January 2020 Update

Welcome to the next Thriving Not Just Surviving blog post!

This is written by Maureen. :)
We pray you had a good holiday! In December Greg underwent his check-up chest scan that occurs every three months. It was all good news- his chest scan remained stable- no growth or change. They added a brain scan as well- it was clean with no signs of abnormality! 

Also, in December, Greg had his two-month check in with his Neurologist. He remains seizure free- praise God! Based on some recurring symptoms Greg had been experiencing, his neurologist diagnosed him with severe and chronic migraines. They still occur most days but we are hoping a new medication he is on will help- it can take two months to know if it’s working and we are still in that initial waiting period. 

Some of the concerns addressed at his many December appointments were about his processing and cognition, which had seemed to be decreasing. His Oncologist prescribed Speech Therapy. Speech therapists address many areas in addition to speech, including memory, problem-solving, attention, and processing speed, just to name a few. There is an amazing program called ReVital Cancer Rehabilitation. Greg’s sister, Audrey, is a ReVital-certified occupational therapist, and she shared this to better explain what ReVital is:

ReVital Cancer Rehabilitation is a national association and network of certified physicians, nurses, therapists, and other healthcare professionals that are dedicated to helping cancer survivors “live well beyond cancer”. This means something different for every single person, but ultimately, the goals are to improve daily function and overall quality of life. Physical therapy, occupational therapy, and speech therapy (one or all of these disciplines, depending on the needs of the individual) can assist in remediating, compensating, and mitigating the physical and mental effects of cancer and cancer treatment. Cancer survivors have already been through an incredible amount of suffering and pain, and they deserve to live the full, rich lives they want to live. Specialized, skilled therapy interventions can (and do) help make this a reality. 

As I was doing research on ReVital, I came across a familiar “slogan” on their website- it even says that the therapists want to help people thrive, not just survive!! It’s not just a slogan for us, but something that gives me hope and keeps me fighting when I know I need to be heard. When Greg met with the speech therapist, he went through initial screening to test his levels of processing and see his strengths as well as areas to focus on in his sessions. Two areas of concern emerged. 

In the Attention category, Greg scored at the .1 percentile. In the Memory category he scored at the 10^th percentile. These results supported some of the processing and cognition changes I had seen. Knowing this allows his therapist to help him with strategies to overcome these deficiencies and raise those numbers by the end of his therapy. We do not have a specific cause of his lower processing in those areas, but with the six months of Chemotherapy, being on a high dose of seizure medication for an extended time, being on pain medication for an extended period of time, and suffering from migraines (that we didn’t even know were there) could all be contributing factors. I am glad we did not have to add another medicine or drug or just ignore what was happening. I’m so thankful to give Greg the tools to help him. 

We appreciate the continued prayers!