M Rex and her beautiful brain

Guest post #2~ Random Thoughts for you on a snowy Tuesday~ My post-op appointment is tomorrow, so I'm hopeful to learn more then. Weather has been snowy & cold with a forecast of more of the same, so the plan is to head to Billings this afternoon with my dad, so we don't have to worry about making my appointment with Dr. Ross tomorrow morning. I'll update accordingly Wednesday or Thursday. I’ve been loving the “10 Things That Scare Me” podcast because it was about how long my attention span was for a while there. I’ve learned it changes a little bit every day, but it’s kind of amazing how therapeutic it is to make your list. Today’s (in no particular order.) 1.      Heights/falling. Falling has always been a fear & I’m wimpy about heights, but lately I’m super scared of falling down the stairs. (Still makes me nervous with the wonky left side. I’m into handrails.) 2.      The dark. (Imaginations are weird I tell ya!) ...

Good evening! Below is M's add request to the blog. So without further adieu...... Howdy all!. Saturday was a strong day in a week of recovery that is trending in the right direction. While not at 100%, knowing the tumor is benign is making the recovery very manageable. The pins/needles sensation and proprioception issues on my left side (arm, leg, face & tongue) persist, but all parts work great and my strength is symmetrical. They are confident that will go away in time as swelling goes down. I really do think that now that Gargamel is out, strangely, his "not small" size is now in my favor (5cm x5.2cm x5.5 cm + some significant swelling) With space to swell my brain is less angry and my headache has been better than pre-op. It made me miserable for months and Saturday that changed and I started feeling mentally clearer.   Thinking about Gargamel’s size and impact, took me to YouTube. It turns out, I'm not *quite* ready to wat...

Good morning!   Last night we received the full pathology report on Gargamel. Non-cancerous. What a relief and one more step on the recovery process checked off.  We still have one near term hurdle. The 7-10 days following tumor removal have a high likelihood of stroke. Hence the reason for visiting hours, lots of sleep, M living on house arrest and in general, being very relaxed.. She is just easing through this period while we vigilantly watch for the signs of a stoke. For those like me, and don't know the signs of a stroke, here they are as referenced by the American Stroke Association. F-facial droop. A-arm weakness S-speech difficulty T-time to call an ambulance The FAST acronym is easy to remember  but was not something I knew beforehand. Sharing that seems appropriate as it applicable to everyone.  The early recognition of a stroke can have significant impact on the outcome of an individual facing this life changing event. Now we continue to ...

Quick update!  I'm sorry I forgot to put the times up to come and visit M.  If you could come by between 9&11am and again at 4-6pm. That gives her a nice nap window! Thanks!! Matt

The rumors are true.  M is back home. We arrived back at Bozeman late this afternoon. Yes, the roads from Billings were great. After a run down by the Doc and M's nurse, she was given the all clear to be freed. Before leaving Billings we were able to have lunch with the Kaull's and top it off with a quick hit of ice cream. Now that we are back home, the bulk of the recovery process begins.  She was advised she is going to be very tired and consequently she will need to sleep. Possibly 10 plus hours of sleep a day. So you are welcome to come visit her! She wants to see all of you but please be mindful of rest policy as she will need the downtime.   "Nurse Ratched" will be policing the grounds and there won't be much I can do for you should you choose to be a violator.  Again, I do want to reiterate that she loves the company so everyone is welcome! Our dear friends the Potters have set up a "Meal Train" for M.  Please go to https://www.mealtrain.co...

   WANTED!    EMILY REX                      Last seen escaping from St Vincent's Hospital                   in Billings, MT.   Likely Whereabouts are at 403 N                   17th Ave, Bozeman, MT.                    Suspect defining features are a big smile, especially                   when eating ice cream, and large scar on the top of                    her head. Consider the suspect extremely happy to                    be home.    

Good afternoon! Its been another good day of progress. M is doing great and the recovery is going great! Last night she had a restful night. In my opinion there is no single thing that is better for healing than sleep and she got more rest last might than she has in weeks. This morning she ate breakfast, took a shower and has been on several walks.  It is stunning the amount of progress she is making. M is planning another shower tonight and more walks. If things go according to plan, we will drive back to Bozeman tomorrow afternoon and reunite with Birdie. Rob, M's brother, will fly out of Billings tomorrow morning and back home to Baltimore. Her parents will return to Bozeman with us.  I think when someone starts a blog the intent is to grow the viewership. Mine is the opposite. I am hoping that I can close this thing down due to her recovery. M's progress is playing right into that marketing strategy. That said I will keep the updates coming and I hope they get ...

Good evening!   My apologies for the late post! I know there are a many who are waiting for the updates so I am sorry I didn't get a blog off sooner! Today was good!  After a night of restlessness and discomfort, M emerged into the morning quite a bit better.  Her pain went from a 7 out of 10, to a 3 out of 10 by morning.  It was an improvement she vocalized throughout the day as "I feel soooo much more human."  She was able to put her necklace, earrings, watch and nose rings back in. The later much to her father's chagrin. Just the donning of those items brought her to a place of marked improvement.  In addition to adding jewelry, she also added her appetite.  She ate lunch and diner after a fast of about 36 hours. In true M fashion her lunch was Mac-n-cheese topped with Cheez-its.  Cheese on cheese is never a bad answer and having sampled it, I do give a thumbs up! She also moved from the ICU to the "floor" of hospital. Again, another big s...

We heard the collective sigh of relief from across the country. We cannot reiterate the amount of thanks we have for all of you and your support. An extra special thanks for Dr. Louis Ross and the entire staff of St. Vincent's hospital. To say that what they have done is amazing does not extend the proper respects as the entire team here is exceptional.   Right now M is resting in the ICU. I am here with her. She is alert, talking and cracking jokes. Yes, her humor is every bit unchanged.  Her first exclamation after coming out from anesthesia was "this is the tightest pony tail I have ever had in my life!"     She is in a fair amount of pain, as would be expected, in her head. Right now they are trying to manage her nausea as well but it all seems that it is being mitigated by some pretty powerful narcotics.  So those of you feeling the urge to go out and celebrate, you should do so. M just wants you to know how ever hard you party she "will have a hangover...

Doctor Ross just came out to inform us that the procedure is complete and went well!!  M is in recovery and awake and moving around.  They were able to remove all of the tumor and the initial pathology report is that it is likely a Meningioma. That is to say that the tumor is not likely to be cancerous. A full pathology report will be out in 5-7 days.  Fingers crossed but initial reports are good.   We are going to be able to see her shortly before they take her to the ICU. She will spend the night in the ICU and will be on her way home Saturday or Sunday. So needles to say that we all breathing a great "sigh of relief."  We are far from the end of the journey but a giant portion has been safely traveled. I will have more updates later on but I wanted to pass the good news as timely as possible. Thanks you for all the love and support! Matt

Just got off the phone with the Operating Room at 3:40 Nothing significant to report. The procedure is going well and as planned. Based upon what the Doc told us we probably still have another 3-4hours of surgery ahead. The next call I get I will update the blog. We continue to wait............ Thanks! Matt

"Accept the unchangeables. Smile, breathe and bask in acceptance"                                                                    -The Minimalists That is a quote that M came across a few days ago. Paradoxically that quote is scary and relaxing making it is very appropriate for our situation. M just went into the Operating Room at about 1:00MST. Now Shari, Bob, Rob and myself are in hanging tight in the surgery waiting room. As you can imagine it was a long night but the morning started out with her MRI at 7:00.  That MRI was a mapping pre-op image so the doctor has locations correct for the incisions. We then met up with Murine and Don Kaull...

Greetings from Billings!   After an uneventful trip from Bozeman, M and I arrived in Billings this afternoon. The roads were dry and good. For those not living in the Big Sky state, winter road conditions are a significant subject and the the most likely question you will receive after a formal greeting is, "How are the roads?"  We went straight to St Vincent's Hospital to do a pre-op check in and take care of the administrative tasks.  After the Hospital visit we proceeded to the Northern Hotel and found M's family. They have been faithfully waiting for our arrival. We were able to share some drinks and a nice meal in downtown Billings which marked M's final meal before surgery as she is banned from eating after midnight. So tomorrow is the big day and here is the run-down. All times are in in Mountain Standard time: 0700- Pre-Surgery MRI at St V's 1045- Surgery Check-in at St V's 1245- Planned Surgery I will be giving updates as we get throu...

Here is your Tuesday(2/5) update: It looks like we are postponed a day. M will be having her surgery on Thursday(2/7)  as opposed to the previously scheduled Wednesday(2/6).  Dr. Ross would rather her be the first case of the day. Otherwise we are still "full-go" with just a slight delay. We will drive to Billings tomorrow.  M's family is arriving in Billings today and unfortunately they are going to be greeted by some of the coldest weather of the winter season. Welcome to Montana Bob, Shari and Rob Rex! No one will question you when you wonder why your daughter chose to live in this glacial landscape. Please come again in July and give her a shot at redemption! M is doing well. She is very anxious to evict Gargamel and get back to a headache free life! Thank you to everyone for all the support and love! Until tomorrow, Matt

Good morning everyone!  I will cut to the chase. M has decided to have the surgery done in Billings. Wednesday afternoon is the time of her appointment.   After consulting the Doc in Philly, his feeling was that having the surgery in Billings was totally viable and was his suggestion. M called the doc back in Billings and had a few more questions for him. All of which he answered. Most importantly M wanted to know "what kind of music does he listen to while he is performing surgery?"    The answer: Punk Rock       I don't know anything about medicine but apparently your favorite genre of music indicates your prowess as a physician and to M, a doctor that listens to punk rock while doing brain surgery is a very clinically sound. I am learning so much.  When compiling all the options, recommendations and opinions the arrows kept pointing towards Billings. We like the Doc a lot and have had some very good indications from folk...