Fellow fighters (update #3)

Wanted to give an update on how these fellow fighters have been doing and would appreciate your continued prayers for them and their families esp. during this season with everything going on with Corona. They are all warriors whose steadfast courage and perseverance in their respective battles have been an inspiration to me. 


Tabitha
We praise God that my dear niece’s liver levels have returned to normal! She’s most happy cause that now means no more medicine! 🤗 What an amazing trooper Tabby has been through it all.

A picture is worth a thousand words!


Ryan


Ryan is a true warrior who has overcome several life-threatening setbacks throughout his battle with cancer. Please lift him up (and his parents Craig and Kim) as Ryan prepares for admission next week to HUP for his long-awaited transplant on 4/21. Please pray for the donor’s health as well as he will have his stem cells extracted this Thursday and that the stem cells would be a perfect match for Ryan. Was hoping to go through our transplant journeys together at HUP but Ryan is now going before me... as God goes before him! 💪🙏

Recent post from Ryan’s mom:

Thank you for the prayers you lift up for us on a daily basis.  Ryan has been the healthiest, happiest, and the strongest he has been since August.  Craig and I are at peace with this process knowing that God is in charge and fighting this battle for us.  The power of prayer is real and evident!  We love you all, Kim. 

I thought you might want to join in on this if you are interested. This has been on my heart of some time, and I finally decided to send it out to family and friends hoping that it is shared all over our nation. Of course, we chose an orange ribbon, but use any color ribbon or cloth that you may have! 

Tying a ribbon around a tree has been a sign of support, solidarity, and welcoming.  Would you be willing to join me in tying a ribbon around a tree or your mailbox to help show the strength we have as a community?  The ribbon may be of any color to show support. May our rainbow of ribbons be a reminder that we will get through this with our love, patience and prayers.  Pass this message along to spread the love we have for others. 

Soo
Soo has started her radiation and has been tolerating it well overall. Please pray for continued strength and healing through her treatments. 

Mary Lou 
Just found out that her stem cell transplant will hopefully take place by the 1st week in May! Her brother was also a 100% match... praise God! She’s been struggling with low hemoglobin levels despite transfusions and meds. Please pray for this and her transplant to go smoothly in the midst of everything going on with Corona. 

Mrs. Oh
Recently finished her second cycle of chemo a few weeks ago. Please pray for good rest as she’s been struggling with discomfort at night when sleeping.

Trent 
Trent had been struggling with low blood levels but got an injection last week to help boost his levels. He was supposed to return to Philly this month for another biopsy but may have to do that locally due to the Corona situation. With that said, he has been feeling better overall recently and enjoying the warm Spring weather in Kansas!🌞 

Ron 
As I mentioned in my previous blog post, Ron’s been at HUP for the past 2 weeks for his CAR-T therapy and he got his first dose last week. He said some of the side-effects are neurological changes. When I was discharged last week, he looked pretty spent and the treatment appeared to be taking a toll on him. Please pray for strength to persevere! 
I obviously took this pic with Ron before the hospital’s mandatory mask rule and keeping 6 feet of social distancing became our new normal! 😷

Comments

  1. Kim SmithApril 9, 2020 at 8:18 AM

    So good to read your post! I love how you update everyone on others and their battles. Thank you for remembering Ryan. We are anxiously awaiting Tuesday's admission date. While we can't imagine him being alone for so long without family, we are so grateful for the beautiful people that will care for him at Penn. We trust that he is in the best hands. Praying for you as you continue with your treatments. May you continue to find strength, energy, and especially joy in these rough times. I pray that your family stays well and God's protection is around you. Kim, Craig, and Ryan Smith

    ReplyDelete
  2. jamieApril 14, 2020 at 12:24 PM

    Praying for God's hands over Ryan and each of His children as they go through fire. May you know more deeply that Jesus is with you in the fire.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Powerback! 💪

Image
After almost 3.5 years since my diagnosis, I’ll be returning to the work that I love. I’ll be starting a job this week with a company called “Powerback” where I’ll be doing home care visits providing physical therapy… ironic name considering the past several years of battling cancer.  😅   I’m excited and grateful for not only this particular opportunity but just the privilege of being able to return to work as a PT, as there were many times when I questioned whether I’d be able to have the strength and endurance to do this again. So, my excitement is tempered by a sense of nervousness as I consider what I’ve been through and it’s just been such a long time! But I feel ready and take this next step of reintegration back to life in faith, knowing that God must have a plan for me.  The initial thought of potentially doing home care PT crossed my mind while I was receiving home care nursing visits myself. I got to know many of my awesome nurses quite well and so appreciated their compassi
Read more

Perspective on the infamous “IV pole”

Image
Not very “gown-friendly”  🙅🏻 This IV pole has often been the bane of my existence while in the hospital. I’ve never used that term before but needed to stretch my vocabulary that much to find something that expresses my dread of it. For it’s often felt like a literal ball and chain stuck to my side, as I drag it along wherever I go. And it lets me know (painfully) when I forget it’s there like in the middle of the night when having to rush to the bathroom... OUCH! And, it reminds me of my weakness, my disability, and ultimately my cancer.  One day I was cold so I reached for a hoodie but I forgot about my IV pole. Btw, that’s why all my pictures in the hospital usually are with a T-shirt on! This IV pole is a pain but just like many other things I’ve gotten used to in this battle, it’s a necessary evil as it holds the bags of medicine and fluids that my body needs to fight. So maybe a better more helpful perspective might be to see it as my  body armor ... heavy and cumber
Read more

Ringing the bell! 🔔

Image
I haven’t written a blog post for a while so wanted to share some exciting updates. A couple weeks ago, our family celebrated a greatly anticipated milestone called a bell-ringing ceremony which marked my dear niece Tabitha’s completion of treatment for her leukemia! It was a long two year battle which often felt like a bad dream. Tabby is a true fighter and couldn’t be more proud of her as well as her family.  💪 During the ceremony, her doctor shared a heartwarming tribute to Tabby’s courage and perseverance. And after Tabby rang the bell to the roar of cheers from our family and the staff, there was an image that will forever be etched in my memory… that is of Tabby and my brother Dan embracing each other in tears as the flood of emotions overwhelmed them. I started getting teary-eyed even as we just drove to the hospital that day, so I can only imagine how it must have felt to stand there ringing the bell in the place where they had endured so many difficult days and nights, filled
Read more