Yep, I was right about the Norco. I didn’t take any last night and I can actually function normally this morning without feeling like my brain is wrapped in wet grey gauze. Narcotics are no joke! The after-affects aren’t really worth the trouble of taking the drugs in the first place unless a person is in severe pain (as I was) or is having a lot of trouble sleeping.

Blood cell counts continue to rise, albeit very, VERY slowly. White blood cells are now at 2.8 (I lost the bet so I’m sure Dr. Santiago will have something to say about that later 😉) and hemoglobin is holding at 7.5. I didn’t get an ANC count but I’m guessing it’s higher than it was yesterday, which places it in the low normal range. There’s already talk of me being sent home but that probably won’t happen until tomorrow or Wednesday. Then I also have to contact Dr. Santiago’s office to make an appointment for my initial office visit, and I think that’s supposed to happen next week sometime. Riiiiiiight… I can barely get through to his office and they’re not great about calling me back, let alone making an appointment for NEXT WEEK, so this might get interesting.

I’m pretty much done here. I’m getting awfully tired of hospital rooms, Netflix and peeing in a strange container and I miss my family.

Soooo… the verdict is in. Dr. Santiago told me this evening that if there is any upward movement in my platelet count tomorrow morning, even if it’s only by one point, that’s my golden ticket out of here. I’m not sure how to take that. All my numbers have been slowly trending upwards but the platelets have been remarkably sluggish this time around. I’ve already received two transfusions and each time, my platelet count would spike and then drop. I’m hoping that because of the Granix and where I happen to be in the cycle, that this time will be different and we’ll see some improvement. Otherwise, I have no idea when I’ll be able to leave. Meanwhile that meter is running and the hospital bill just keeps getting more and more ridiculous. We’re already looking at a fight with Blue Cross Blue Shield, our insurance company, for the amount of time I’ve spent in the hospital. I guess it’s their opinion that I should only be here for a week or so, that it’s unnecessary to keep me for longer than that. What. The. Actual. Hell. Yeah, the money they’ve spent on helping to save my life means that their shareholders don’t get quite the hefty dividends they were banking on. Ugh… I detest insurance companies.