Della Health Update!
We got pseudo good news last week! Short version is it's not a brain tumor - longer version is, well, keep reading.
In November of 2023, my partner Della started noticing vision problems. Going through every channel available to us, we (over the course of the next few months) ruled out every possible problem with the eye itself - and started to explore neurological issues. Given how many other seemingly unrelated medical issues she's had over the last few years in conjunction with the vision lead our doctors to start looking at the possibility of multiple sclerosis.
After the first series of extremely expensive tests, we found out we were in for a long haul and started a gofundme. The MRI of her brain (one of many, many MRIs) to see if we were dealing with MS didn't end up being conclusive - but it did show a tumor in her pineal gland.
I should point out that with her pelvic injury, us both caregiving for her father who died of ALS a decade ago and just...relatively complicated lives medically speaking, every time we meet a new doctor (happens every couple of weeks but who is counting, right?) we get asked if we are "in the medical field". I'd like to either know less about all of this or get an honorary MD and start getting paid to see patients if I'm being honest.
Anyway there was a period when this was all new last winter when the biggest concern we had was that it might be retinal detachment, so being faced with "Multiple Sclerosis OR a brain tumor (OR BOTH)" has gripped us with ridiculous anxiety.
Last week we were able to get our first follow-up on the brain - and thankfully the tumor in the pineal gland has not grown at all. This means (for now) we can rule out 'brain tumor' as the cause of the issues. A momentary sigh of relief and then pressing on because good news leads us back fully into MS town, pending more tests.
More tests, more tests.
We've been dealing with a lot of "no answers, more questions" in the stupidest JJ Abrams way imaginable and while I'm happy we're not in brain cancer territory I'd like for her to get some actual good news for once and not "good news [with a caveat]".
Anyway these are mostly photos from various other medical things from the past except the image at the top, which is us in August when we celebrated 19 years of marriage; we're pretty proud of that.