chapter closed

I'm finally released from this transplant case and for good reason.

Crazy world.

no jacaranda season

What a supremely bizarre week. While there is no jacaranda season in New York, the streets are certainly abloom with the beautiful blossoms of what people here call the "cum trees" because they say that the flowers smell like semen. I'm on the fence about whether that's a fair statement but they definitely smell like they're up to no good. 

This week started off with making my own ricotta from scratch and then using it in some sort of incredible mushroom+chard galette. 

Tuesday was supposed to be the day that I was going to donate stem cells to the bone marrow organization, but the day before I was scheduled to start injections, my coordinator called to say that the recipient had chosen not to move ahead with the transplant for personal (not medical) reasons. I felt a lot of conflicting feelings, relief about not having to do it but confusion/sadness about someone else going through a hard time and having to make hard decisions and my own unrequited feelings of wanting to help.

Tuesday I also found out a position I really wanted had been filled and then felt devastated about it. Thursday I showed my thesis project at a venue in Bushwick. Friday I was offered that ad agency job I interviewed for two weeks ago.

Saturday I went to see a friend's interactive documentary project at the Tribeca Film Festival. The space was sponsored by Bombay Sapphire and we had free disgusting cocktails in this strange up-side down land. 

Today I went to yoga and did my first headstand ever without being spotted by wall. Later I made my own 'ciabatta' from the whey leftover from making ricotta at the beginning of the week. And then I used the 'ciabatta' to make a very decadent bacon and Swiss sandwich. I don't think I ever thought cooking would make me feel sane. Then I Skyped my Georgian friend and drank vodka instead of working on my thesis presentation.

false alarms

The doctor called me at 8am this morning. After last week's tests they suspected I had an asymptomatic UTI?! and low LDH levels. The internet says that, lactic acid dehydrogenase is "an enzyme that helps produce energy. It is present in almost all of the tissues in the body and its levels rise in response to cell damage." "It’s very rare for a person to have low LDH levels" and "normal LDH levels range from 140 units per liter (U/L) to 280 U/L." And apparently after my second round of tests, I have neither a UTI nor low LDH (186). I'm totally normal and I'll be starting my filgrastim injections not this, but next Friday at the New York Blood Center.

Physical again

Physical part 2. Goodbye blood

woozled

Became very very woozly late this afternoon - suddenly went mind numb, dumbstruck, and slack - felt like I couldn't stay standing upright. Rothy thought my blood sugar might be low so I had an orange San Pellegrino soda. I immediately felt much better. I think the real problem was that my inner bourgeois was feeling neglected.

post-physical

I had my blood pressure, temperature, and weight measured, my ears peered into, my veins evaluated, mouth/throat 'aah'-checked, was stethoscoped, belly pressed, had an EKG, a chest x-ray, a pregnancy test (no one in my body but me), 11 tubes of blood drawn, AND I got to wear a beautiful gown.

consented

I had a call this morning with my coordinator and signed off on all of my consent forms. I had one moment of panic where I felt really scared about some possible-but-unlikely long term autoimmune effects and ended up doing some more research before ultimately putting my name down on the lines. Who knew there were FedEx dropboxes in Bushwick?

hematopoietic facts

Bone marrow is the soft, sponge-like material found inside bones. It contains immature cells known as hematopoietic or blood-forming stem cells. (Hematopoietic stem cells are different from embryonic stem cells. Embryonic stem cells can develop into every type of cell in the body.) Hematopoietic stem cells divide to form more blood-forming stem cells, or they mature into one of three types of blood cells: white blood cells, which fight infection; red blood cells, which carry oxygen; and platelets, which help the blood to clot. Most hematopoietic stem cells are found in the bone marrow, but some cells, called peripheral blood stem cells (PBSCs), are found in the bloodstream. 

ain'a that good news

This is happening. My FedEx package of consent forms arrived this morning.

 I broke the news to my parents over Skype tonight. Pa is as usual inexplicably sitting off-camera. Ma may look happy here, but both of them freaked out when I told them that I'll be donating blood stem cells soon. They were not very happy and I had to convince Ma not to fly out but I know that they know it's the right thing to do.

onward and upward

It looks like the stem cell donation will be happening in April and I'm currently being transferred to a coordinator who covers the New York area. I'm feeling less stressed about the timing and think I'll be able to keep up with school while undergoing this process. One funny thing is that I've been feeling somewhat compelled to eat better and maintain better health knowing that there's someone else who needs me.

pbsc

12/8/11: I joined the bone marrow registry
12/20/12: I was contacted as a possible match for a man
1/2/13: I donated blood for HLA typing, which is to see if the 6 proteins on the surface of my white blood cells match his
3/5/13: We were confirmed as a match

• Thank you for participating in additional testing to confirm if you are the best marrow match for the patient. The results of your testing indicate you and the patient are a suitable match; however, the patient is not ready for a transplant at this time.

3/12/14: I was called today and requested to donate stem cells via PBSC in April. Currently trying to work out of it would be possible to postpone by a few weeks and do this after graduation.

• PBSC donation  is a non-surgical procedure. For 5 days leading up to donation, you will be given injections of filgrastim. Filgrastim is a medication that increases the number of blood-forming cells in your bloodstream. On the day of donation, blood is removed through a needle on one arm and passed through a machine that separates out the blood-forming cells. The remaining blood is returned to you through the other arm.