Long day today and still here at the START center.

I first just want to say how much I appreciate the nurses and staff here at the START center. They really are so wonderful, kind, and caring. I also am so grateful for our doctor. Dr. Tolcher is so personable and kind. He has a wonderful and enlightening sense of love about him. I am very pleased that he is my mom's doctor and is helping us.

So anyway, today is a long day for mom and she was here at the START center about 7:45am and was given her medicine around 9am. The nurses took blood at 30mins, 1 hour, 2 hour, 3 hour, 4 hour, 8 hour, and last 12 hour. We have one more to go.

She has been doing well in the mornings and feels okay, but as the day drags on she has pain in her back (where the lung is). This has been getting worse over the last week that I know of. I know she's been uncomfortable, but more recently its turned into excruciating pain. She has pain medicine for it, but may need something else to manage it better. We will ask the doctor tomorrow.

Today I brought lunch and we hung out together and played on the computer for a bit, but then the pain was becoming unbearable and she took some medicine and wanted to try and nap. I asked her on a scale of 1-10 how painful it was and she answered 11. She has a high pain tolerance, so when she says she's in pain its serious. I left a little before 4pm and went to the house. I came back over around 7:00pm and the nurse let me know that they had given her dilaudid after I left. Dilaudid (hydromorphone) belongs to a group of drugs called narcotic pain relievers, also called opioids. It is similar to morphine, but is synthetic. She is allergic to morphine and so can't take that. She was in a lot of pain. Anyway, I've been sitting here with her while she has slept peacefully. She just woke about 20 minutes ago and the nurse is finishing up with her last EKG and blood draw. She is feeling better and will be alright. She's a tough cookie!

Tomorrow we will see the doctor and she will only have to be here for the first part of the day.

Thank you and keep praying!