May Long Weekend...Day 64 Post-Transplant

Well it's the craziest weakend of the year, everyone out and about trying to get away from "it all". I have been away from it all for sometime so the boredom I am faced with does not phase me to bad. Me and my mom, who is starting to go crazy as well, with the lack of things she is able to do, as we are both left here, secluded from our family and friends. Her from her children and husband and millions of things she could be doing at home. We are in Calgary, a huge city, millions of things to do, but the problem with that is millions of others are doing the same thing, and I am just not in a state of health to be exposed to every little people germ out there. So we don't risk it too much and keep to the wide open spaces of the park that is near by. We go on hour long walks with the family pet, that has basically become our duty of walking everyday. This week as a little more exciting, we went to the Museum of Regiments, it was interesting to learn a little more about the war, but it was a museum... Not the most exciting place to venture off to, but it gets you out of the house. Later we went to the theatre, normally that would be a death trap, but this one is not very busy. We watched Fever Pitch, it was funny, there were maybe eleven people watching.

I have been getting into the routine of doing a few good sessions of stretching during our walks which I think is helping my strength, but if you don't stay with it you get sore. The first few days after I am sore anyway, but I can really tell my muscles have become week. The problem with stretching, is the prednisone is affecting my legs muscles I think, and a few mornings this week I have woke up with those hurting leg cramps in my lower calf. My foot muscles up to my calf just cramp up, and it takes a few rotations or sudden twitches to relieve the pain. I hate it, but at least it doesn't last very long.

My mom is leaving on Thursday to go back home for few weeks, it's been about six months, so I guess I could let her go for a few days. I will be fine, even if I do have to be without my mommy for a while. I left home in September, so it will be nine months for me, but I wasn't even supposed to be home until June 8th once my Katimavik program ended. So I guess I wouldn't be home anyway, but the fact that everything changed, I might as well be there.

June 26th, the 100th day. Only 36 days away. Un-officially it marks a good outcome for transplant, the first part of it anyways. Within the first 100 days, you are most at risk of developing some form of Acute Graft Vs. Host Disease. I have/had some form of it, a few rashes on my skin, legs and arms mostly, but nothing really severe, the patches are still kind of there, but don't really bother me, just look a little scaly. My progress has been fairly good, a few little quirks here and there, but nothing too serious. My cyclosporine has been cut off, and that is the drug used to prevent rejection of the new cells, so as long as I don't start to all of a sudden reject the new blood, it should now be allowed to slowly begin to rebuild my new immune system, giving me more protection in the fight against the evil viruses, bacteria, protozoa and fungi. Still I am left with an immunity like that of a baby. But babies roll around on the floor and such, putting everything in their mouth, maybe that is the key to a strong immunity... I don't think I'll be trying that though.

Justin:)