WooHoo THREE million!!!!

Great news today. Eddie's stem cell count was appx 3 million, with 90% viability (I think that means only 90% of them showed up to work).

I guess all those greens (mustard greens, collard greens, spinach ((high in iron))... he loves them all) that I've been fixing for him, worked. He's also been taking B12 shots, once a week for a month now.

I didn't get to take pictures of the lumbar injection procedure. They had Eddie sit on the side of an exam table, all hunched over. Neurosurgeon (I can't even begin to pronounce his name, but it wasn't Dr. John) asked me to stand facing Eddie with my hands on his shoulders. It couldn't have been comfortable for him since it took about 20 minutes or so to do the lumbar injection. They started with a local anesthetic injected into his back (after sterilizing the area with alcohol). In the States, when Eddie did spinals, they cleaned the area with Betadine first, then wiped it down with alcohol. Here they spray it with alcohol only.

Eddie did extremely well, though I had to "translate" his answers (are you in pain? feel any tingling?) back to the Dr. since Eddie's responses were muffled (his face was in his shirt front). Needles don't bother me, especially when I'm not the one at which they were aimed, so I suppose Eddie picked the right gal (some 32 yrs ago). Who would have known that?

My husband doesn't have faith in prayer. He believes in God, baptized many years ago. I think he's just too stubborn and independent to ask for help, even from God. I make up for it by doubling up on my prayers. I belonged to the Assembly of God church for many years. Yes, they are charismatic, laying on of hands, talking in tongues, and all that. Very strange for me to adhere to a faith that appears less than dignified, and somewhat unsophistocated to some people, but to each his own beliefs... whatever works, and I don't apologize. I'm reminded of a story about my Gma Hotson several years back. She was about eighty at the time, small and frail, used a walker to get around. One day she was alone at the house and heard a noise from the living room so went to investigate. Seems a young man, up to no good, had crawled through the kitchen window and was standing in the living room just a few feet away from her.

She shouted out, "Get thee behind me Satan, you are an offense to me and in my way". That guy almost beat himself to death trying to get out the patio door... never to be seen again. I always try to remember that in times of trouble.... get thee behind me Satan. ALS=Satan, robbing and stealing from my husband. Enough of the sermon. Suffice to say, I believe in prayer and appreciate all those coming his way.

So, those 25 vials had been condensed into one. A small syringe about the size of my pinkie finger. After injecting a local anasthetic, the same amount of spinal fluid was removed and replaced with the stem cell solution... and bandaged up.

Afterwards he was moved to a semi-private room (shared with the Canadian gentlemen we met Monday). He was told to lie flat for three hours and drink lots of fluids. He managed to get about 3/4 liter polished off. They don't let him leave until he has excreted said fluids. Another short story about my mother-in-law who used to babysit (and potty train) kids. If they made pee-pee in the potty, she would give them an M&M. So, I told Eddie when he was ready for an M&M, we could go. Enough said on that. We were out of there by about 2p.m. (see the clock?)