I read on article on hand washing and how germs are actually spread, and WHAMMO, I was armed with knowledge! I got sick very little in those years. Today I don't know if that knowledge saved my life or delayed my diagnosis because I didn't catch most germs going around.
My habits turned out helpful, because when I had chemo, they didn't need to teach me how to protect myself, I already did it by instinct. Now to add to that, I also have a huge list of types of food I can't eat and places I can't eat at. I'm not allowed to have soft serve ice cream, fake crab or anything from a street vendor. I don't touch things behind deli glass or that are made with mayo.
A couple of days ago I bought a spinach dip from my local high end grocery store. Yeesh. What a mistake. I was very ill for the last couple of days. At least now I can get validation from my friends who think I'm a crazy, germaphobe.
I'm on the mend now and I feel alright today. My poor body.
Speaking of crazy, bodies and all that, I thought I would post photos of my stem cell donor. I call him Donor Dave.
My brother, who is a little bit of a goof ball, saved my life. His cells are my cells and I have his DNA. Hello crime spree!
He may look like a man of no fears here wearing my wigs, but he in fact is terrified of needles and hospital procedures.He went ahead anyway and spent a week donating his precious little cells for me!
The chances of finding a donor match among your siblings is %25, and with him being my only sibling, it was nerve wracking waiting to find out. Something deep inside me told me he would be a match. Since then I have seen large families find out there were no matches for them. One was a friend of mine, Connie.
At my Graduation party, before my bone marrow transplant, I gave him this shirt and the funky crown. Three cheers for donor Dave! I kid and I call him my spare parts guy...he has two perfectly good kidneys.
I guess I come by the crazy, honestly.
