The last time I wrote, it was a day before my three month baseline appointment. Everything went great during that appointment - the biopsy showed no rejection (!) and the doctors showed us the images from that cath compared to caths done on my previous heart where the arteries were closing off - the difference is astounding. From there, they planned to start a new medication, increase another, and would decrease the prednisone at my next clinic appointment.
So, that has been the major thing I've been working with lately. So many medication changes, which then all require multiple blood draws to check and re-check levels. The day of the cath, my magnesium level was low so they added to that and started Rapamune - another anti-rejection medication. I had a blood draw a week later and the Rapamune was low, so they increased it, and then had another blood draw this week - still low, so they increased it again and want to check it next week. But this week, the magnesium was too high, so they decreased that again. Phew! It's quite the task to keep track of all of them. Definitely a balancing act.
However, since I had no rejection at the last biopsy, they came down again on the prednisone. I came home from the hospital on 40 mg every day, and am now down to 12.5 mg per day. I can't wait to be off of it completely - saying it is a nasty drug with awful side effects is still an understatement - but hey, every little bit helps. Also, since they started the Rapamune, they have decided to completely stop another medication called Myfortic. I was taking EIGHT of those per day, so that significantly decreased my morning and evening piles! ;) Crazy to think that I came home from the hospital on 44 pills per day, plus a central line requiring IV medication three times a day, plus two different insulin regimens, plus pain medicine. FOURTY-FOUR. Hard to wrap my brain around the fact that that was not even four months ago! I am currently down to 26 pills per day, don't have the central line anymore, still on the insulin, and rarely (if ever) take any pain medicine. It's almost been cut in half!
Anyways, other than all the medications that each have their lovely array of side effects and still dealing with the steroid-induced diabetes, I am doing great! Feeling great and trying to do as much as I possibly can. I am still going to cardiac rehab, and plan to do a 5K with the rehab team in a couple weeks! I am looking forward to that. I will continue to have blood draws almost weekly to make sure everything is at the right levels, and have another biopsy in two weeks. Praying for continued progress! :)
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