Judy: Without Steroids Chemo is Less Fun

Thursday, August 6, 2009

Without Steroids Chemo is Less Fun

Well, that's the mild way of putting it. Judy began her second cycle of six to eight rounds of chemo on Tuesday, and things were (and still are) quite a bit rougher than we expected. We had been told that the new drug that she is now getting (Gemzar) has fewer side-effects than what she had been getting (Taxol). Maybe that's why she wasn't given her usual accompanying dose of steroids. Whatever the reason, Judy has been feeling rotten since Tuesday's treatment. Next time around, she'll ask for the steroids, for sure.

The CA-125 cancer markers continue to inch upward--not good. It will be interesting to see whether this new drug and the renewed chemo after the lengthy hiatus will convince the disease to start receding again. Sure, it's just numbers, but that's all we have to go by.

I am writing this update while sitting in the Miami airport, waiting for my flight to Costa Rica where I am officiating an international mountain bike race this weekend. Judy and Emily will spend Saturday and Sunday in Abilene for their annual "Ride of Passage," a tradition that goes back 10 years. The idea has always been to ride a little farther than the year before and to try something new--in line with progressing from one school grade to the next. Now Emily is getting ready to enter college, and the Ride of Passage is still as apropos as a decade ago. Judy may be feeling crappy, but she won't let that stop her from doing what she wants to do. Maybe they'll adjust the length of the ride a little....

Stay tuned for the next update. Let's hope we have some good news and maybe a new photo.

Jürgen

6 comments:

aka Kathy said...: [HUGS!] Oh, Judy - sorry to hear that this round isn't going as well as we hoped it would.

I like your "Ride of Passage" what a great idea. I'm wishing you and Emily a ride worthy of starting college!

Take care of yourself! [/HUGS!]
Kathy; August 6, 2009 at 6:33 PM
WayneLorane said...: Dear, dear, Judy,
we're indeed sorry to hear that this chemo is so yucky! Let Belinda know that you need those steroids...don't try to be tough.

Be careful on your "ride of passage" and have fun. I'm glad you and Emily have something fun to do before she heads off to college. Just take it easy and have fun...there's nothing to prove, just have a good time being together. Love,love,love, Waynelorane; August 9, 2009 at 9:59 PM
cindi said...: Hi Judy,

Just getting back from Mt Snow-am in a tizzy trying to get everything caught up before I head down to Windham on Wed.

Sending lots of positive thoughts/vibes your way that your current course of treatment gets those Ca-125 markers heading to the basement!

Have a great ride with Emily...no matter what distance you two settle on.

Hugs,
Cindi :); August 11, 2009 at 8:52 PM
Anonymous said...: Sending you prayers of good health.

Dereesa; August 16, 2009 at 10:58 AM
cindi said...: Hi Judy!

Just checking in after getting back from Windham!

Sending hugs and prayers your way!!!

Cindi :>; August 17, 2009 at 2:34 PM
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This blog will stay alive!

Dear Friends,

I plan to keep this blog open, even after Judy left us on September 29, 2010. Maybe it can be an inspiration to those who face a similar diagnosis, who are going through the same battle: We lived two full and fulfilling years after being told the bad news, and if you go back through time, looking at the different posts and photos, the smiles and the happiness, but also the worries and the fear, then you will see that Judy and I did not let this damn cancer get to our souls. We were courageous and faced the long odds with hope and zest, and those of you who were fortunate enough to be touched by Judy (and there are so many of you!) know that she continued to give until the very end. She was only 4'10", but she was monumental!

Jürgen

Jürgen's Eulogy of Judy

Dear Friends,

If our beloved Judy were in this beautiful hall, she would be uncomfortable and embarrassed. Look over there: She’s the focus of our attention, the sole reason for our being here. She hated being in the limelight, she avoided being at the center, she always preferred the background. Judy was gregarious but not a public person, and she was, as you just heard, most happy when she could be of service to others.

That was the side that most of you saw: the caregiver, the helper, the social worker. But there was that other part of her life, the one I was so fortunate to share with her for more than 23 years. We were partners of a rare kind, I want to believe, two individuals who over time melded into a unit that was much greater than its parts. She was my best friend at the same time that she was my lover; she was my buddy while she was my spouse. She was “Judy,” and very, very few of you ever heard me refer to her as “my wife.” Her individuality was quite apparent in our relationship, and she did not stay in the background, at least not in our private life. She was a wonderfully emancipated woman who was keenly proud of her equality.

Judy had a strong mind of her own, and she fiercely maintained her individuality within the bond that we had chosen to enter on that April Fool’s Day in 1989. We maintained separate checking accounts, but we both paid our equal share of the bills; she loved to refer to the place we lived in as “my” house, just to rib me, even though we paid it off together; she of course continued to worship her god while I did not. Two strong individuals who came together and made it all work together.

There is really no secret to our success: We loved each other, and we cared for each other, and we respected each other. Our life was full of passion for life itself: Even as individuals, we had all those common goals and aspirations, and we worked hard to achieve and fulfill them. Like anyone, we had our spats, of course, but we always worked through them because we realized that we had a precious thing going. Judy introduced me to the deep meaning of family bonds and friendship, and I introduced her to traveling the world; she taught me how to appreciate truly extraordinary cooking, and I taught her about cultures and places. Together we hiked, and rafted, and biked. In almost 200 dives, we never knew a different dive buddy. At the dinner table, we always sat down together, raised our wine glasses, and wished each other “bon appétit” before sharing our evening meals.

Judy’s final two years in this world were very difficult, as we all know. They were difficult for her, and they were difficult for me. They were difficult for us even as a team. She tried to shoulder as much of the burden as possible, but she accepted and cherished my support. There were those dark moments, which most of the time she tried to hide from me. But I always knew, and I also knew that time was so precious but kept ticking relentlessly. She’d pat me and say, “Don’t cry, babe,” and she’d be strong. And then there were those other moments when she’d sob and I’d put my hand on her head, gently.

The last few weeks were the very hardest, but I think we came through intact. If anything, our bond grew stronger and our love nothing but deepened and intensified. And when the end finally came, we faced it the way we faced everything else in our united life: as a team composed of two strong individuals who temporarily have taken two separate paths but who continue to be joined by this extraordinary love that was and is ours. Thanks, JuJu, for making us whole. Ciao, babe!

Candice's Eulogy of Judy

Good morning . . . . and I say “good morning” because we are all here together to honor and acknowledge the good life of our dear Judy who is now resting in peace.

Where can I ever find the proper words that might be able to articulate her very being?

If you knew Judy at all....... there is no denying that she IS a child of God. Psalm 139:13 says “For you [Lord] created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well”. When our Lord created Judy....... He created her for His purposes and gave her a wonderful spiritual gift.... the gift of service. As far back as I can remember, I clearly understood that she had a tender heart for those people who were in need. Her mother once told me of the time when she took Mike and Judy to look for their Christmas tree. Bett, as we call her, and Mike found a perfectly shaped, beautiful tree for the corner of the room, but Judy kept coming back to one particular scrawny looking, pitiful tree that she just knew no one was going to take home. Well guess what tree was in the corner of the Austins’ living room that Christmas?! Somehow Judy always seemed to look past a person’s outward appearance or beyond what seemed like daunting limitations to see someone’s potential worth and character. Time and time again over the years, all of us who knew her watched and marveled at her ability and willingness to reach out to those persons who needed help, encouragement, and tenderness.

Judy’s gift of service began in her heart. In Judy the Lord’s love was so strong that it was almost like a magnet drawing those who needed healing or comforting to her. She was not only a good listener, but she also took the time to counsel and console.

Her service to others also flowed out through her hands. I am not sure how many of you know this, but Judy struggled with dyslexia all of her life. However, she did not allow this limitation to get in the way of doing God’s work. I am sure many of you sitting here this morning have a story that you could recall about her gifted hands. Whether it was her wonderful cooking of gourmet dinners, her baking of thousand of hand-decorated, personalized cookies made for every possible occasion, or her sharing the delicious pleasure of her fun or beautiful cakes.......Judy’s hands made them all and gave them willingly and gladly to family, friends, and strangers alike.

Besides her gifts with food....... there was her knitting! Oh how she loved to knit for those she loved! I think, perhaps, it was her knitting that gave her the most pleasure. It truly took the work of her hands to produce her knitted gifts of love. She always gave careful thought to the colors and textures of the yarn, choosing what she hoped would best reflect the personality and needs of the person who was to receive her gift. Judy spent countless hours binding the strands of yarn together; forming her shawls, scarves, and hats just as she knit together her relationships of love. It says in Proverbs that “Lazy hands make a person poor, but diligent hands bring wealth.” Well, Judy’s wealth was NOT in the materialistic treasures of this life (for we all know she was the coupon queen), no, her wealth came from the love and blessings she received from all of us who have come here today and from the love she was able to pour out onto others.

These is so much more to be said , but I have chosen to close with a message Jurgen received from one of their THOUSANDS of friends. I would like to share it with you all now.

“She was an incredibly gracious person who possessed a giving soul. Her care for the sick and destitute was a window and glimpse into her gregarious heart. I can think of few people with kinder eyes; she owned the wit of a person fully alive. G.K. Chesterson once said “that angels can fly because they can take themselves lightly”. I never looked, but I now believe Judy’s feet hovered a few inches above the ground: it was perfect practice because she is soaring magnificently now.”

May you, here today, go in peace knowing that our dear Judy has been joyfully reunited with those loved ones and friends who have gone on before her and abides in peace with her almighty and loving Father.

Dear co-workers, friends, and family, please know that Judy would not want any of us to leave here today feeling that the light that she shared with so many has been extinguished. Rather.....as Judy has taught by the example of her life.......let each of us carry at least a spark of her great gift for caring for others out into the world.

Thanks to all of Judy's hospital visitors!

Alan H.
Alana C.
Andy O.
Andy Y.
Ann G.
Anna E.
Anna W.
Anne E.
Annette G.
Barbara L.
Becky K.
Becky O.
Bobby S.
Candace A.
Carol C.
Cheryl W.
Cindy L.
Darla C.
Darla C.
Debbie M.
Debbie S.
Don S.
Donna S.
Elizabeth D.
Emily H.
Father Jim
Fred W.
Gwynn W.
James N.
Jewell D.
Jody J.
John O.
John S.
Joni C.
Kathi G.
Kathy O.
Kenneth B.
Laura F.
Laura W.
Leonard G.
Liza. M.
Lorane R.
Lori L.
Lynniece H.
Mark G.
Mark W.
Mary G.
Michael G.
Mike A.
Ms.Eddie
Natalie B.
Natalie's mom
Nicole C.
Patricia S.
Rachel M.
Roger N.
Shannon H.
Sharon C.
Sharon W.
Shirah V.
Stacy Y.
Susan E.
Toni C.
Walt. O.
Wayne W.
Wes "Keebler" E.
Will S.
xxx ... and I'm sorry if I missed someone!

Judy

Why the Redwood Forest slideshow?

Thursday, August 6, 2009

Without Steroids Chemo is Less Fun

6 comments:

This blog will stay alive!

Jürgen's Eulogy of Judy

Candice's Eulogy of Judy

Blog Archive

Thanks to all of Judy's hospital visitors!

Subscribers to this blog

Judy

Why the Redwood Forest slideshow?

Thursday, August 6, 2009

Without Steroids Chemo is Less Fun

6 comments:

This blog will stay alive!

Jürgen's Eulogy of Judy

Candice's Eulogy of Judy

Blog Archive

Thanks to all of Judy's hospital visitors!

How to subscribe to this blog automatically

Subscribers to this blog