Not all miracles have a happy ending. I've had a really shitty couple of weeks, the culmination being the realization of this lesson. There were some good things that happened, though. After my unpleasant encounter at VIMP after Kia's post-op check, I was able to get in touch with HSFC about that bill and they not only said they would cover it, but they also could help me with the cost of her food. Then, my neighbor checked under my car hood and found out the odd smell coming from it was due to a piece of material from the battery cover laying on top of the engine. I promptly removed it and have not smelled that odor since, although the issue of my possibly bad compressor still lingers. That issue proved most problematic the following Thursday. Kia was completely out of cat food so I had to run to PetSmart to buy her a single can just to get her through to my next paycheck, when I could buy her enough for the next 2 weeks. However, the drive from my office to PetSmart (a distance of maybe 2 miles) took over an hour because of severe flooding that resulted in major road closures. My gas needle was hovering just above empty and I was crawling along, sometimes not moving at all, and praying I wouldn't run out of gas because I have $15 in checking until my direct deposit kicks in at midnight, and I still had to buy a can of cat food so my kitty could eat the next day. Not only that, but it was pouring down rain outside and my windows were fogging up but I couldn't unfog them because, every time I turned the defroster on, my engine would start racing again, threatening to plow my car into the car in front of me on the severely congested roadway. I had to either roll down my windows and get soaked or risk rear ending someone.
So anyway, that was Thursday. I didn't get home from PetSmart until almost 7:30 so my babies' dinner was quite late and Kia was *not* happy. I called VIMP the next day to see if Kia's test results had come back yet. She said they hadn't but not to worry because it takes 2 weeks to do the test, plus a day or 2 to come back from the lab. She said if I hadn't heard anything by Tuesday to call them again. My mom thought it was a bad sign that they hadn't come in yet, but I was feeling pretty optimistic that it was just a long test and perhaps the flooding affected the lab courier's route or something. I managed to have a pretty good weekend in spite of it. Monday rolled around and I was excited for 2 things: Monday Night Football with Tom Brady and Miss Universe. I had just put dinner in the microwave and was about to sit down to enjoy my evening when my roommate texted me. She had just landed at Dulles airport and her ride home from the airport bailed on her, so she needed me to come pick her up. I'm not very experienced in driving to and from airports so I was nervous about navigating the complicated infrastructure, but I went because I know I would expect the same thing from my roommate. I made it there OK, despite the sun glaring in my eyes and making it nearly impossible to see the road signs. I pulled up by the curb and called her to say I was there and she said she was getting her luggage at baggage claim and would be up shortly. No sooner had I hung up when some "security official" with a bright orange vest said to me: "Ma'am you cannot park here. You have to circle around." I told him my roommate was on her way up the escalator at that very moment so it would be stupid for me to pull away, but he remained adamant that I had to pull away and circle around until she got there. I yelled at him, "No! If I circle around, I will get lost! I'm telling you, I will get lost!" But he would not hear it. So, I had to drive off (just 2 seconds before she walked out the door) aaaaaaaaand guess what happened?? I. Got. Lost. I was so frazzled by the exchange, I missed my ramp and ended up in the pay to park lot. Instead of grabbing a ticket, I tried pressing the help button numerous times until someone finally picked up. I told them I didn't mean to end up here and I didn't want to waste $4 because of it. They told me the first 7 minutes are free so I just needed to take the ticket and drive right out the exit. Well, that proved easier said than done. There weren't any signs clearly defining the exit so I drove around and around, growing more frustrated by the second (what a waste of time and gas!). When I finally found the exit, I was worried my free minutes had lapsed. Fortunately, they hadn't, but then I had to figure out how NOT to take that same ramp back on the freeway and how NOT to make the same wrong turn into the pay to park lot again before I made it back to the curb to pick up my roommate, who just had to wait several minutes for me, unnecessarily.
As you can see, these last several weeks have been one big frustration after another. The next day was Tuesday and I still hadn't heard from the vet yet. I called them at 6:45 that evening (knowing they close at 7) to see if they had come in yet. The receptionist said no, but she would call the lab to see where they were and call me right back. I waited and waited but she never did. On top of all of that, I had spent the afternoon feeling rather iffy. I could tell by my swollen glands and body aches that I was coming down with yet another infection (six weeks to the hour of my last one). My symptoms started right after lunch that day and worsened as the day went on. I knew by that night that I would probably have to call off work again the next day, which I did. I felt like hell Wednesday so I stayed home and concentrated on drinking fluids and taking the extra antibiotics from my last illness. I did manage to make a stop at the HSFC, though, to drop off the 3-lb bag of food that Kia couldn't eat. I took her with me so I could meet Janice in person and allow her to meet the kitty they've been putting so much money into lately. She asked me how she'd been doing and I said really good. She was eating like a pig and putting on weight, slowly but surely. I was very happy with how her recovery was going. I told her I was still waiting for the phenotype test results and would let her know as soon as I got them. She reassured me that they would continue to help with the cost, no matter what the results were.
Three hours later, I was on the phone to my mom when the vet rang through. The news was devastating. The test showed that she did indeed have intestinal lymphoma and we would need to start chemotherapy treatments as soon as possible. I asked what her prognosis was and they said it could be six months to a year, or a year and a half, or even several years. They simply didn't know. It would all depend on how well she handles treatment. I have to give her half a tablet 3 times a week, in addition to the presnisolone, plus monitor her white blood cell count regularly. He also said he wants me to keep her on the expensive special diet for roughly 4 months, so it won't be until the end of the year when I can start switching her back to her old stuff. It's going to be a long, arduous road that will ultimately lead to the same grim destination. It's every pet parent's worst nightmare.
I still refuse to believe she actually has this disease. It just doesn't make sense that she would show absolutely no symptoms of something this serious. I feel like maybe the results got mixed up at the lab, or maybe it's all one big scam just to get me to shell out more money to the Virginia veterinary industry. If I had the money, I'd get a second opinion. It's just so unfair. I've done nothing but love my kitty dearly since the day she appeared at my feet at the car dealership. I've jumped through all kinds of hoops just to keep her alive for the past 6 weeks. After her stricture miraculously opened, I really thought everything would work out. I thought the hard part was over. Turns out, it was just beginning.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment