After meeting with the surgeon in Denver, medical appointments were scheduled very quickly.
An appointment with the hematology doctor (who would take care of the chemotherapy) was held, followed by out-patient surgery to have a "port" put in place where the chemo would go into my body.
Then there was a meeting with the chemo pharmacist to go over all the drugs which would be given, their known side-effects, and what could be done to try to minimize the side-effects.
Finally an echo-cardiogram was done to see if there were any concerns with my heart needing to be taken into consideration during chemotherapy.
All this was done in less than 2 weeks.
An appointment with the hematology doctor (who would take care of the chemotherapy) was held, followed by out-patient surgery to have a "port" put in place where the chemo would go into my body.
Then there was a meeting with the chemo pharmacist to go over all the drugs which would be given, their known side-effects, and what could be done to try to minimize the side-effects.
Finally an echo-cardiogram was done to see if there were any concerns with my heart needing to be taken into consideration during chemotherapy.
All this was done in less than 2 weeks.
***
In the midst of these activities, the planned bladder-removal surgery was also in mind. The surgeon had said I would be in the hospital (in Denver) for 3-4 days, followed by recovery at home (in Colorado Springs) for a few months.
It would be awhile before I could even drive a car, which was a concern since Joan could not drive.
Simple things normally taken for granted, like preparing meals and caring for the animals (2 dogs, 4 cats), were no longer trivial matters.
It seemed plans needed to be made for each thing done in the course of a day.
Also, I would likely need special help with my physical condition for at least a time after surgery.
Plans were discussed for such things as:
- having a friend come stay with Joan while I was in the hospital to help her and to take care of daily needs around the house.
- arranging medical transportation for me to get home from the hospital.
- getting a hospital bed and putting it in the fireplace area on the main floor of my house so I wouldn't need to go up and down stairs.
- coordinating a nurse to come to our house for at least a few days after I returned home to make sure everything, medically, was going well as I (and my body) learned to function without my natural bladder.
- setting up home health care services for a time after I returned home.
Many preparations seemed necessary.
But while praying about these preparations and seeking wisdom in making decisions in these preparations, the Holy Spirit reminded me of the following scripture:
Matthew 6:34 Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.
What a help and relief to be given this scripture!
I stopped all I was trying to do to prepare for the future bladder-removal surgery and began focusing only on what was before me each day. This was so much easier than trying to deal with what looked to be needed in the future on top of what was immediately before me.
And it turned out that none of the preparations for the future were even needed.
God knows the future and what we need in whatever we face.
Matthew 11:28-30 Jesus says ... Come unto ME, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.
29 Take MY yoke upon you, and learn of ME; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.
30 For MY yoke is easy, and MY burden is light.
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