the main focus of the drugs is to attack this fungal infection and all others are merely to keep me in good health. And given there is only one dose of Ambisonne daily they believe I can be released again for 10 days or so under the “hospital at home” program where a nurse visits daily to help out with the IV medication. With the decision made then it is a matter of waiting a day or so (even more) for the team to put this into action. This starts with a visit from the hospital at home doctor, then the hospital at home nurse, then the pharmacist who organises the drugs. Nothing happens quickly in hospital so there is a lot of waiting around.
Which brings me to resilience. What is it and why is it important for my situation?
Resilience can be described as the ability to manage through the tough times – to bounce back from adversity (it’s a pity our children are not taught this more often – we seem to only focus on keeping everyone happy rather than acknowledging that tough times exist for all of us and our children).
And for me the tough times are either the process of working through the cancer treatment or more often the extreme amounts of time just waiting around for the next dose of IV drugs without anything in particular to do. So how to you keep on top of things?
To be resilient you need to be strong. You need a positive attitude and the ability to keep going when you encounter small setbacks. You need to be able to adapt well to change.
You must accept reality (in my case stuck in Hospital longer than I would think is necessary).
You need a deep belief in the outcome and have to back this up with strong values.
You need to be able to improvise.
So if I think about the main thing that requires my resilience at the moment it would be the potential boredom of waiting in hospital when I don’t feel particularly sick and require just one dose of IV drugs per day to treat the fungal infection. I am used to being busy and keeping busy on a day by day basis – there is rarely any waiting around in my previous life.
So how do I handle this? There are several things I have found that help me with resilience and to a certain extent is involves learning new behaviours, thoughts and actions.
I avoid seeing this issue as insurmountable – I am realistic. Time will cure this if managed well.
I acknowledge that the overall condition has and will cause a significant change in my life with adjustments required.
I set goals that are realistic and based generally on daily or sometimes hourly timeframes.
I take a positive attitude towards the recovery process (generally optimistic).
I value and keep my connections with family and friends, which helps me with the resilience process.
Hopefully tomorrow I will get to return to home again for another week or so.
Stop Press: Since writing up the blog this afternoon I have had another visit from the medical team to affirm that the “home hospital” release won’t happen until Monday. However Dr Jo has thought innovatively and has worked out a plan to release me over night and perhaps during the day, given that I only need to be on site for the Ambisonne for a period of 2 hours or so around about 6pm each day. Yipee this means I can check out overnight and go and sleep in my own bed tonight as long as I’m back at the Hospital by 10.00am.
Geoff Beats Leukemia 
Glad you get to sleep in your own bed again for a while! And also that you are learning ‘patience is a virtue’ 🙂
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‘Every day may not be good, but there is something good in every day’
Sleep tight in your own bed. Glad you got a laugh out of your present. Hi to Jan and congrats to Tony for being the best brother ever!
Take care
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Maybe the collected works of shakespeare (or Alternative) will fill those hours and develop a new goal till your 100% in the new year. I’d be interested in such an execise’s value as an alternative to your normal business doing things routine.
Best regards
Gerry
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Good news – you will be home and asleep (or watching the chick flick on TV) as I write this.
Resilience – one of the hardest things in life to master. Can it be taught? Or is it something we’re born with? Everyone has some level, but I think our system of education may let us down in this sense. We need to experience and understand failure. I worry we don’t allow enough of this in our young.
We hoped for some rain last night but the front passed through as quickly as the XPT to Sydney without a drop. Now have to wait till Sunday / Monday for some more – perhaps with a few thunderies.
Have been working on our lupins mill project. I hope we can bring it off. High protein, gluten free with an acceptable taste.
Ed Clayton passed his Commercial Licence the other day – has an interview with Rex next week. He will make an excellent flight crew member for them. Fingers crossed for him. Will be DPI’s loss – but he can hang his shingle and provide nutritional advice for money on his days off.
Take care – beat the infection and on with the next.
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Your optimism and stoicism are inspiring Geoff. Thank you for sharing your recovery journey.
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I think resilience also requires us to have the ability to let things go too. We can’t control everything around us, so sometimes we need to take a deep breath and step back.
Paul McCartney wrote ‘Let it Be’ inspired by his mother’s words, about the pending break up of the Beatles.
Remember to be gentle with yourself while you find your new ‘normal’ , it will take time, but you have plenty of that.
Soldier on buddy – every day is one day closer to recovery xx
Thank you for the blog and my love to you all xx
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Mate. A good dose of The Australian each day will fill a few hours and be good therapy . Become a social commentator and get a couple of letters to the editor away. Cheers CROZ
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Hey Geoff, good to hear you’re up & about, even though there’s the odd roadblock, I’m sure you will get through them though.
Navigate 9’s starting soon, you’ll be glad to know we got a couple of newbies in the team to help sledge Pete for you. Give you an update once we get going.
Oh, say happy bday to Jan from us too, missed that one sorry.
Love kaz & hodgey
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Hi Geoff,
I enjoy reading your comments and appreciate your positive views. All very important.
Your comments regarding children and life’s up and downs remind me of discussions I have with them when things turn ‘bad’ and my girls talk to me. I tell them how lucky they are to “learn what not to do and how not to behave” after their personal experience. They always nod in agreement and move on.
Keep up your good work mate. I can’t wait to go flying together again.
Cheers,
Thommo
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Strong selfie game Dad 😎 ☀
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A selfie in Parkville?
The most beautiful streets, especially in spring . You are doing a fine job, enjoy CODunces xx
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Hi Geoff,
Hope the sleep was all you expected.
This post, along with a few others reminded me to be thankful.
Probably thankful for enough.
So, with that I wish for you enough, enough to get you through this episode/event/illness/infection/medical condition, to restore you to your previous life of ………..enough.
Good on you Geoffrey, you are an inspiration.
By the way, I like the way you question everything, and then only proceed when you have digested all the data, and are confident of your path chosen. Jan would most definitely be a co-contributor to this.
Peter MacKinnon does pretty much that too, and would rate amongst the thinkers whom I’ve met who have been a reminder to moi to whoa back and consider ……stuff from time to time. If you can believe that.
Thank you.
Andrew Irvine 254 Elizabeth Drive Vincentia NSW 2540
0437 694 010 ab.irvine@bigpond.com 02 4441 5767
>
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I’m up to date now. I wasn’t subscribed to the blog before but now I am so I’ll get all your posts hot off the…WordPress… Loving the birth of the drone fascination. Does the Mavic have the ability to lock onto and track a moving subject? Next time the skater is at work that can be a cool way of capturing some dynamic footage. Maybe you could get a contract delivering pamphlets throughout the suburbs between Docklands and the RMH. That way you could be earning while returning!
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Hello Geoff,
President Paul told all of us today to go read Geoff’s October 6th essay on Resiliance. He was inspired.
After reading it, I’m inspired. For a number of reasons.
One reason is that your words reflects your strength and controlled and measured determination, but we all knew that.
The other reason is….you are sharing it with us. I am inspired by your message that speaks clearly and susinctly about a subject that is for most of us, quite anxious and personal. I guess I see your blog a bit like a commander writing home from the front. You are fighting with a formidable enemy however, you are not unaccoustomed to battles. You know how to prepare for war. You are revealing to your readers that you have an armory of willpower, more than sufficient to deal with this invader. Thats inspirational.
I don’t believe much in prayer, but I do believe in the strength of positive energy generated from family and friends. You are stronger when you know that people support you. Know that Carolyn and I and your fellow Wollundry Rotarians support you.
One of the things that I am most proud of in my Rotary work, is asking you to rejoin the club.
Keep writing and I will keep reading and writing,
Paul and Carolyn
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