![\"Dunseverick](\"http:\/\/www.travelswithwesley.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/09\/dunseverick-cliffs-wc.jpg\" "\\"dunseverick")
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It has been several months since I last posted. \u00c2\u00a0There is a good reason for this, a different kind of trip..<\/p>\n
Sometime in the new year, 2014, I started feeling poorly. \u00c2\u00a0No energy, no particular enthusiasm for doing anything. \u00c2\u00a0I managed to struggle through some real estate deals, and the Spring art show season. \u00c2\u00a0I started having severe problems with my left hip, ending up after driving back from the Pensacola show in May, having to use a walker to get around. \u00c2\u00a0The urgent care doctor diagnosed a bone spur in my hip. \u00c2\u00a0Not being satisfied, I got in to see Dr. Vo, an orthopedic surgeon \u00c2\u00a0and after an MRI, he surmised I might have a more serious problem. \u00c2\u00a0He ordered some emergency blood tests and called my home around 7:00m PM that day and informed me that I probably had leukemia. \u00c2\u00a0He got me in to see an oncologist the next day, and after a very stressful week of tests, I was diagnosed with CML, chronic myeloid leukemia. \u00c2\u00a0If you have ever been hit upside the head with a brickbat, that was how it felt. \u00c2\u00a0I went from a lifetime of being healthy to being a cancer patient. \u00c2\u00a0 \u00c2\u00a0<\/p>\n
CML is a form of leukemia, which if you have to have leukemia, is the best kind to have. \u00c2\u00a0It is treatable or manageable with a daily pill called Gleevec, which was developed specifically for this disease. \u00c2\u00a0Sounds simple, and it really is. \u00c2\u00a0However, it is still chemotherapy with a long list of potential side effects. \u00c2\u00a0I am two+ months into the therapy now, and am blessed to have minimal reaction, mostly just having to keep Imodium handy. \u00c2\u00a0Enough said, I think.<\/p>\n
\u00c2\u00a0![\"Dark](\"http:\/\/www.travelswithwesley.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/09\/dark-hedges-efex-hdr-bw.jpg\" "\\"dark")
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I don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t mind admitting that hearing the doctor say that I had cancer, even a manageable form, sent me to a dark place. \u00c2\u00a0As someone said, I think my mother-in-law, when you see your name on the report, it hits home. \u00c2\u00a0Depression followed. \u00c2\u00a0Luckily, with the help of my wife and a lot of prayer, the depression didn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t last very long. \u00c2\u00a0 I realized that there are people I know who are a lot worse off that I am. \u00c2\u00a0The hardest part \u00c2\u00a0has been dealing with the lack of energy, strength and enthusiasm. \u00c2\u00a0All of which are slowly coming back as the drug therapy takes hold. \u00c2\u00a0I will probably have to take the Gleevec pill the rest of my life, but there are certainly worse things that could have happened. \u00c2\u00a0Even in a dark place, there is always a light at the end, if you have faith.<\/p>\n
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\u00c2\u00a0 \u00c2\u00a0 It has been several months since I last posted. \u00c2\u00a0There is a good reason for this, a different kind of trip.. Sometime in the new year, 2014, I started feeling poorly. \u00c2\u00a0No energy, no particular enthusiasm for doing … Continue reading