My REQUIRED Reading List ;)

Besides my own books, of course ;)

Seriously, you MUST read anything & everything by Chelle Cordero. Why? Because I said so! Because her books sweep you in right away. There is so much depth to her characters. Her plots are full of twists and intrigue. And they're just plain good!

-Bartlett's Rule
-Forgotten
-Within the Law
-Courage of the Heart

Go read them, y'all!!! :)

Excerpts from my Lyme book about the tap, patch & current status

Sunday, November 30, 2008

I'm laying in bed, and have been since last night.

The spinal tap on Friday went as well as one could go, I guess.

First, they took spinal x-rays. Not in the usual way, though. I was laying on my stomach & they took the x-rays from above me. They shot 2 films.

Then they "prepped" me. They tucked sterile drapes in, on, and under me. They scrubbed my back with Betadyne. Then the real fun began.

They injected my spine with Lidocaine. It burned and stung. Just when I thought I was ok & able to handle it, they went deeper and injected more. I tried not to grunt, and tightly gripped the table.

As they advanced the needle from which they would actually draw the fluid, I found that that pain compared to muscle spasms. Since I get muscle spasms in my back on a frequent basis, that actually wasn't too bad.

They slanted the table in increments to have gravity help them obtain the samples since it takes a while to get spinal fluid. By the end, I was almost completely vertical!

After what seemed to be an infinite amount of time, they were finally done. They slowly lowered the table, cleaned me up and put a band-aid on my "ouchie."

Then they drew a blood sample as well. They're testing me for MS again. All of my brain CT's and MRI's show no plaque or lesions on my brain, but I guess it needed to be done.

Slowly, I rolled onto my side to start to get up after it was all over. Instantly, I experienced the "spinal headache." That term does it no justice. Let me just say this: I've had migraines since childhood. Debilitating, nauseating migraines. This made them seem like a walk in the park.

The headache came & went Friday night, but it was tolerable.

Saturday morning, though, was another story. The pain woke me up. Even laying down, the pain continually increased until I could not take it any more. By 10:30 am, I was on my way to the ER.

They placed me in a room about 30-45 minutes after I arrived. Not bad for this particular hospital.

I eventually got an IV & they ran 2 bags of fluid into the line. One was just regular saline. One was saline with caffeine.

The caffeine drip did help to take some of the edge off.

At around 4, an anesthesiologist arrived. It was time for me to get a "blood patch."

What they did was almost like an epidural. It was much stronger than the lidocaine. It burned and caused tremendous pain in both my legs. Then they drew 20 cc's of my own blood, then they "transfused" that blood back into my spine to form a clot over the hole from the tap. The hole from the tap caused me to leak spinal fluid, which caused the unbelievable head pain. This second procedure was like "fix-a-flat" for my spine!

About 60-90 minutes later, a new anesthesiologist came to check on me. He made me sit up in the hospital bed. The headache was significantly less than what it had been before. By 6:30 pm, I was on my way home.

No headache today (thank heaven!). My back is very sore & my legs still hurt to some degree, but I feel so much better. It was well worth it. I'm on strict bed rest for the rest of the day & I have to be extremely careful for the next 3-5 days, but I'll be ok. Now all I have to do is wait for answers…

Wednesday, December 03, 2008

Still no headache. That blood patch pretty much instantly cured me! It's been an amazing relief. My back is still very sore. I'm taking Tylenol 2 – 3 times per day. My mobility is extremely limited, and I am only comfortable lying in certain positions.

I'm still waiting on my results. I pray they come today. I desperately need answers!

I Might be MIA for a While...

Hey all. As many of you know, I have my spinal tap later today. I'm supposed to be in bed for the rest of the afternoon today & all of tomorrow. If I can, I'll try to go on-line to at least up-date you, but I can't make any promises.

Additionally, we're moving Sunday (talk about timing!!). Due to my limited mobility (and ability to hook up my comp), as well as just the usual moving transition, it may be a few days before I'm back on-line. Please understand that I am not ignoring anyone, and that we are working hard to getting back to running at 100% again.

Please be patient with me for the next few days or so. You're all in my thoughts & prayers. I'll be in touch when I can.

Much love & many blessings to you all!

Medical Up-date

I had my MRI Wednesday afternoon, and the Spinal Tap will be on Friday.

I have contacted a lawyer to begin the process of getting social security disability (it’s an absolute must at this point), as well as a possible medical mal-practice case against the original infectious disease doc.

I'm not worried about the actual procedure, but I pray that my spinal MRI will be enough of a diagnostic for disability. I pray that the Lyme (and possibly any other tick-borne diseases) show up in the tap to confirm what we already know to be true.

The MRI went well. We could get the results as early as Monday (they said figure sometime between Monday & Wednesday). All I can do is pray that we can use my screwed up spine as a reason for disability.

As for the tap...All I can do is pray for strength, endurance, and REALLY good drugs ;)

I have my procedure dates - and they're THIS week!!!!

Oh thank every deity that ever lived! I FINALLY have my dates!!! THIS Wednesday, as in 2 days from now, I will have my spinal MRI with contrast. Then on Friday. THIS Friday, the day after turkey day, I will have my spinal tap!!!

I am SO relieved and excited! Thank God, this is over. I'll be getting my answers soon. This has been hanging over my head for so long, and I could not be happier that not only is there a light at the end of the tunnel, but I am sitting in that light!! Woo hoo!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :)

Today, at the 7th Annual Vegas Valley Book Festival

I was ridiculously excited and nervous. Things went wrong. I kept adjusting my books & flyers because they had to be perfect. Yes, I was in "anal retentive" mode.

I had the most books there as far as number of books we've all actually written. The next closest was a middle-aged man who had 4.

I had one woman come up, a fellow local author, actually. She offered to help. She said that her own survivorhood was something that God was putting in the forefront of her mind. She also said that God told her that she needed to help others. She fully believes that my presence there was to provide a means for her to do that.

I had one woman comment on how great my titles are. Several people commented on the beauty of of all my covers.

I was passed by often. Some people would at least respond when I smiled & said "hi" to them. Others walked past. Several flyers were taken, but not enough to make a real dent in the 115 that I had printed. One woman seemed like she wanted to buy, but then she asked about ordering on-line. She, too, took a flyer.

I saw a woman with an older child come in. She was wearing sunglassses, but they couldn't hide the black eyes underneath. I greeted her when she first came in, she responded, and then browsed through everyone else.

She later returned, and as she was looking at my books, she began to understand what my books were about. She took off her glasses, and displayed her bruises to me. She told me they were inflected last Saturday. We talked briefly. I told her to take as many flyers as she needs, that I was willing and able to help in any way. She began to cry. She thanked me.

Several people had actually thanked me throughout the day, but hers meant the most.

I befriended a few of my fellow authors. We exchanged numbers & e-mails. I also met a fellow author, survivor and chronic Lymie! She was my other big blessing of the day. We just connected. She gave me a copy of her book, and I mine. We'll be in a Lyme support group together, and I know we'll also be talking on survivor issues as well.

I had ZERO sales. None. Not one red penny. Every book, save the one I gave the Lymie, that I brought with me came home with me. And ya know what? I don't care. This day couldn't have gone better. Money's nice, sure. But holding strangers' hands while they cry with me & thank me; raising awareness and education; building more on-line traffic to rapehelp.org; and allowing survivors the opportunity to shop safely and discreetly from home are what today was all about. I'm not here for money, numbers or glory. I CONNECTED with people I never would have met had I not had this opportunity. I don't care if my book sales don't make the New York Times Best Seller List. I do this for PEOPLE. I do this for each and every one of you, for each and every one of those people I met today. I may not get fame and glory by typical US standards, but the connections I made today were a glory far greater than that!

TOMORROW at the Vegas Valley Book Fesitval!!!

I have a spot to sign & sell my books THIS Saturday from 10 am to 1 pm at the Vegas Valley Book Festival!!!! If you're in the Vegas/Henderson area, I'd love to see you there!!

Vegas Valley Book Festival

Local Author’s Expo

Saturday, November 8, 2008

Fifth Street School

Fourth and Lewis Avenue Downtown

The 7th annual Vegas Valley Book Festival will take place on November 6, 7, 8, 2008 at the Fifth Street School in Downtown Las Vegas. The festival is sponsored by the City of Las Vegas Office of Cultural Affairs, Nevada Humanities, The Review Journal, TARGET and the Las Vegas-Clark County Library District with participation from the UNLV Creative Writing Department, the UNLV School of Architecture Downtown Design Center and Black Mountain Institute. Over 50 authors will be presented in a full schedule of sessions over 3 days. The event is free and open to the public.


I look forward to seeing everyone there!!!! :)