Being the Match, Part IV

In Part I, I discussed how and why I joined the Bone Marrow Registry.
In Part II, I discussed the selection process and how I was tested.
in Part III, I discussed how I began to let the world know and the reaction that had on me.

Now began the preparations to get my body ready to donate some bone marrow in top form!

I would be given 5 days of injections of a drug called Neupogen to increase my blood cell counts. They said I should expect to get sore, but should have no other side effects (nausea, vomiting, etc.)

I didn't really know what increasing my blood counts meant until I was in the hospital on donation day, and the nurse told me what my numbers were (pre-donation), and after receiving my final injection:

Normal Platelet count: Approximately 100,000
My Platelet count:  Approximately 192,000

Normal WBC (White Blood Cell): Between 3 and 10
My WBC:  60

I was turbo charged!!

At any rate, they said I should expect to get increasingly, or cumulatively more, sore as the weekend went on leading up to Donation Day, because of the injections.

The first injection took place at the hospital - Thursday, May 11th.
I went in to work early to get some stuff done, before I headed up to the hospital.

It was a rough morning at work.

I only had about 4 hours of sleep and since I wasn't sure if caffeine was allowed as I started the injections and donation process, I cut out my daily cup of coffee which made me feel even worse.

Then, I felt like I got chewed out at work, but I realized it was my tiredness wreaking havoc with my emotions and taking stuff personally.

At 7am, I left for the hospital to receive the first of the 5 injections to boost my stem cell production. The 1st would be done in the hospital, the following 3 at home by a Visiting Nurse each morning, and then the final one Monday Morning at the hospital, before the donation procedure.

While there, I asked if i could have coffee or if I needed to stay away from caffeine. To my extreme joy, they told me I could infact have coffee, and then even brought me a cup. 
Ahhhhh, heaven!!.

While waiting for the injections to come up from the hospital pharmacy, the nurses and I chatted about why I was donating and how I came to be on the registry. 

It was here that I found out there were nearly 15 million people on the Bone Marrow Registry, and I was in awe that out of 15 million people, I was a match for this one person.

After the rocky morning at work, the highlight of my day came from a patient in a bed near me (who I found out was a bone marrow recipient from a donor) and his wife, who, when they overheard and realized why I was there, came up to me, and thanked me for saving someone's life.  


There was this instant kinship between us, even though we had never met - the same that my Father says he experiences with another cancer patient.  It was the first of many indications I received (in hindsight) that I was in the middle of experiencing what my Dad and other patients go thru as cancer patients daily, but I didn't realize it yet. (More on that in the next post in this series)

The injection themselves (there were 2 of of them) went off without a hitch - no reaction, just a pinch, less pain than checking your blood sugar in your finger. 

Because why shouldn't the Universe throw everything at me at once..the weekend I prepared to donate also included family members travelling to visit, and the annual Chandler Relay for Life
that we participate in.

My Dad with his own medical issues, had me worried. 
Last year, he and Mom left before or at midnight because he had Chemo all that week.
This year, his energy level was just not where it should be and I was concerned the impact of being in the sun and out for all those hours would have on him. I really hoped he could stay most of the night to fit my image of what normal was, but reality was that this probably was not possible.

Additionally, with the threat of being sore from the injections, I was already starting (this was now Friday afternoon) to feel some soreness (it settled in my back and in upper legs) - almost as if you had walked or biked 15 miles every day. This was going to be an interesting night of walking.

Even though some things were a bit different than years past, when Relay day rolled around, somehow I wasn't fighting the change. I saw the day as an opportunity to be truly thankful for what I was allowed to experience. To completely cherish, enjoy and live in the moment instead of worrying about what used to be or what may be, or what was different.

For as much as I could in all what was going on, I relaxed and was so incredibly grateful:
That the 4 hours my Dad spent with us at Relay were better than no time spent at all.

I saw the day as a precious gift to be savored. A day to CELEBRATE LIFE.

The Visiting Nurse came again Friday AM (before Relay), Saturday AM (after Relay), and Sunday AM.  2 injections each time, boosting my numbers. The Saturday AM visit was fun...after I had only been asleep for about 45 minutes. I felt completely incoherent and don't remember much of that visit - even which side of my stomach the injections went on that day.

Sunday we went to the zoo to visit some other family members, because why shouldn't I walk around and get another 10,000 steps in while I'm sore...LOL

There was nothing more to do...I increased my calcium intake by having a glass of milk daily, and took the OTC pain stuff the hospital and Bone Marrow Foundation suggested.  I was mentally and physically ready to donate.