How the mighty have fallen....

Not that I ever seriously considered myself to be mighty, but...

Since my stem cells set me free from MS the road to home has been interesting to say the least.

The delayed effects of the chemo are not for the faint hearted so if that's you I'd stop reading now.

The Nurses on BMT are just too lovely for words. These women who know nothing about you will stroke your arm, rub your back and just be with you in every sense of the nursing word. Something that's missing in Nursing and Midwifery today. It's made me feel a little career sick to be honest. There's nothing like being 'with' a woman as a Midwife. Helping, supporting. A real priviledge.

A Nurse called Priya always drops in to say hello. They are always gowned up with facemasks on. All tiny but with the strength of ny man I'm sure.

Priya is so cute, I hope she won't find that condescending.

The first time I met her she was giving me some information, or directions and I said to her

" well Priya, you're the boss "

This sends her in to fits of giggles and an eternal rendition of no, you're the boss, no, you're the boss.

I'm asking Priya about her rota and she tells me that they work six days a week with not much by way of holidays. She's really hoping to get home this year for Diwali but doesn't feel confident. Priya comes from Tamil Nadu. One of the Indian states and rich in Hindu history.

At junior school, which was in Forest Gate, East London we learnt about all the different Asian religions. Mainly because such a high percentage of the population practised these.

My favourite was Diwali, so bright and colourful.

Diwali is popularly known as the "festival of lights", the most significant spiritual meaning behind it is "the awareness of the inner light". Central to Hindu philosophy is the belief that there is something beyond the physical body and mind which is pure, infinite, and eternal, called the Atman. The celebration of Diwali as the "victory of good over evil", check out the story of Rama and Sita, refers to the light of higher knowledge dispelling all ignorance, the ignorance that masks one's true nature, not as the body, but as the unchanging, infinite and transcendent reality. With this awakening comes compassion and the awareness of the oneness of all things. Diwali is the celebration of this Inner Light.

This really strikes home with me. I desperately want to be a more 'spiritual' person. Finding my inner light and letting it shine. 

This journey has certainly kick started the process. I've learnt so much already.

For me, life since stem cells has been not too bad really. Lots of vomiting, diarrhoea which led to me having to wear pads because I couldn't make it to the loo in time. Go on, laugh. I would!! How the mighty have fallen.

But the most exciting thing was passing out again doing the 'mini shake'. This happened while on the toilet. Blood pressure dropped to 70/40. Took me a while to come round.

No one here seems to be too concerned so consequently neither am I. My poor mum though. When I did come round, my Mum slapping my cheeks I could hear her crying. 

A bit later she says " if you do that again we're on the next plane out of here. I can't handle that again. I don't care whether you've engrafted or not".

I think that part of the problem is that my Hb is 8.4 from a level of 14.0 when I came in. My platelets are also low at 6000. These are expected and  side effect of the treatment.

Yesterday my White Blood Cells hit 10. A sure sign that my bone marrow is now the barren wasteland I've been visualising.

And today already, my White Blood Cells have gone back up to 50. Dr Amit reckons that they will continue to increase now until I reach the magic number of 500 which is engraftment. Hopefully by Monday next week.

Another sign that my magical garden visualisation is also working.

So now it's time to just sit and wait for the numbers.

Other news...

My baby's coming out next week! Yep, Paul will be here in a week and I can't wait to see him. I can't wait to share some of this journey with him, and then the journey home to my babies...

This is it!

This is it!

Today is the day I get my stem cells back.

My stem cells will navigate their way to where they need to be and begin to build a new immune system. Hopefully, one that doesn't remember MS.

So, how did we get here....

On Weds night we were admitted to have a Hickman Line placed early Thursday morning.

At almost midnight an Anaesthetist came in to see me asking can you sign the consent form for a general if needed. I was under the impression that this was a very simple procedure with a local.

He replies that sometimes it's awkward and a GA may be necessary to proceed.

OK, I sign the form.

7.30am Thursday morning I'm taken down for my procedure. In to a theatre with loads of staff. Silver, gleaming. I wasn't expecting any of this. The last one was done behind a curtain on the ward.

So they placed me on the theatre table and connected me to all sorts.

In goes the local and as it does I get this shock down my left arm. He'd hit a nerve! It bloody hurt..

I don't say anything because I just want to get out of there ASAP.
The Hickman Line goes in like a dream but my arm is getting progressively more numb.

Sods law, my arms are the only part of me that still work. My left arm flopping about like jelly on a plate.

Back in recovery the Dr comes to see me. So, it was a success and very easy in your case.

Not completely, you shot local straight in to a nerve and now my arms floppy. I demonstrate this by trying to grab it then realising it's hanging over the edge of the bed.

Ah, don't worry he says. The local will wear off. He was right. It took a few hours but it came back to me. Thankfully...

We move in to the Bone Marrow Transplant room that evening. Ready to start chemo on Friday 13th, can you believe?

Chemo starts and the first day is manageable but days 2,3,4 and 5 have me feeling as sick as a dog. Like morning sickness but worse. Smells, tastes. Everything making my stomach turn.

Not a very nice experience but no pain, no gain as the famous saying goes.

On Weds, my last chemo day I had the one that makes up the M part of the BEAM + ATG protocol. Melphalan. For this one I had to eat ice for 30 mins before, during the 30 min infusion and for 30 min after. This is because the drug can cause blisters on the mucous lining of your mouth and GI tract, so I'm told.

After, I had ATG. For this they wanted to give me a test dose first, it can cause rashes etc in people.

In me it caused a light head, a fainting episode and a bit of jerking thrown in for good measure. I came round to my mum frantically shaking my shoulders. I was blissfully unaware of the fuss I'd caused. The ATG went in no problems, at a much slower rate.

Thursday was a wash out day. Loads of fluids to try and get rid of excess chemo in my body.

I've learnt that I have a bladder the size of a balloon. Even being on a fluid drip all night long doesn't  bother me. I'll sleep right through til the next morning!

Which brings us to today, my new birthday! Friday 20th September. The day my stem cells set me up with a new immune system that will be MS free.

The next week will have pleasures in store. Fevers, vomiting, diarrhoea as my old immune system is completely eradicated. Blood work numbers will drop and plateau.

Then, like a Phoenix rising from the flames my new immune system will show signs of flourishing.

Hope it happens soon because I want to go home!

UPDATE!!!  My stem cells are safely back inside me. Lots of positive thoughts please for a fast engraftment (when the new immune system begins)...

Summary of where Claire is in her Treatment Stage

Claire is undergoing her Chemotherapy stage now and is in isolation as this is the stage where the Immune system will be depleted and finally terminated.

It appears a gruelling and particularly difficult stage with very deep nausea, muscle spasms and chronic tiredness.

Claire, as most of you who know her, is a fighter and is certainly maintaining her fight with grit and determination.

Sue, Claire's mum , is in isolation with her and is a fantastic care giver and mum and is a real tower of strength for Claire.

Tomorrow (Monday 16th September) is what is termed day -4 , the countdown is on to zero for when the immune system will be confirmed as finally terminated.

Blood tests will be conducted tomorrow to check on the scale of depletion and progress toward termination of the Immune system.

I will be keeping you updated while Claire is dealing with the challenges of the treatment.

Paul, on behalf of Claire.

A rite of passage..

Since leaving the hospital on Saturday I've really been captive in the hotel again. But, compared to being in that room it feels like a few days on the coast!

We've met a lovely lady from Australia who's here with her husband. She's making her way through her own HSCT journey but it's great to compare notes.

It's nice to be able to disseminate some information. It's becoming clear that the staff here at Manipal are learning all the time. If things go to plan I could turn this whole thing round in 7 weeks! I may be getting ahead of myself a bit here but that's what I'm aiming for.

The weather in Bangalore is damp and grey in the main. You could even call it chilly last night. It's just like being at home.

We've been  having lessons on Hindu Gods from the hotel staff. I particularly like Lord Krishna.

This God had circa 16000 wives. You'd have to be a God to get round that lot!

Most men I know would say one's enough!

Local people have been getting excited about the Hindu festival of Ganesh Chaturthi. These statues are all over the place at the minute. I so wish I could get out and about and walk among it all. Such a colourful religion. There were real celebrations in Bangalore yesterday.

Raja, our taxi driver has even had the audacity to go on a mini pilgrimage to wash in the water of a special temple. We're lost without him. He worships at this temple because it is related to an important God. He said he'd also pray for me going in to isolation. This is a rite of passage for Raja, something that leads to purification of the soul.

I've still got that sick feeling..

You know that anxious one you get when you know some things are coming up and you're not quite sure how you are going to handle them.

My gorgeous significant other Paul has put together some visualization techniques for me to calm myself down. I'm working hard on them.

All these religious teachings had me thinking about my own rites of passage. Not in terms of purifying my soul although may be that wouldn't be a bad thing...

My rite of passage to motherhood was 4o weeks of pregnancy; my rite of passage to adulthood was turning 18 and going in to a pub!

My rite of passage to HSCT is..... GOING BALD!

It's not the best picture but I hope you get the idea. Mum was worried I'd find it difficult but it's strangely liberating. It's my rite of passage. It means that I'm moving on and isolation is a stones throw away.

The plan is for the new central line on Thursday and in to isolation on Friday to begin the real arse kicking chemo..

It's almost time to say sayonara MS. You're about to be nuked in to oblivion. You're disappearing forever but my hair will grow back.

I fancy curls this time....

Glad that's over...

It's been a stressful few days..

I was admitted to hospital Weds afternoon for the Central Line insertion.

This was cancelled until Thursday morning which I was quite happy with. I didn't feel up to much. Something just wasn't 'right'.

Thursday morning at 5am the lovely Chandra came crashing through the door.

'Bath bath!'

I cannot believe I allowed this to happen. I blame not feeling too well and suffering from a bit of 'cog fog'. A condition other MS sufferers may know well. It feels like your head is in cotton wool. The world is going on around you but you're in another dimension.

It may have been due to language barrier but I let this woman push me in to the shower. My protests to her were met with a massive smile and water.

Even Mums protests fell on deaf ears. Chandra is a force to be reckoned with!

Once I was back on the bed I turned to hysterical laughter. I felt violated!!

My reason for feeling off became clear when I developed a touch of 'Delhi Belly'. Sorry, but there it is..

The Drs were fast on top of this with antibiotics and other medications but it wasn't good.

I had to try and keep it together so to speak as I was wheeled up to 8th floor for my Central Line insertion.

This went without a hitch. Apparently I'm a strong woman?

Wheeled back downstairs to 6th floor to be almost immediately hooked up to the Apheresis Machine.

This little number is sucking out blood through my new central line, taking out the bit they need for the stem cells and putting the leftover back.

You can imagine mine and Mums face when they wheeled in this machine that looked like it belonged on the Antiques Roadshow. Sounding like it was on bad shopping trolley wheels.

But we needn't have worried. This little machine and the lovely team that operated it managed to extract 11 Million stem cells from me on the first day. We don't have the 2nd day numbers yet so we are well over our 2 Million minimum.

Here are the little blighters collecting in the bag.

Friday I woke up to another crashing through the door of Chandra where she was definitely told 'NO!'

Another collection day but because the first day was so good it was only a 2 hr collection. I could have come back to the hotel at that point but because of the toilet issue they wanted me to stay another night. Sad face..

Saturday was another 'cog fog' day, bit lost really.

Being in hospital has been a real emotional roller coaster and it's made me think of things/look at things from a different perspective. Mainly my life, my relationships and how much MS defines me as a person.

It's funny what extended periods away does; I'm missing home so unbelieveably much. I'm enjoying a bit of quiet contemplation and being alone with my own thoughts.

Mums now known as Nurse Ratchet. Have a look at this..

The only way to move the bed is to crank it up. I'm sure sometimes she'd like to throw it at me!

So, next I'm for blood tests on Tuesday and if my bloods have recovered enough I'm going in for my new central line to administer the chemo on Weds ready to go in to the BMT isolation on Thursday.

It's all happening now! Can't believe we've only been here 2 weeks and this is where we are.

Mum and Raja went shopping today to get some supplies to go in with. In true Bangalore style the supermarket was no good for me.

One last picture. Imagine me, lonely white female sat in a wheelchair, enjoying a bit of people watching. Here's my view..

Going in to isolation is going to be a challenge. I feel it already. But as mum says it's the crest of the hill and all roads point to home from then on. Can't wait!!

Humbled....

I know I said I wouldn't blog today but I had to share this..

I know it's not a great picture so I've made it as big as I can.

From towels, the fella that does our room has made a vase and put flowers in it! Then he has made a pretty border.

I'm sure he does this in all rooms, but it's brings in to question tipping and what you leave. I hope he does this because he feels he's being treated fairly.

We've discussed this with so many people

Every time the room gets done we give this man 200 INR which is about a £2.00. Peanuts.

But, when you know that the average wage here at the hotel is £100.00 a month its not a bad number.

We watch these people with nails holding their shoes together and pins fastening their clothes.

We have a taxi driver Raja who would appear to be waiting outside for us. He is so lovely and when we come back from the hospital he jumps out of his car to help push me up the ramp. But, you feel so bad about him being there that we pay him well when we use him.

Lakhmi, I hope I've spelled it right? The no nonsense, take no prisoners auxiliary lady who pushed my wheelchair today back from the Hospital right to the hotel room, dragging people to help as we go. I'll have to get a picture of that I think. Is £2.00 too much for that? I don't think so.

It's a really difficult thing to gauge and I hope the amazing people easing us through this journey at this end feel that we've appreciated them and treated them well. I hope they don't forget me because they'll be special to us forever.

There'll be more medical tourists all the time as it seems Manipal is building quite a reputation worldwide and it deserves it!

So I have a time for being admitted for the jugular tappng and it's 5pm here, 1230pm your end.

I'll try and get a FB message out to let you know how it went.

Catch up Friday when hopefully all my little stem cells will be tucked up in the freezer!

Transcendental moments in time...

So what's been occurring...

Saturday we went to The Leela Palace Hotel in Bangalore. Beautiful hotel and amazing gardens.

He'll kill me but, Dad had a blast...

Shall I take it off?? Naaaah....

Sunday we shared our breakfast table with a fella from Nigeria, an attorney who moonlights as a lay preacher.

Lovely man, so interesting to listen to. After sharing breakfast we shared a prayer where he asked God to look after us and to be honest, it felt really nice. My first transcendental moment, it's never too late to appreciate the power of prayer, whoever you pray to. Just as long as you open your mind a bit.

After that we went to Bangalores Botanical Gardens which were built by the British Raj. I'm starting to wonder if the Indians should be bearing a certain amount of ill will, but they don't.

Saw some Monkeys!

I wish wish wish I could have got a picture of this...

My parents sitting on a bench taking in the view.

An Indian lady wearing the most beautiful Sari comes up to the bench and starts edging my Mum over.

So we think that she must want a picture RIGHT THERE and my mum moves over. The womans husband holds up his camera and she strikes a pose.

The Husband gestures again, and the woman stands up and plonks herself in between my parents, Husband and Wife are all smiles and he takes the photo! We're all laughing now! There clearly aren't that many white people visiting Bangalore at the moment! My second transcendental moment, humour has no language barrier. It's something shared and for that moment is a connection between us as humans.

Back at the Hotel we have dinner where we chat to a family from Bahrain, not Oman as we thought. Lovely people again, we talked much about their country. They speak perfect English and as they are talking I can't get the Frys Turkish Delight advert out of my head. Go figure..

They NEVER have rain there so it was so funny to see them run out on to the terrace and dance in the rain when the heavens opened.

The TV choice that night in the restaurant was Indias Junior Pop Idol!

There was a point where the kids were doing their thing and the Mums were crying. Tonight I've just Skyped my youngest and previously my other three.

My third transcendental moment, a Mum is a Mum and a Dad is Dad. Doesn't matter where you are and what language you speak, that completely all consuming love for your babies transcendendts absolutely everything else.

So my new motto in Bangalore is get in, get done, get out, get home. I need to be home with my babies!

Even the beautiful towel sculptures that the chamber staff make couldn't keep me here..

As for HSCT...

Today I saw Dr Amit, a man who I am sure has looks that cover up his older years. He looks so young!

I had to have blood tests to see if the injections are working. He was looking for some elevated white blood cell numbers and the verdict is YES! It's working!

So now I am booked in for my Central Venous Catheter, a nice big tube in my jugular on Weds to have my stem cells harvested Thurs and Fri.

I'm really hoping that after what will be a successful stem cell collection he won't make me hang around for too long before I go in for the chemo that is going to boot this crappy MS from my body. But, I hear he likes to give you a rest after stem cell collection.

I'll be an inpatient from Weds afternoon til Friday. I'm hoping I can arrange internet access so we can stay in touch.

Take care guys and thank you so much for being around!