Quick update

I haven’t had the energy to post any real updates, blog posts, etc. in a while, so here’s just a real quick one.  We are nearing the end of radiation and trying to hang in there!  Kevin has 8 more treatments.  We will see his Dr. tomorrow morning after his treatment.  Thank you to Rachael and John Sherwood, as they will be coming over tomorrow morning to watch the kids so I can go with him (at 6AM) to his treatment and Dr. appt.

Thanks also to my mom and dad for keeping the kids from Thursday night until Saturday night.  While it was wonderful to have a little time to rest and recover, I spent most of it dealing with insurance junk.  Our latest challenge has been that Kevin’s insurance from last fall is saying that he had a pre-existing condition and so they are not going to cover any of his cancer treatment.  He is with a different insurance now, so no worries (we hope) about his current and future treatment being covered, but there are a huge amount of bills from the fall, so it’s a great big project to be working on, gathering records, filing an appeal, etc.  Luckily, on Friday I was referred to the Patient Advocate Foundation through a hospital social worker.  They are a national non-profit and it appears that their mission is to help folks out with exactly this kind of thing.  They are partnered with the American Cancer Society and offer their services at no cost.  They will assist with the appeal and provide legal services if necessary.  I was crying tears of relief when talking with them on Friday.  But there is still a lot of work to be done, so that is what I’ll be spending most of the day tomorrow working on (with two sick children by my side).

Kevin is hanging in there.  This has been much more difficult on him physically then we ever would have imagined.  By the end of the week, he is just totally beat, and spends most of the weekend trying to rest up.  But I am so proud of him as he pushes through each day and simply puts one foot in front of the other.  It has been very difficult for me to watch him get so sick, especially knowing it is the treatment that is doing it, and not even the cancer.  But we take it one day at a time, and try to focus on the moment.  We are also trying to remember to laugh and enjoy life, enjoy our children, our home, our neighborhood, our many many blessings, and that definitely has made all the difference.  Please pray for us that we make it through this next phase and for the uncertainty that we have about what the next steps are.  We don’t really know any details yet about appointments, tests, etc. for his next phase of treatment.  We just know it will start four weeks after radiation ends.  That uncertainty is difficult, but it is definitely a new normal that we are learning to live with.

That’s all for now.  And because I can’t post without a picture, here’s one from earlier this month.

RSH 8660

4 thoughts on “Quick update

  1. Rachel
    There are men and then there are men. Your man is a real man, strong, wise, couragious, and Godly; a man other men look up to and respect. Men like Kevin are good examples to others…even old men like myself. When I grow up I want to be like Kevin. I love and respect you both. Keep the faith.
    Dennis

  2. Rachel and Kevin:
    You are both so brave – what an inspiration you are for us and for your children.
    Thank you for sharing with us a photo of Kevin’s area of radiation – may it heal
    soon with no trace of cancer.
    Love you,
    Irene

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