Loose Strife

I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but this past week has been the pits for Laura. Laura’s 2nd chemo round seemed to start out well, but it’s been down hill since Monday. The nausea and vomiting are back with a vengeance. Every morning and now often throughout the day. We’ve tried two […]

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We had planned to go back to our old haunts in Northampton for trick-or-treating. Our old Northampton neighbor is famous for Halloween. Kids are trucked in from neighboring towns to go door to door and everyone loves it. But Laura was sick and worried about leaving the house. So we changed plans. I took the […]

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Laura is doing OK. 2nd round, day +5 and she’s still wiped out and generally doesn’t feel well. Her back is worsening again, although she doubled her pain meds recently. But her main gripe is just that she’s tired of the chemo screwing up her appetite and eating. I’ve learned that eating discomfort and lack […]

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October pictures have been added to the photos site. Of course I’ll add in the Halloween shots in a few days.

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I think Laura’s doing much better handling day +1 compared to the first round. She’s taking a special post-chemo anti-nausea drug and hadn’t had any nausea problems. She has been eating similar to before the infusion — which isn’t spectacular — but she’s getting good nutrition and sufficient calories. And maybe Laura also seems to […]

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Just a quick note that Laura and I spent the day in Northampton for her second round of chemotherapy. As is standard practice, Laura’s blood was checked in advance and her white blood cell counts were way up since the nadir a week ago. “Excellent” levels according to her oncologist. So that means she’s in […]

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Some mixed news. Laura has not thrown up most days this week. Coincident with this is that her habitual cough, related to the fluid around her lungs, is now rare. Cough and up chuck were always linked in the morning, so their mutual absence is definitely a positive sign that something might be improving and […]

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Just a quick note: Laura got her blood tested today in advance of her second chemotherapy treatment next week. Her white blood cell count was very low, which is a common effect. This means she’s more susceptible to infections because her immune system is compromised. She now needs to closely monitor her temperature and avoid […]

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Laura asked me this weekend to post a thank you on this website to everyone. Laura’s been accumulating a pile of cards and notes with the intention of sending replies, but it’s got out of hand and probably won’t happen. Being the dolt that I am, it hadn’t occurred to me that I should be […]

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I’ve received a request for an update. (For the record, you all should assume that no news is good news — or at least the same news.) Things are fine in the Kulp household. My mother went back to Virginia last Tuesday. She was a tremendous help during tough times. Laura’s father Joe is back […]

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