Robin Marshalls Arts: Voice and Paint

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Girlfriends In Trouble

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Dallas, Tx  8-13-2014 Gotta' Keep smilin'! Gotta’ Keep smilin’!
 
Best wishes for my Girlfriend today. She beat breast cancer 12 years ago, .. I saw her speak the week after I had been diagnosed, while I was attending a seminar in San Diego called The Secret Knock. While there, I never told a soul that I had been diagnosed with Ovarian Cancer and had postponed my surgery so that I could still attend this event! I was there pushing my book, “The Diary of a Sugar Mom. Don’t Tell the Kids.” 
After hearing her speak about what she’d been through, I decided I was going to talk about it BEFORE I went through it, while I went through it, and After- if there WAS an after!  I then realized this was more about being a Sugar Mom! A word I made up, right then and there! A woman who can think for herself, speak eloquently, want to continue to learn on a daily basis, takes good care of herself at our age, takes Time for herself and understands that SHE Matters too! A Sugar Mom is “a woman who lives a life less Ordinary!”
This woman, Susan… may not know it, but she’s at the top of the Sugar Mom List! She’s doing what it takes to make it right for HER, and her attitude is outstandingly Positive! 
This was my way of egging her on, to start writing a blog Before the big event and to continue sharing with us, just what she’s about to go through.
 
XO
Robin

And how is my girlfriend Susan Santsche doing tonight? She’s been on my mind.

 

 

 

 

 

 

    • Robin Marshall I am happy to hear this, since you were my first inspiration after hearing you speak at Greg S. Reid‘s Secret Knock! I knew I was sick, but kept quiet while wondering how you had the guts to Talk about it. I just followed your lead, but backwards! I talked before, during and after I was sick! Now? It’s your turn. You should talk about this “anticipation.” It’s a hell of a story. XO
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      Susan Santsche The anticipation and the way people do not know how to respond to you is the interesting dynamic!! And the dynamic in how some people or some in your medical community have an issue when you are just being pro-active ..My ob gyn called me and told me…See More
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      Robin Marshall Agreed. That’s why I shot my mouth off- and why I suggest you keep doing the same, sistah’.
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      Susan Santsche Ok Need to get to blogging!!
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      Robin Marshall My second three month checkup is next month- and I’m going to make sure that all friends that followed along with me, during this horrific time- including YOU- STAY with me, for better or worse. The love you feel from your friends can make all the difference in the world. 
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      Susan Santsche Its the Better …Celebrate YOU Every Day ! :}
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      Robin Marshall And You. Very proud to know you. And- Thank you for giving me the courage to Open My Mouth! I feel MUCH BETTER!!! Lol! Women need to talk to each other and encourage each other to be proactive when their health is in consideration, right?

       

      Please direct…See More

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      Susan Santsche I am honored to know I did @ and Have gotten to be a part of your amazing Journey ! Thanks Greg Greg S. Reid Secret Knock to unite 2 powerful women fighting for the Change we need in our Health Care!
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      Robin Marshall I know, it started with You. I heard you- and I’ve saved a few lives because I was “ballsy” enough to write about it. I feel Good about it even though I don’t know the end of my story! You will feel GREAT talking about it because you already know You started the chain! Let me know if you hit a low point. You can dictate and I can Edit. ?
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      Robin Marshall Get some Sleep!!!
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      Susan Santsche Be careful to say edit ..Have you read my emails ..LOL
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      Robin Marshall YES! You need an editor!!!!!! Hahahaha! We can’t always Say what we Feel- Exactly? 
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“It Ain’t Over Till the FAT Lady Sings!” She’ Singin’!

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Feb 15th,2015 Dallas, Tx

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I'm Almlost THERE!

So it’s come down to the wire…  

My Doctor has admitted I’m “one of a kind.” Meaning, she’s never had a patient who’s numbers have been the equivalent to a wooden roller coaster, where you hear the sound of the rickety-rick as it climbs to the peak and shoots straight down to the bottom, without hope that you’ll survive that drop! And of course, then there’s the subject of my personality… Ha! She admitted to me, that most women can’t handle 6 months worth of weekly taxol, let alone work and travel at the same time. I didn’t know that. I just remember my girlfriend Jane, who had stage 4 cancer and she’d have her IV pole at work, while being the GM of a radio station. I thought that was remarkable and tried to model myself after her.

Each week I’ve gone in, for the entire 6 months, it’s been a crap shoot. My white count is so low they can’t give me chemo or my red count is so low that I need a blood transfusion. I wonder how many people really are a part of my make up, at this point. All that blood from generous strangers…I wonder if it’ changed my personality? Obviously not- I’m still a bit crazy- unless they pulled from the “crazy blood bank!”

A perfect example is, I went to SC to see my kids last week. Had a great time until I woke up Sunday to a fever of 103.5. I know… you’re all picturing what radio frequency is in your market with that number! I’m not the only nutty one- I too remembered working for the Apple in NYC, thinking, “OH! So it all comes around finally!”

Here it is: 3 weeks left to go which includes 4 treatments of chemo.

My mom has been in and out of the ICU for the last 5 months. I’ve seen her twice which is the only way I’ve been able to talk with her, since she’s trached and on a ventilator. I was able to read her lips. Now I’m getting calls from the doctor saying it doesn’t look good. She’ll never come off the vent and her chosen POA is slipping into delirium. Can I come in? I’ve been forbidden to enter the ICU while my counts have been all over the map, which caused me to go to my doctor and ask for advice.

She said, “Robin your platelets are too low for chemo as of today. Your body is at the point where we don’t think you’ll be able to handle chemo on a weekly basis anymore. We can’t afford to keep missing weeks due to your counts being inconsistent.”

I never even saw what was coming…

All I knew was that this was going to be the hardest three weeks of my life- body tolerance wise, and trying to get to my mom in time.

She said, “come back on Monday for labs again, and let’s see if the platelets are higher, and if so- we’re going to give you the entire cycle in one sitting; 4 doses of chemo which will take about 6 hours- and then? You’re done. I started to cry… happy tears! All those moments of tearing quietly just broke loose.

After regaining my composure, please picture my mouth hanging open- as I said, “can I die from this?” She said, “as long as you don’t HIDE the fact that you have a FEVER from me again, NO… I don’t think so!”
I tried to explain that I knew if I called her with that fever she’d have insisted I go to the emergency room in Charlotte- and I would get Stuck there- while knowing I still had a shot at chemo the next day! I told her I called my girlfriend Arlene instead! Remember? Arlene is up there in ranking with her! In fact they did their residencies together! She looked up in the air while shaking her head… and said, “and what did Arlene say?” I said, “She said, you’re NOT gonna’ die between today and tonight! Rest- get on the plane and go to your doc tomorrow.”

Now my doctor is looking down shaking her head, and said, “I’m glad Arlene is your friend, and I also know that no matter WHO you spoke with, you’d STILL not have gone to the ER!” I answered, “I’m HERE, aren’t I? My temperature, while less than 24 hours ago has dropped to 97.4… can I have chemo?”

The answer was YES- and a blood transfusion the next day.

So here I am, after All THAT- on a Sunday, waiting to find out if my numbers will shock the world yet again tomorrow… with platelets coming UP so that I can be DONE!!!!
If not tomorrow, they’ll test me every other day this week, and the minute I’m safe the chemos will enter my system.

I had the sense to ask her finally, “and how will having 4 chemos injected at once make me feel? She said, “day 4-5-6 you’ll feel like a truck ran over you.” I wanted to know if that same truck would back up over me, and her response was, “it’s quite possible it’ll feel like that!” I saId, “what kind of truck!!!”

Ok! There ya’ have it! Next week should be it- not knowing which day is going to be the hard part- until the HARD PART!

If at some point next week you don’t hear from me on FB or here on my blog… you’ll know: I’m going through hell to get to heaven! Heaven being alive and well!

Cross your fingers, toes, what ever’s long enough to cross- just do it! Please… I’ve so had it.

Love to you all,

Robin