I am feeling a lot better today so we decided to take in some of the local sites that are in and around Redwood City and Palo Alto.
Before we set off for our little driving tour, we needed to swing by Dr H's office to pick up some med supplies. I am slow to get going in the morning and our timing happened to coincide with the lunch hour, so we got there, just as Dr H was leaving for lunch. (Actually, relieved to see the guy actually takes a break - he looks so tired out!)
When he saw us he wanted to know what we were doing there AGAIN!
My quick thinking husband quipped, "Oh we're here to take you out for lunch!"
Oh man you should have seen the expression on his face!
It was priceless!
In fact, we were so entertained by it, we're thinking we might just pop by again tomorrow at lunch time!
After having a good laugh at Dr H's expense and hearing from Anthony that he's checked out my blog and is still blushing, we set off to check out Palo Alto to check out the Igenex Lab.
I have a definate warm fuzzy feeling for this lab. Anyone with LD will understand what I mean.
After checking out Igenex and having a nice little chat with one of the employees there, we took a little driving tour of Palo Alto. It was then that we discovered that there are some strange and unique things to be found in Palo Alto and surrounding area.
We ended off the day with dinner at a Sushi Restaurant. That was a strange experience as well. Upon first entering the restaurant, it initially appeared very traditionally Japanese, complete with several little bridges spanning coi fish ponds. However, upon closer examination, we noticed the walls were made of logs and there were taxidermied Canadian Geese hanging from the ceiling and ducks peering creepily from the rafters.
We're kicking ourselves for not having taken a few pictures.
It was a fitting end to a strangely entertaining day.
My appointment with Dr H was at 1:30pm today.
I was in bed until noon resting and trying to reserve my energy and brain power for my appointment.
The appointment went well. I faded about half way through it but we were able to cover a lot of ground during it. Both Graham and I really like Dr H and even have some fun with him.
He's a great guy and a super smart doctor even though he slouches like a teenager when sitting in his chair.
Graham took some pics of me and Dr H today - however Dr H asked that we not publicly show his picture as he was having a bad hair day.
His chair wasn't nearly as self conscious though. It happily posed for a public photo op.
And of course, I can't forget Anthony. Even though he didn't venture out from behind his little window today, it was still great to see him.
And make him giggle. And pay him a lot of money. He laughs. We cry!
It will take about a week to get Dr H's full medical assessment.
But here is the low down on what we discussed today and our game plan for the next phase of treatment.
I am making progress. Yes, it's slow but that is to be expected - fighting Lyme is a marathon not a sprint. Dr H believes that it will take about another 9-12 months just to get me functioning at about half my normal pre-Lyme capacity.
I will continue on the same IV meds and can expect to be on them for at least another 6 months.
We will also be moving forward with other aspects of treatment -
My endocrine system and adrenal glands have taken a pretty big hit. I need to have some testing done on these systems. As well, he has prescribed some meds to support and build up these systems.
I have a high level of inflammation and swelling in my joints, lymph glands and fascia. Dr H suspects that some of my joint and muscle pain, fatigue and brain fog can be attributed to a build up of toxins and dead Lyme bugs in my system. So he's prescribed several meds as well as some alternative therapies to help my body detox. He had started me on a fairly aggressive detoxing regime back in July however my body couldn't handle it so we had to stop. I will start on a gentler detox protocol and work towards getting back on the more aggressive meds down the road.
In about a month, we'll start specifically targeting my Bartonella co-infection by adding a 3rd abx to my ever increasing cocktail of meds.
So that is the game plan for the time being. I am to expect things to get really rough again as we slowly incorporate it. No pain, no gain. But obviously, the gain will be worth the pain. We talked quite a bit today about how scary it can be to start new meds knowing that they are going to initially make you sicker. In the last couple of weeks, I've been a whole lot more functional and so I am loathe to rock the boat. However, being 'functional' is still a far cry from being healthy and well.
My definition of what feeling 'good' means would make most folks skin crawl but when you have felt so very bad for so very long, you forget what 'good' is supposed to really feel like. Dr H encouraged me to add in the latest treatment protocols in slowly and keep pushing through. And eventually, I'll be working my treatment around my life as opposed to it being my life. 
Both Graham and I were really encouraged by today's appointment. We fully understand that the treatment process is a long haul but we are confident that under Dr H's care I will eventually beat this insidious disease.
This evening I had another one of my gall bladder attacks. They are pretty painful to endure. It seems to have settled down now. However, I have Dr H's cell phone number and know that I would be in good hands should something happen down here. Of course, we'd rather not have a tour of the ER in an American hospital so we'd appreciate your prayers.
We are grateful that God led us to Dr H.
He's a super wise doctor with a super cool chair.
