Day 86 of Megan’s journey towards a full recovery from stage 4 alveolar rhabdomyosarcoma cancer found Megan still in the hospital. On Thursday night, Megan was admitted because she had a 101.6 fever and severe mouth and throat sores. She has been in the hospital ever since. Throughout the past three days, Megan has been bravely dealing with extreme pain, high fevers, and an inability to eat or drink. Although she is still far from pain free, we actually believe there were some breakthroughs today. Hopefully, that means that tomorrow might really be “the” tomorrow we have been waiting for.
As I correctly predicted at the end of yesterday’s post, Megan only slept about 45 minutes before she woke up due to the pain in her mouth. The sores in her throat seemed to be getting better last night. Megan was actually able to take a couple sips from a water bottle, which was a big breakthrough for her. However, she was still experiencing severe pain from the sore on the left side of her tongue. She has to try and keep her tongue still because if it touches her teeth, the pain becomes excruciating for her. Throughout this journey, Megan has proven herself to be a very tough young lady, so when she complains of pain, it is very real.
Her fever also spiked up to 102.3 last night, which caused her nurse to call Dr. Salvi. He immediately ordered another blood culture and a chest x-ray. Thankfully, both came back okay. However, he did decide to up her dosage of Dilaudid to try and better manage her pain. They also kept her on Tylenol every six hours to manage her fever and headaches. The higher dosage of pain medication seemed to work because Megan said she slept better. She still never gets any extended sleep because she wakes up every two hours when the nurse comes to give her her pain medication. They were also closely monitoring her vitals all night because of the increased dosage of Dilaudid. So, even though she slept better, it is still not the type of sleep a healthy person is used to getting. Therefore, she is always very tired.
Throughout the morning, Megan seemed a little better. Although the pain on her tongue still would, at times, relegate her to tears, her fever seemed to stay in check, and she just seemed to generally feel a little better. She can’t talk much because that causes her tongue to touch her teeth, which causes her sores to burn. However, as long as she remained relatively still, she seemed more comfortable.
Dr. Salvi came in at around 10:30 a.m. He let me look in her mouth with the light, and showed me how the thrush seems to be almost gone. Yesterday, her tongue was almost completely white with sores, but today, it was much better. The sore on the left side of her tongue is still nasty, but she seems to be improving. I expressed my concern that she had not eaten anything since Thursday night. He said that he thought that by tomorrow or Tuesday morning, she would be able to eat. He also said that she would not be ready for her next chemo cycle which was scheduled to start on March 31. That way, she will have a week to get her weight back up and let her body recover. When you consider that she hasn’t had any nutrition since Thursday night, I continue to be amazed how little Megan complains about not being able to eat. However, she did tell the doctor today that when her sores clear up, she wants a nacho supreme from La Cocina. He thought she might want to start with something a little softer 🙂
When Dr. Salvi told Megan that he was moving back her next chemo cycle, I thought her response was very telling about Megan’s attitude towards this journey. When Dr. Salvi left, Megan said,
So that means I won’t be cured by January 16th…Right?
I had no idea that Megan knew the exact date that her treatments were going to be over. I think it shows that she has a goal and is motivated to reach it. Even though she feels absolutely terrible, she almost seemed upset that she could not continue with her chemo cycles on schedule. I think if she were given a choice, she would just stay in the hospital and get her treatments on schedule. However, there is no way her body could handle that right now, so I am thankful she is going to get a break.
At about 1:00 p.m. today, Megan got a nice surprise. Deb brought up Mackenzie, Makenna Emerson and Abby Washburn for a visit. Although Megan’s sores don’t allow her to smile, she did manage a small grin when she saw them. They all did a great job entertaining her for about four hours. They played music, shared some YouTube videos and played some games. It was a lot of fun, and I know it was nice for Megan not to think about her pain for a few hours. Since Megan didn’t want to take a picture where she souldn’t smile, all of the girls decided to hold Megan’s stuffed animals in front of their mouths so no one could smile. Megan got a kick out of that. It was so nice of Abby and Makenna to take time out of their weekend to come and visit Megan. I know she really appreciated it.
Some of you may know that I am an avid runner. Although lately, I have not been able to run as much as I usually do, I still try to get out as much as possible. Today was the Shamrock Shuffle 8k race in Chicago. Although I was not able to run it, we did have some friends who braved the cold weather and sleet and ran today’s race. They sent us some pictures to let us know that they were all running for “Team Megan” today. Thanks to Kortni Emerson, Chris and Toni Spencer, Rob and Kristi Hausman, and Dan Hutchings for running for Megan today. I showed Megan the pictures and she thought it was really nice of all of them. Here are the pictures they sent me from the today’s race. Congratulations to all of them for finishing!!!
I left the hospital at 5:00 p.m. and brought all of the girls home. Deb is staying with Megan tonight at the hospital. She recently sent me a message that Megan seems much calmer tonight, which is truly a blessing. Hopefully, Megan is past the ridiculous pain she has been enduring since Thursday night. As I said in yesterday’s post, we have been waiting for “tomorrow” since Thursday night. We are holding out hope that the elusive “tomorrow” we are seeking will actually be tomorrow. We just want to bring our little girl home.
As readers of this blog know, Megan is a huge fan of musicals. I can’t help but think of this song lyric from “Annie”.
The sun will come out tomorrow
So you got to hang on ’til tomorrow, come what may!
Tomorrow, tomorrow, I love you tomorrow
You’re only a day away
They won’t release Megan from the hospital until she is able to eat. We sure hope that happens tomorrow, because if it does, the tomorrow we have been waiting for really is “only a day away.” Hopefully Day 87 finds Megan at home and our family back together again.
So thankful for a bit of encouraging news today. I’ve been thinking of you all day. Tomorrow is a new day. Praying for some peaceful sleep tonight and relief from those nasty mouth sores/thrush. Much love and prayers for all of you!
Shari
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So glad she is making some progress! I will cross my fingers that Megan will get to eat those nachos very soon!! The pic of the silent foursome is too cute!! It must have been hard to do that and not smile 🙂
You bet, Megan knows exactly when this journey is scheduled to end..I would even bet she knows exactly how many more days are left, maybe even minutes!! Can’t blame her a bit!! Hope is a good thing…
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I ,,m glad you are make some progress you are a strong yourg lady . I still pray for you every night. and in the morning I was wear my team megan sweat shirt all day sunday. think about you. keep strong megan and bring that very pretty smile back soon love Julia McCord
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Thrush is the absolute worst! I feel so bad for Megan! It took about a week for my tongue to feel normal again after I had a horrible round of thrush. I was able to eat once the sores started healing, but my tongue was really sensitive for at least a week afterwards. I was on dilaudid for that and the viral tonsillitis I had, which did help quite a bit. I ate lots of scrambled eggs, jello, tapioca pudding, and applesauce. It does get better, however while going through it, I thought I’d never get to eat normal food again! Feel better soon Megan!
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Praying that tomorrow is only a day away. I also pray Megan will get some much needed rest tonight
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Sending prayers and hopes for a restful and peaceful night for all the Bugg family..tomorrow is only 3 hours away.. it will be a better day..
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We are sure hoping that tomorrow is the day we have been waiting for 🙂
Kent 🙂
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Praying tomorrow is the day for Megan. Hopefully she will get some good rest tonight (altho you don’t get much rest in the hospital) & that she can eat something so that she can come home. Waiting for The Smile!
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We check in every single day praying that your post will read something like, “Today, Megan ate two extra large pizzas and then four milk shakes and then she ran all the way home to Coal City.” (Our relatives live in Coal City.) We will check in every single day until that is your final post. 🙂 Until tomorrow …
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Thanks so much for your support of Megan!!! We look forward to the day she asks for pizza and a milkshake 🙂
Kent 🙂
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Sending many prayers once again.. Can’t imagine what all she is having to endure. What a trooper. 🙏
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I stopped reading for a moment when I read January 16. That was the date my son was diagnosed by Dr Salvi. I am a firm believer that everything happens for a reason even if we don’t get to know that reason. I am happy to hear she is improving and yes, there is sometimes a reason to delay the plan in place. But they do know what they are doing and trust is very important in this journey. Tomorrow I will hope to see the posting was from HOME
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Wow..That is an amazing coincidence. We are trying hard to keep the faith throughout this journey. Thanks for your kind support. It’s nice to be able to hear from someone who knows exactly what our family is experiencing.
Kent 🙂
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Sending love, hugs, and strength and prayers for “TOMORROW”:) Sheri
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Hoping “tomorrow” is the day your wishing for! Always in my thoughts and prayers.
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I think the sun will come out and tomorrow will be your day!! XO
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We were thinking of megan today especially while driving through coal city on our way to my in laws house. Continued prayers of strength to fight those nasty sores. Keep the faith for tomorrow is the day!
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We are encouraged that you have maybe seen a bit of a break in the clouds. Praying that Megan will have a sunny day tomorrow and will be on the road to feeling like her old self. We are also thankful that her body is going to get a rest before the next round. Remind Megan that in the grand scheme of things one week longer won’t matter. She’ll be too busy celebrating being cancer free to notice. Stay strong Megan, you are almost through this terrible part.
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Praying tomorrow it’s a good day! Fins Up Megan!
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I hope tomorow comes for her. Prayers she can go home soon.
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I sure am hoping and praying that tomorrow is the day she can come home!
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She dropped the phone and burst into tears
The doctor just confirmed her fears
Her husband held it in and held her tight
Cancer don’t discriminate or care if you’re just 38
With three kids who need you in their lives
He said, “I know that you’re afraid and I am, too
But you’ll never be alone, I promise you”
When you’re weak, I’ll be strong
When you let go, I’ll hold on
When you need to cry, I swear that I’ll be there to dry your eyes
When you feel lost and scared to death,
Like you can’t take one more step
Just take my hand, together we can do it
I’m gonna love you through it.
She made it through the surgery fine
They said they caught it just in time
But they had to take more than they planned
Now it’s forced smiles and baggy shirts
To hide what the cancer took from her
But she just wants to feel like a woman again
She said, “I don’t think I can do this anymore”
He took her in his arms and said “That’s what my love is for”
When you’re weak, I’ll be strong
When you let go, I’ll hold on
When you need to cry, I swear that I’ll be there to dry your eyes
When you feel lost and scared to death,
Like you can’t take one more step
Just take my hand, together we can do it
I’m gonna love you through it.
And when this road gets too long
I’ll be the rock you lean on
Just take my hand, together we can do it
I’m gonna love you through it.
I’m gonna love you through it.
These are lyrics to Martina McBrides song “I’m Gonna Love You Through It”. I have seen many posts on this blog from women who have, or had, a battle with cancer …she sang this song to you. . If you haven’t heard of it, or had the chance to google it…it is beautiful.
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Thanks Janet…I will find the song online for Megan. As always…I really appreciate your constant support for Megan and our family.
Kent 🙂
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My prayers are with Megan!
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Not gunna lie, I was really sad when I saw that Megan didn’t leave the hospital and eat lots of food :(. Praying for a speedy recovery and the ability to leave, in true Annie style, TOMOROW!
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God bless you all. Its going to be in the 60″ s tomorrow. And the sun will shine down on you Megan. Hurry home, your animals can’t wait either. Grandma Cal always said to us growing up. God be with you, and He sure is. Really kinda glad for the break in the action. Keep fighting on.
Love Sal
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Praying for sweet, brave Megan!
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I am so sorry Negan has to go thru all the pain and have her treatment delayed a week. Hopefully she will be able to eat today and be able to come home.
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Sounds like things are getting a little better. I hope you get some good time with Megan when she gets to go home. Probably a blessing to delay the treatments for a week. Doesn’t surprise me about Mackenna and Wash, they are such good people. Ran into Hutch, Chris, Kortni and the rest of them at the post race party. It didn’t last long, it started sleeting! Take care.
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I know this will seem hokey, but it’s “tomorrow” and I hope the sun HAS come out! You are correct, Kent: the sleep from the analgesia is NOT good, refreshing sleep. That Megan awakens every time they check her vitals, is an indication this isn’t good quality REM sleep. That’s what the body needs to refresh & renew itself. At least theyre not waking her every 2-4 hours to give her a sleeping pill–the classic hospital stereotype! 🙂
I have an email in to Ward Dales at Albany High School to ask if there’s any way they could provide a video of their production of Annie for Megan. Tim, who knows of these things, says it isn’t as simple as it sounds. What is?!?!
I’m glad Megan’s friends are able to visit like that. Again, that’s therapeutic in itself.
Hope the sun HAS come out! (Send it OUR way. We saw 10 minutes of some yellow stuff, yesterday. We’re due to have our 1 day of “Spring,” Thursday & SNOW SHOWERS for Easter!) God bless. PK Miller & Tim Montgomery.
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Megan would love a DVD of the production of “Annie”, but I understand if they cannot pull that off. Also, I was told that you donated to the “Team Megan 5k Run” that was so kind of you!!!
Kent 🙂
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Bless Megan’s heart!! She sure has had a rough time this round. I, to, got the sores in my mouth last fall during my 2nd round of chemo. I know how painful it was for me, and for this young lady to fight as hard as she is and being a real trooper, she is an inspiration to me and I am sure, many others. Hopefully today is the tomorrow that you have all been waiting for. It will get better so stay strong. Go Team Megan!!
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Thanks for all of your support for Megan!!!
Kent 🙂
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Megan..i have been following your journey since the beggining..i keep you and your family in my thoughts and prayers everyday..your a strong and beautiful girl who has the world on a heart string..tomarow is your day and better tomarrows to follow..Go Team Megan..
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Thanks for your support of Megan.
Kent 🙂
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