aplastic anemia?
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Join Date: Mar 2005
Location: Lake Luzerne
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The treatment will make him very sick. He won't be in a situation to drink and if he found a way, it will kill him. Maybe you can read up on bone marrow transplant and chemo. I would feel uncomfortable to discuss the particulars further. I'm sure you can imagine what a person goes through who has leukemia. This is a very acute situation. Mild and moderate cases can be treated as an outpatient, if the doc it talking about chemo and a bone marrow transplant, it sounds pallative. If you don't have the energy to lift a spoon to your own mouth, I doubt drinking will enter into it. The risk of infection is tremendous. Often a patient is quatenteened for a period prior to reduce risk. I would imagine they would do chemo first and then the transplant. There isn't a whole lot of drinking on an oncology unit. He will be there for a prolonged period.
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Join Date: Mar 2005
Location: Lake Luzerne
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The thing is, he knows he has this condition and he's drinking. The docs don't usually mince words with this type of condition. Alcoholics don't have any reserves to call on. Going into this kind of situation, we can only imagine what shape his liver is in, his bone marrrow, his general health....his coping and his ability to comply with the life changes he'lll have to make. His alcoholism may nt have caused but it may have, one thing is for sure, it isn't going to help.
This is a hard time not to get sucked back in. Some kind of inevitable physical damage was coming, he now has aplastic anemia. Who knows what would happen if he quit drinking and got some good nutruiton? They will buck him up as best they can before they start the treatments.
I did some more reading on this and it seems that a nonalcoholic has about a 40-70% chance of survival with the transplant. That's pretty good. Where he would fall in those percentages is impossible for us to know.
As hard as it is, I hope you don't get involved and do double time with your meetings. The people who can best help him are on the scene.
You've started a heathy life without him. Getting involved again won't help you and it won't change things. You can't ignore what you know now.
He knows he has this and he is drinking. I cant bare the thought of you watching that, exhausting yourself with that. the very best thing you can do is pray for him. You don't need to be any more involved than you are to do that.
You were ill and he let you get through that on your own. You did it and so far as your own recovery goes, I think God had his hand in the timing of things. This man exhausted you when he wasn't sick.
Jeri there may be conditons that exist as well that we don't know about that certainly factor in. Hepatitis, HIV, many things that could influence the outcome.
I hope you will not get involved. Everything you have said is true. It's not your problem. You can't change a single thing about it at this point.
You can step outside and take a deep breathe of that frigid air and thank God that he has brought you to this point in your recovery.
You are composed, intelligent, funny, employed, you have your own place, you have support. I hope you'll count your blessing, go to a meeting and share your feelings and march forward. My prayers are for YOU.
I'm sorry Jeri, but you have become an example here,lots of people look to you because you are an awesome person. Let us help you and make no moves unless it fits into your recovery.
This is a hard time not to get sucked back in. Some kind of inevitable physical damage was coming, he now has aplastic anemia. Who knows what would happen if he quit drinking and got some good nutruiton? They will buck him up as best they can before they start the treatments.
I did some more reading on this and it seems that a nonalcoholic has about a 40-70% chance of survival with the transplant. That's pretty good. Where he would fall in those percentages is impossible for us to know.
As hard as it is, I hope you don't get involved and do double time with your meetings. The people who can best help him are on the scene.
You've started a heathy life without him. Getting involved again won't help you and it won't change things. You can't ignore what you know now.
He knows he has this and he is drinking. I cant bare the thought of you watching that, exhausting yourself with that. the very best thing you can do is pray for him. You don't need to be any more involved than you are to do that.
You were ill and he let you get through that on your own. You did it and so far as your own recovery goes, I think God had his hand in the timing of things. This man exhausted you when he wasn't sick.
Jeri there may be conditons that exist as well that we don't know about that certainly factor in. Hepatitis, HIV, many things that could influence the outcome.
I hope you will not get involved. Everything you have said is true. It's not your problem. You can't change a single thing about it at this point.
You can step outside and take a deep breathe of that frigid air and thank God that he has brought you to this point in your recovery.
You are composed, intelligent, funny, employed, you have your own place, you have support. I hope you'll count your blessing, go to a meeting and share your feelings and march forward. My prayers are for YOU.
I'm sorry Jeri, but you have become an example here,lots of people look to you because you are an awesome person. Let us help you and make no moves unless it fits into your recovery.
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Join Date: Oct 2006
Location: southern indiana
Posts: 2,145
thank you mallow....from the depths of my very soul....thank you.
your words have helped me so much. in my brain, i know i cannot possibly get back into this.....my heart and my lifetime of behaviors screams at me to rescue. i have enough recovery under my belt to know not to trust my instinct to rescue.
for today, all i am going to do is pray for him. today, i am off work, and i am going to clean my apt. with no dread of his phone calls since he doesn't have my personal numbers. i'm going to dye my roots, light a fire in the fireplace, cook a pot of something. i might give my dog a bath....he sure needs one....yeah, i think i will....and use the hair dryer to blow him dry.....it's too cold to be a wet dog.
i have set my boundry. i will pray for him. that is a double winner boundry....he wins with a prayer and i win with a prayer.
i will ponder on it all in the way that i do.....by doing nothing, usually....and then BANG!!!...the answer pops into my head. i will turn it over to god, and he will guide me. and my friends here.
i have taken my un-cavable tonic today in form of a powerful prayer to god.
with great honor, i accept the help that the wonderful people here so unselfishly offer.
love to you all
jeri
your words have helped me so much. in my brain, i know i cannot possibly get back into this.....my heart and my lifetime of behaviors screams at me to rescue. i have enough recovery under my belt to know not to trust my instinct to rescue.
for today, all i am going to do is pray for him. today, i am off work, and i am going to clean my apt. with no dread of his phone calls since he doesn't have my personal numbers. i'm going to dye my roots, light a fire in the fireplace, cook a pot of something. i might give my dog a bath....he sure needs one....yeah, i think i will....and use the hair dryer to blow him dry.....it's too cold to be a wet dog.
i have set my boundry. i will pray for him. that is a double winner boundry....he wins with a prayer and i win with a prayer.
i will ponder on it all in the way that i do.....by doing nothing, usually....and then BANG!!!...the answer pops into my head. i will turn it over to god, and he will guide me. and my friends here.
i have taken my un-cavable tonic today in form of a powerful prayer to god.
with great honor, i accept the help that the wonderful people here so unselfishly offer.
love to you all
jeri
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Join Date: Apr 2006
Location: OHIO
Posts: 959
You're so brave Jeri....(((((((((((hugs)))))))))))))) Just reading what all was written on this thread is amazing....Mallow is so very knowledgable and what a help she is...to all of us and for you jeri. Stay the course and pray...I talk alot and shoot off my mouth sometimes but if my ex called me with news like yours has - I would be on here looking for the answers too...take care hun
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Join Date: Jan 2007
Location: WV
Posts: 33
Originally Posted by mallowcup 
Yes. I can easily see how long term drinking could cause aplastic anemia considering the livers involvement. Aplasitc anemia is one of the more rare forms. I would say that an alcoholic would first have pernicious anemia which has to do with the production and utilization of B12. Blood cells are produced in the bone marrow and alcohol is toxic to bone marrow. There is also folic acid anemia and iron anemia. There are many more but these three all have to do with synthesis effected by alcohol, especially over the long term.
Pernicious anemia is found in people who (for different reasons) don't make intrinsic factor. Intrinsic factor is needed to absorb B12. A person with this will need lifetime treatment (B12 injections).
Aplastic anemia is basically the replacement of precursor RBCs by yellow fat in the bone. It can be aquired or congenital. This disease doesn't usually have a very good prognosis.
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Join Date: Oct 2006
Location: southern indiana
Posts: 2,145
hmmmmm......my xh was receiving b12 shots for at least 6 years....he always told me they were because he was alcoholic and alcoholics needed them.
he never would let me go to doc with him....
he still is pooing it off, saying it's no big deal....but he wants to talk to his son, who he has not spoken to in 20 years, and wants to talk to his siblings, who he has not had contact with for years.
he said he has no insurance and will not seek further treatment. i know there are programs that will assist him, and i mentioned this to him. he asked for me to help him with finding the assistance. and i told him to begin with his doctor.
god, this makes me feel so badly.
he never would let me go to doc with him....
he still is pooing it off, saying it's no big deal....but he wants to talk to his son, who he has not spoken to in 20 years, and wants to talk to his siblings, who he has not had contact with for years.
he said he has no insurance and will not seek further treatment. i know there are programs that will assist him, and i mentioned this to him. he asked for me to help him with finding the assistance. and i told him to begin with his doctor.
god, this makes me feel so badly.
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Join Date: Dec 2004
Posts: 3,672
Forgive me for sounding so cynical, but with all the lies and manipulations he's thrown at you these last few weeks, what makes you think he's telling the truth now? It could be just another desperate attempt to convince you to rescue him.
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Well, he cold start with the county building to apply for medicaid. Bone marrow requires a donor. The best chance at a match are close relatives. I'm sure the doc told him this. He may be torn between aggressive treatment and resigning himself to let it kill him. You can't have a bone marrow transplant if you can't get a willing donor, See what I'm getting at? He may want to contact the relatives because he is looking for someone to volunteer or to make things right. He certainly qualifies for medicaid. He has to decide if he is going to poo poo or be aggresive because no one is going to endure donating for him to be unsure. It is painful for the donor.
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i've thought of that too, fdm. i thought of how he is such a nut about trashing his body, then getting sober, and taking his bp every 20 minutes after a binge.
and how he is so calm with this news. makes one wonder. how sad. can't trust what he says.
he is a master manipulator. i know that. again, so sad.
i just know i don't have to get involved. i can feel bad, come here and whine, and vent, and waller in it.......but i don't have to get involved directlly with him about it.
sorry, you guys are my safety net......
and how he is so calm with this news. makes one wonder. how sad. can't trust what he says.
he is a master manipulator. i know that. again, so sad.
i just know i don't have to get involved. i can feel bad, come here and whine, and vent, and waller in it.......but i don't have to get involved directlly with him about it.
sorry, you guys are my safety net......
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well, never thought of that mallow.....it shocked me that he wanted to talk to son.....his son hates him. his siblings love him, but have cut off all contact for many years.
i kinda thought he was just making amends. but he may be trying to find a donor.
lordy.....who knows what is real with him or not. i feel like he had a lot of information and it turned out to be correct for him to be just making it up.
but.....who knows????
i kinda thought he was just making amends. but he may be trying to find a donor.
lordy.....who knows what is real with him or not. i feel like he had a lot of information and it turned out to be correct for him to be just making it up.
but.....who knows????
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