Archive for September, 2007
Hello everyone,
I’m walking better – my left leg hardly drags anymore. I still don’t have my balance good enough to take off across the floor. I’m walking quite well using parallel bars. I don’t really hang onto them, I just brush up against them to keep my balance. Physio continues to be very helpful. It’s still hard to tell if the stem cells are helping yet, but I think so. I had my third transplant Monday via IV and on Friday I have another stem cell injection into my spinal cord.
Nicole and I are having a blast shopping in between physio treatments. She got a pair of gorgeous boots yesterday for $10. We’re also are having a blast shopping for knock-offs. The malls 10 min away, $1 taxi ride. We’re getting used to crossing street amid the melee of cars, bikes & people going every which way. A crosswalk doesn’t matter, everyone and everything’s whizzing around you as you cross.
Hope you are all well.
Love Char
September 19th, 2007
Hello.
I had my 3rd stem cell transplant today, this time via IV. I am walking a little but still don’t have good balance. Evidently some don’t improve at all here, but slowly improve after they get home.
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We went to the zoo Sunday – it was very nice. The bus driver fed the tigers and bears, so they were running along side the bus and the bears were dancing on their hind legs, trying to reach up to the bus driver to get their food. It was amazing to be so close to them. They have one panda bear, which they just got recently. Today Nicole and I went shopping in between treatments. We’re having fun with the knock-offs.
Thank you all for the e-mails.
Love Char
September 17th, 2007
Hi eveybody! I have had a hard time getting this blog up and running. First I had to wait to get it set up, then I need to borrow other patient’s laptops when they are available, then need to luck out on a time when the internet is up. We’ve been in Shenyang 9 days already. A staff person named Tony met us at the airport and took us to a hotel, then picked us up the next morning and took us to the hospital. We felt very well taken care of. Tony speaks pretty good English, actually he lived in Montreal for 5 years and became a Canadian citizen. There’s one other girl named Lucy that speaks English, other than that it’s sign language. I’ve had two consulatations with doctors, through Tony’s interpreting. Life has settled into a routine. I have accupuncture at 9:15, physio therapy at 10:00am and 2:45pm and a 3 hour dailyIV whenever it works out. I’ve had a heart test, blood tests, x-rays and a 2 hour MRI. They are very thorough here. Last Wed I had my first umbilical stem cord transfusion which was painless. Then Thurs they took out cells from the hip bone. Ouch! Now today they are putting those cells in my spinal cord. My MS specialist at UBC clinic was most excited about this procedure, so hopefully it works. My left foot used to drag but is already lifting so that I can walk a little, so that’s encouraging. I’m not sure if it because of the stem cells or the physio therapy. The therapist is excellent. He doesn’t speak English, but it didn’t take long to figure out what he wants me to do. The other patients were telling me that someone with ms left a while before we arrived and he didn’t feel any benefit while in China, but is improving since he got home. So it takes 2 to 6 months to get all the benefit. The hospital is clean and our room has a TV, DVD player,(you can buy a package of DVD’s for $1), water container, fridge, microwave. We have our own bathroom with a shower. There is a Wal-Mart which is very different
September 12th, 2007
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September 7th, 2007
