PIVOT - ON TO THE NEXT PHASE

It’s been a while since the last post.  We’re at day 93 since the transplant and Kristina’s condition is awesome.  If it were her first battle of AML, she’d be doing very, very good.  Given it’s her third battle, she’s doing spectacular. 

In the next few days she’ll hit another pivotal milestone, transitioning from the ‘Orange Team’ on the 6th floor to the ‘Cedar Team’ on the 4th floor.  What, exactly does that mean?  In short, good news.  The care team that she’s leaving is focused on the transplant (remember the transplant song?).  The Orange team, combined with Kristina’s fighting spirit got her to and through the transplant.  Three months later it’s time to shift gears to a care team focused on more of the chronic conditions that come well after the transplant. 

While the posts have been quiet, Kristina hasn’t.  Last week there was a photography session documenting her flexibility, skin conditions, pictures of nails, etc.  Photos used as a point in time to view later for improvement or areas of concern. 

One disappointing aspect of that was seeing some of her pictures from previous years and just how long it takes for full recovery.  

Next week she’ll have her ‘departure conference’ from the Orange team and be introduced to her new care team. 

Her skin GVHD (Graft vs Host Disease) is fully resolved, but it’s still manifesting in her eyes.  That’s being mitigated by medication but medications bring their own issues.   

Kristina is still on several medications, each one having its own side effects.  She won’t be fully weaned from them until early next year which came as a disappointment to Kristina. 

In the meantime there’s PT, and in keeping with Kristina’s spirit, she takes a liberal view of what PT means.  It goes beyond the image we have in our head of ‘physical therapy’ and extends to walks in the woods and anticipation of the first snow.  Moving the body and gaining strength are the key goals of PT, but getting outside on varied terrain takes it to the next level. 

The journey continues.  Volatile ups and downs are (hopefully) a thing of the past.  The sustained gritty work of recovery, the work that in many ways never ends, continues.