The MakeMeThinner Support Forum

[DogMa]

Thanks, Alex. How IS Cleopuptra doing these days? Has she recovered from her surgery?

[alpha femme]

the bone is healed, and she is happy... but she still mainly relies on three legs. if she does this in january, we're putting her back on pain/anti-inflammatories.

there was also an incident that i'll blog about later. let's just say, for now, she is sharing her room with a stinky boy.

[DogMa]

Up today, because I had some Chinese food last night (nothing bad, but plenty of sodium).

My vet is back, and she also thinks Maggie has bone cancer. She's supposed to call back in a few hours. She's trying to find out the next step to confirm the diagnosis, and whether she needs to send the X-rays somewhere or send the X-rays with me and Maggie. There are some cancer specialists in Dallas, so I'm guessing that's where we'll be going. But if this IS what she has, the prognosis isn't good.

[bikipatra]

I am so sorry to hear that. You and Maggie are in my thoughts.

[Lauren]

Ooh, I'm sorry too, Robin, I'll be thinking positive thoughts that it's a misdiagnosis...

Good luck!

lauren

[dede4wd]

Oh NO! This is not the report I was hoping to get. My heart is breaking for you over here, Robin! I'm so hoping the specialists in Dallas find that it's something simple!

DeDe

[DogMa]

Thanks, guys. I'll know for sure tomorrow. Right now I have three specialists looking at the X-rays (two of them courtesy of a friend who works for a veterinary trade magazine). It's in her pelvis rather than her leg, so amputation isn't even an option (which is good, because that would be a tough choice given the arthritis in her other leg).

It may come down to just seeing if there's any medication that can manage her pain without sedating her so much. If not, I'm going to have to let her go. Right now she can't even wag her tail because it seems to be paralyzed. So I can't tell for sure if she's happy about ANYthing, but she sure doesn't seem enthused about anything. Not even when she gets cheese. Although she does still come to me for cuddles.

I knew this day would come, but I was hoping to have another couple of years. So I'm just devastated and really struggling over the whole food thing. I gained weight when my dad died, when my mom died, even when my cat died. But I know it won't help, and it won't even make me feel any better (except for maybe a few minutes when I'm actually eating the junk I'm trying not to eat). The hardest thing will be that I want to get HER the stuff she loves, which means I'll have to pick up some stuff like KFC and french fries (her two favorite foods) and not touch it. I'm pretty much resigned to not going to the gym for the time being, although I'll continue running. But any free time will be spent at home with her.

It's funny, because this is how I left my last weight-loss group, a low-carb site. My cat got sick, and I turned to fast food for comfort, and then stopped posting, and then put him to sleep and gave up completely until I started Medifast six months later.

[dede4wd]

Robin...keep your chin up...I KNOW you can get through this and I know you will do the right thing for Maggie. We're HERE if you need to talk about ANYTHING!

DeDe

[Sojourner]

Oh Robin. I'm so sorry you and Maggie are going through such a painful time. I send you all the good vibes and positive energy I can muster. Give the ol' girl a cuddle from me, would ya? And then give yourself one, too.

Please don't stop posting or go away - like DeDe says, we're not just here for tips on tweaking the chili...

((((((((((((((((((((:hugblue:))))))))))))))))))))

[Karli]

Dogma, my thoughts are with you and Maggie . Just love your little pooch.


Karli

[DogMa]

Thanks, guys. And Sojo, I'm so glad to see you back!!!!

I guess most of my posts these days will be about Maggie and not so much about me (OK, stop the cheering). So ... the surgeon says it looks bad, but the only way to really check is to get a CT scan. So we're headed for Dallas on Thursday (the earliest we could get in) for a CT scan. One of the other consultants (the hospice one) says she's pretty sure it's osteosarcoma and recommended some other pain medication. Meanwhile, the increased dose of Tramadol (from two pills a day to NINE!) actually may be helping. She seemed better last night. Still no tail control and very little control over her leg, but she seemed happier and perkier. Climbed onto the couch all on her own and slept next to me there while I watched TV (she was in my spot, but that's OK). Slept most of the night on the bed with me, too.

So tomorrow I'm getting her some KFC, because it's one of her favorite foods in the world.

As for me, 130.2 and I ran this morning. Missed yesterday because of all the vet calls (and the crying) and won't be able to run Thursday, so I figure I'll do it when I can.

[bikipatra]

I am so glad that the increased meds seem to be helping. I am sure that is some comfort for the both of you.

[DogMa]

One amendment. After much arguing with the surgery place, she's going tomorrow morning instead. They want to discuss "options" with me before doing a CT scan and possibly a biopsy, which I'm guessing means they want to talk to me about doing nothing and either putting her to sleep or just relieving her pain for a while. Everything I've read says a biopsy is much too painful in a case like this, so I'm not sure why they're even mentioning it.

I'm just glad I held it together long enough to argue with them and get her the appointment tomorrow (they wanted me to bring her in Thursday for the consultation, and then bring her back another day for the rest, and I just can't see dragging her an hour each way on two different days). Although she might have to stay overnight this way, apparently.

I lost it pretty much the second I got off the phone, though. This is so hard, even harder than with my cat.

[electra000]

Robin, just want you to know that you and Maggie are in my thoughts and prayers. I know exactly what you are going through. I lost my Maggie, a Jack Russell Terrier a few years ago to a blood cancer. She was only three years old. I still can't think about it without getting teary eyed. I had to take her to Texas A&M vet school in College Station Tx. They did a bone morrow transplant but it was too late for her. Don't give up, just think positive and most of all enjoy each and every day you have with your Maggie. Stay strong!

Terri

[Lauren]

Hey, Robin-

I totally know what you're going through having lived through the pain of losing my pets before as well, although I was much younger and they were family pets, so I don't know the pain of having raised an animal myself and then watched it suffer. But I know it's brutal, and for that, I am sorry.

But I want to make sure you're getting the support you need to keep your head on straight through this - diet speaking. I know others here might boo me, telling me now's not the time, that you're going through a terrible patch and to leave you alone, but I feel like several of your posts have been a warning that you're struggling. You mentioned that you've always resorted to eating during your prior losses, and that you just want to drown your sorrows, etc. I want to remind you that this time can be different. Everything you deal with during this Maggie crisis can be slightly better or infinitely worse depending on how you deal with YOU during it. You know this, Robin. YOU KNOW that dealing with life's stress is EASIER when you're sticking to plan. When everything else is bad, the one thing that can be the bright light in the day is that you've taken care of you. Don't let that bright spot go dim.

You may not want to leave your home to go to the gym during this time, but you have a million dvds at home that you can do, so do them. Maggie may love KFC, but that doesn't mean you have to have any, nor does it mean you have to get it for her - if it's going to tempt you too much. Your resolve is going to be slightly weaker right now, so be careful to not make things more difficult than they have to be.

Robin, I wish for your baby lots of health and a continued long and happy life. But aside from the myriad appointments and procedures you can schedule, there's not much you can do but be a good mommy. And the best way to be a good mommy is to be good to yourself. So keep doing that.

Good luck, and use this forum for support for all things Robin - Maggie, work, and the diet. Don't forget, even on maintenance we need to keep working it - perhaps even more so. And if planning meals is too cumbersome right now, why not consider going back to a few more MF meals, and keep the other stuff easy?

My thoughts are with you!

lauren