The count down to transplant

 Today I am on negative day two of six until my transplant on July 22, 2025. Why the negative? It is the preparation period where they get my body ready to receive the transplant. It starts with three days of Total Body Irradiation, then two days of intense chemotherapy. The irradiation consists of standing in a specially designed metal rack that looks more like a torture device than something that is going to help heal you. They strap you in, and you are asked to stand completely still while they shoot radiation at your whole body for about 10 minutes. It doesn't seem like a lot, but standing almost motionless for that long takes an eternity. Your back, feet, and hands begin to ache, your legs are becoming like jelly, and there is stabbing pain in your shoulders. Bear in mind that I am not in the best shape and have had back, joint, and knee problems my whole life so for others it may not be as bad, however, the PA did say that most people have had to take breaks in the middle, and I never did, so go team Faith, Family, and Will. 

I told them that I was like Davis Banner getting ready to turn into the Hulk, not to my surprise, they had not seen the original Hulk TV show, where the machine they used was much like what David Banner used in the show. So when I finished my last treatment yesterday and we were fully expecting me to turn into the Hulk, but then I realized I had to be angry for that to happen, and I was not angry at all. So I guess we will wait and see. 

Today and tomorrow, I will receive Cyclophosphamide, an intense Chemotherapy that joins the radiation in destroying my bone marrow in an attempt to clear out any cancerous diseased cells and make room for the new cells my sister Kerri is donating. This, of course, will decimate my immune system, and I will be very vulnerable for quite some time. Even the common cold can have a devastating effect. So I will be in the hospital for the most delicate part of recovery, and then I can go home to our deeply sanitized, quarantined home for the rest of a 100-day recovery. Once I reach the 100-day mark and things are good, then we will be able to limit our doctor visits over the next few months to where we will see them, but maybe twice a year. So that is the result we are praying for.

So on goes the journey with hope and determination. I am ever grateful for my knowledge of our Father's Great Plan of Happiness, His Great Plan of Joy, even His Great Plan of Salvation that fills my life with great joy and confidence. I know that the challenges we face are just a tiny part of eternity and that no matter the struggles, frustrations, and trials, it all fits into his wonderful plan. President Thomas S. Monson gave a great message when he said, "From the depths of my soul and in all humility, I testify of the great gift which is our Father’s plan for us. It is the one perfect path to peace and happiness both here and in the world to come." (October 2016), I wth him testify that the plan is real and complete. If we live according to his will, and "Get on the covenant path and stay there." President Russel M. Nelson (April 2022) We will find the greatest happiness here and in the eternities. I finish with more words from President Nelson (April 2022), "we enter the covenant path by being baptized and making our first covenant with God. Each time we partake of the sacrament, we promise again to take the name of the Savior upon us, to remember Him, and to keep His commandments. In return, God assures us that we may always have the Spirit of the Lord to be with us. 

Later we make additional covenants in the temple, where we receive even greater promises. Ordinances and covenants give us access to godly power. The covenant path is the only path that leads to exaltation and eternal life."