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Transplant's over.
It took just about an hour and a half to get Neal's stem cells into me. Looked just like a blood transfusion. Went very smoothly, no problems at all. I ate some lasagna while it went in.
I listened to Chet Baker and to Eileen Hemphill-Haley's "E's World" during the transplant. Thank you so much, Eileen and Mark, for sending me the CD and all of your love. I will forever remember the sound of Eileen's sweet voice while new life flowed into my veins. Peace to you and yours in Oregon.
To Beth - girl, you made me smile this afternoon when things were worse than they had been during this whole damnable process, when I didn't think anything would get through the frustrated anger I was feeling. (*hug*hold*thanks babe*). Thanks for the Chet Baker, too.
If I tried to thank everyone who has helped me during this, your browser wouldn't load this page. You know who you are, and you all have my love and gratitude. Although I have been stuck in one room, in a hospital, for two weeks now, I have never felt lonely or trapped, and that is because each of you have brought your part of the world here, into this room, for me to share. It would have been so much harder without ya'll, and I thank you.
Most especially... Neal - thank you.
Simply put... I would have died. I am proud to have your cells in my body, fixing what was wrong, teaching my body to work correctly. Again, thank you.
Before the transplant - Neal with that big-ass vas-cath in his chest, and Nikki to the left. The machine to the right is processing his blood, extracting the stem cells for my transplant before returning the blood to his veins. He lay there for seven hours.
During the transplant - Dr. Donna Salzman (my doctor), Jeanne Dockery (my transplant nurse), and yours truly. The little bag hanging on the right side of the IV stand is the bone marrow transplant - the bag of stem cells. Don't look like much, do it?
After the transplant - I feel fine. Drained. They gave me a hell of a whopping dose of Demerol (do it again! do it again!) and I had a hell of a dose of anger this morning. I feel washed out now. But good.
Thanks Doc, and a huge shout-out to all the other people on the Unit.
Sigh.