Trip to Ottawa Hospital

Trip #55, Thursday, Nov. 30th

I drive on these trips, hubby is in charge of the camera. This is his practice photo of the driveway.



He nearly missed the planes, there were four, all told! There is pressure being the photographer and grabbing drive-by shootings!

The difficulties of regular appointments are fitting in meals, which only adds to the transit time. We leave the house at 10:30, arrive at Robbie's, a reliable Italian restaurant, for lunch.
The server, fancied himself a card, asked if we wanted anything to drink. He spotted hubby's pills, and said, "Water, for sure!"
 

This is the bag my dear friend, Jean, made for me. She is a peach.

It was pretty noisy, with a couple of tables of groups, but warm with the fire.


City driving, it's quite something. So glad to be retired! Robbie's is near an OCTranspo garage.


This is how we get through these long days. Hubby reading his birthday book, Fantasyland: How America went haywire. It explains how someone like Trump could get elected.

Me, I did a few crosswords puzzles, and played around on the iPad.  I'm hoping he'll let me read it after, or at least do a book review for me! It's about the settlement of the US by religious groups who fled Europe

The lady behind the desk is a hoot. Francophone, she has much fun with patients and staff, in both official languages.


Finally, the injection. It's a damn big needle! We buy it at the pharmacy, and bring it into the hospital. The nurse injects him, then we check in with the doctor, who is pleased with hubby's progress. Loads of fun.

There is some controversy regarding the costs of cancer treatments. There are many who cannot afford this. We both pay big bucks into additional healthcare plans, with medical and dental benefits. OHIP pays for it if your treatment is in the hospital. Not so if you get it at the pharmacy.

Ottawa Hospital, a dark and dreary day.


At 3:00 p.m., it was getting dark. Bumper-to-bumper city traffic. Red taillights lighting up the dusk on a dreary day.
Then, in the sky you can see a murder of crows.


When we left the hospital, it was raining, then it hailed, then snow on Riverside Dr. That's southern Ontario! Happy to arrive home, even in the dark.

Trips to the city and outdoors

Busy few weeks around here. Between a dead computer needing surgery (fixed and done!), visiting an aunt, an Ottawa Hospital visit, and getting the winter tires off, we were into Ottawa a lot.



I heard, on CBC, of a study that 1 in 7 healthcare visits are wasted when test results do not arrive.
So far, we've not had that problem in 33 visits. It happened this time. The colonoscopy report wasn't in, a failed fax (who knows where THAT report went?!) was the cause. Also, the biopsy report of the removed polyps was missing. It's a good thing that hubby took notes in his recovery room with the doctor. I wasn't there, and couldn't take said notes. Our urologist had none of these notes. His office tracked them down that day, however.

Appt #XXXIV

9:30 Left the house, took the North Gower route. Such a peaceful drive with Gillian GPS, along the backroads. 

11:09 In the waiting room, fooled around with the iPad camera to pass the time. Then, I worked on my embroidery. Another patient's wife walked by and complimented me. She told me she did cross stitch, as well.
I can't read, since it's very distracting in the waiting room. Here's why:

1. One guy walked by, his Smartphone on speaker, speaking loudly into his phone as he strolled down the hallway.  2. Another woman complained to reception that it was 12:15 and when would she be seen. Five minutes later they called her name, but she'd wandered over to the window and couldn't hear them. The receptionist spotted her and yelled 'Madam!'

It's important to have something to do... love the iPad apps.


11:45 closed the office reception, which was worrisome!

closed for lunch!

12:20 (For an 11:45 appointment!) We were ushered into the exam room by an intern. He took our most recent information. Next, our doctor came in, he decided more tests: MRI and another biopsy would be ordered. Back to  the receptionist to give her the papers, and we were home free.

Off to validate the parking pass: $13.00. As we approached one set of elevators, we spotted a man in hand cuffs, in that familiar orange suit, escorted by two Ottawa police officers. We hustled ourselves off to the parking lot!

new bridge in Ottawa

1:25 made it to the parking lot and headed for home. We hadn't planned where to have lunch. We usually want to get out of the city by the afternoon. Hubby had taken a granola bar for a snack.

2:45 Made it to our newly renovated pub, Fort Hemlock, in Smiths Falls and had a nice, quiet lunch. There aren't many people eating lunch at this time, we get a lot of attention! We like the view of the water.

4:30 Home again, home again, jiggety jig. What a long day. 

I went outside to try and place the new Wood duck box I'd ordered last week. Hubby had a nap. It took me until 6:00 and I'm not satisfied with my work. It has a design flaw in that there are three screw hole across the top, insufficient contact with the tree to attach them. There needs to be something with which to affix the bottom. Any thoughts?! The old box has a hole top and bottom.

The old box at the other end of the pond has some downy feathers inside, in prep for nesting. I opened it up to check on it. This is good news!

You should have seen me, backwards on the step ladder, cold, big rain boots. I wrapped a rope around the tree to hold on to. The next day I'd pulled a few back muscles. Jeepers this old age sucks!

Last year's box.
Can you see the
feather in the opening?!

In 2014 we had 10 eggs, 5 ducklings!

Another big trip to the city!

Ottawa Hospital Cancer Centre

Yes, to meet with our urologist. He's not just into urology, but he did hubby's robotic surgery, as well, he's been monitoring hubby's disease.

It's been a journey, and our destination is 83 km away. Unfortunately, it is 17 km short of being able to claim tax deductions for parking (~$13/visit), mileage (83 km x 2/visit), meals on our journey, and the like.

Infographic from
Prostate Cancer Canada

 For those who have asked, we appreciate your concern. Some days it's like a ticking time bomb. It helps to talk about it, read about it, understand where we are, and avoid horribilising it, living in the land of reality.

Ask Questions of the professionals - don't use Google!

Some avoid information, or don't ask questions when they don't understand, or find misinformation. This can result in making bad treatment decisions. Radiation had a huge impact on my ill father, giving him an infection and delirium, which went undiagnosed in the ER. Chemo seemed to make my late mom worse, and had no chance of curing her. It really changed her quality of life.

Joe's PSA cancer cells have escaped prior to surgery and migrated somewhere and the trick is to monitor and watch for them. There are keys for getting through this.

The body is an interesting thing. I found, through a Webinar held by Prostate Cancer Canada, that

Discuss options with your doctor 

many men with prostate cancer die from something other than cancer. It is the most treatable, and Canadian doctors are in the forefront of research and techniques. We donate $ billions for research, but we don't really know where the money goes.

Prostate Cancer is a slow-growing type of cancerous cell, and very common in older men. Almost as if the prostate just wears out before its time, and their cells begin to grow wrong. That's all cancer is, really. All the violence and the battle imagery is totally wrong and needless. You must question, why is your body creating cancer cells? For some men and women: diet, exercise, lack of sleep, stress, and toxins can be factors. You can change certain aspects of your life, if you have the self-control, but some cancer simply cannot be explained. Hubby has lost 30 lbs., exercises daily, has gone to a Naturopath to help his stomach issues, and has seen much improvement. He is in top shape to manage his treatments, when they arise.

For those who perceive cancerous cells as some foreign thing, using personification to declare war on 'the cancer', they must understand that it is one's own body creating these cells that grow rapidly, grow wrongly, and overtake 'normal' cells. I found it helpful to draw them, from an image in a book that helped me understand cancer: Pinzone, J.J.: Fireballs in my Eucharist: Fight Cancer Smarter. 

Men aged 60 - 70 have a 64% prevalence rate of cancerous cells in their prostate, men over age 65 = 65%, but it doesn't necessarily kill them. Only 3.5% of USA men die of prostate cancer.

We are in the 'watchful waiting' stage of treatment, having had surgery to remove the cancerous cells.

A further option: Hormone Therapy.

Huggins won Nobel prize for this.

Did you know?

Gleason 1 - 5
At a score of Gleason 7+ Dr. Joshua said
you don't know how it will behave. 

Understand staging, and what your individual cancer diagnosis means at this point in time.

 How can you cope?

Firstly, were are on appointment #XXIX. Seriously. Between a slightly elevated PSA count, not THAT unusual, and trips to the local urologist. Then a biopsy, then another consult. It goes on as they check all this out.
 I have found coping strategies.

Smile, dear. Selfie.

• Using the iPad to take notes. This is a serious method, since I can type as quickly as our speedy physician talks. The medical student and our doctor, were amazed at my speed! 
• Do not go to appointments alone. (You can find a driver through local community Cancer Society or Hospice volunteers, as well as someone, like myself, who will take notes for you during an appointment. Go to 211Ontario for more info, or ask your CCAC Case Manager.)
• Using the iPad to take silly photos of ourselves.
• People watching. (There is always someone worse off than ourselves.)
• Laughing with people in the waiting rooms.
• Keep things in perspective. 
• Spoil yourself. You deserve it!
• Laugh a lot, and often. 
• Use Complementary and Alternative Therapies

  

  Complementary and Alternative Therapies

• We all must deal with the end of our lives. There are people out there who can help.  Canadian Virtual Hospice.ca Discussion Forums are great.
• Talk to people about your journey. What I found difficult, were the secrets kept from loved ones. Disease trajectory is an important part of managing the journey. Ask your nurse, CCAC case manager, or local society ( e.g., Prostate Cancer Canada, ALS Society)

Good story: people watching

 There were 4 people together in the waiting room. It looked like a married adult son/daughter and spouse, who were there to support the parents. The father looked 80 or so, and while being tall, he was frail. The daughter was handing the father money for the parking, methinks. She had been holding his ring and wallet while he went in for a treatment. She accidentally dropped a $100 bill. She picked it up. Then she dropped the bill again. Her mother suggested she wasn't doing her job very well and might be fired! Those of us around her giggled. 

    I reached out and said, "As long as you're throwing it around...!"

There is a certain sense of camaraderie.

What else helps?

• Being out in nature. 
• Focusing on the present.
• Ignoring that 'what if' train. Don't let it enter your mind.
• Make a decision and know you made the best one with the information you have at the time.
• If you are feeling down, avoid the news, or only listen to one broadcast per day. What a downer it can be!
• Get help as caregiver, if you need it. I have ended up with high blood pressure, chest pains sent me to the ER in March, and these are back. Don't ignore personal issues, as stress can be a horrible thing. I'm having a stress test today!
• Give yourself permission to feel the emotions you feel and deal with them. They aren't wrong. They just are.
• Enjoy EVERY DAY, including rain, snow, sleet and hail!
• Finding hobbies; like photography, pets, blogging, walking, volunteering, watching sports (MLB) , or collecting data.

Much rain to refill the pond!

Geraldine, AKA Gerry

20mm one day!

Despite draining it last week, the water barrel
and rainfall have filled it back up.
Gerry and Jerry are pleased!

Here are some photos for Isabelle, who likes trucks and backhoes!

Ottawa Hospital Construction

Backhoe for Izzy!

I find it spooky.

It's terribly difficult driving by these ghost bikes, 

and roadside memorials, on our way to 
cancer treatments in the city.

This one is for Meg Dussault

We stopped, so I could take a photo of the geese!