Hi, its been a while

Just touching base to let you know everything is good, in fact I'm feeling better then I have in a long time. I have to do things alot slower, but I'm still doing everything for myself. Speech is still really good, eating etc is still really good.
Had an appointment with the gastroenterologist this week, to talk about the insertion of "the peg". I am going to have this done in the next few weeks. As I explained before, I don't actually need it at the moment, but with winter coming on it would probably be in my best interests to have it done now before the cold weather hits just in case I catch a cold/flu and can't eat or I need to take meds which I can then take via "the peg".
Family is good, Gary #4 son started intermediate this year, Pakura #3 son is in his last year at college, Patrick #2 son starts a new job next week......yipeeeeee, Timoti #1 is happy in a relationship and living with his partner Loren, and last but not least Heni our baby girl (she's 8) is enjoying getting spoilt rotten by her brothers, the lil rat!
Thats about all for now but will try and make more effort to update my blog from now on.

Happy New Year everyone!

Well, thats another Christmas come and gone. I ate everything I'm not supposed to eat....lol and enjoyed every minute of it. So far there have been no consequences, so fingers crossed, its going to stay this way for a while. My two sisters were back from Aussie for the Xmas break and together with my mum, step dad and one of my brothers came down to see me before they flew home to Brisbane. Yet to catch up with another brother (lives in Kaitaia) and sister (lives in Auckland) and their families but hopefully will get to do that sooner rather than later. Erin and kids all well, I'm well, no drama's to speak of.
Confined to my wheel chair 24/7 now, still able to do most things for myself though. Only drawback is starting to get pressure sores now coz I'm always on my "you know what" but I suppose things could be worse.
Just before xmas a couple of my mates called around with notebook and pen in hands wanting to know what we needed done around the house in terms of maintenance etc......so like a good soldier I told them what I wanted and they are planning to come around with the rest of the rugby boys to paint my roof and do a few fix-it jobs for me in the next couple of weeks, I'm looking forward to that. If I can figure out how to put pictures on here I'll take a few and put them on here, I wouldn't hold my breath though. Thats all for now, will get back to you all after the boys have worked their magic on my roof......

Brief update

Have had some difficulties since leaving hospital, but for the time being at least have managed to overcome these and I'm doing fine now. My biggest problem right now is coping with a modified diet. Mashed everything....thats what I'm eating at the moment. My "team" have taken me off foods that don't require a lot of chewing or that are too dry.....I am also going to be meeting with the specialist to discuss having a "peg" inserted. I can only explain this how I understand it so the words I use might not be right sorry. A "peg" is a tube that is inserted into your stomach that when required is used to feed someone who for whatever reason cannot take food orally anymore. "Liquid meals" (can't remember the name of the stuff) but for those Kiwi's who have seen the smoking add on tv with the guy who has a trachy????? (cant spell it) he has a peg and shows how to use it.....
Anyway, I don't actually need to use the peg right now but my brush with pneumonia left my "breathing capacity" in a pretty bad way. After a certain point surgeons will refuse to do the operation required to insert the"peg" so I'm having to consider having the operation earlier just in case! Thats how I understand it anyway. Other then that I'm algud. The warmer weather has made a huge difference, I can get outside, even manage to do some work at a snails pace, but it makes me feel useful again. Keeping myself occupied during the day is easier now that its warmer which is just as well because TV sucks at the moment.....same ol movies on Sky movies, no more rugby to watch on Sky sport, have watched just about every old Western and Kung Fu movie that was ever made....lol. Erin reckons if she has to sit through Lonesome Dove one more time she'll walk out.....whats wrong with Lonesome Dove, its a classic?
You probably won't hear from me again until the New Year, so I want to wish you all a safe and happy Christmas.
Bill

Hospital was the pits!

I hated being in hospital. Had a really bad experience in the ED and that just put me off the whole rest of my stay there. I get pretty quiet around strangers anyway, but when you're having things shoved up your nose and down your throat without really understanding what the purpose of everything is, you get "anti everything". For a while there I was my own worst enemy in hospital. Erin reckons I was tensing up everytime the curtain opened and some new face with these (pasted on smiles, well thats what I thought anyway) popped there head through with yet another breathing machine/excercise/drug, you name it I had it. So I was really fighting all the good work they were trying to do for me, at the time I didn't see it that way tho! It wasn't until I got home and we talked to our usual team of "experts" that we understood fully why what happened.....happened!

The reality was, all of the staff at the hospital were really nice, did things really well, but I had really bad anxiety attacks when ever anyone came near me. We weren't prepared for the treatment I received in ED neither were we prepared for certain questions that were asked but as was explained to me later, when you arrive in the ED you are treated for what you "present with" and I presented with a pretty bad case of pneumonia so they had to do some quick work to get me breathing properly. Not nice, not nice at all.........

But........it brought home the need for me to not be so bloody stubborn in the future. When I'm feeling crook, don't argue with Erin about going to the doctor to get some antibiotics. That could have saved me a whole world of problems, but nah.....I knew better, I can shake it, I'm tough.....eah you find out just how tough you really are when you're on a bed with some male nurse saying RELAX Mr Gardiner, as he's shoving a tube up my nose to suction phlegm from my lungs.....and no I didn't know how to spell "phlegm" my walking dictionary of a wife told me.
Short story is......PREVENTION....DONT LET IT GET THAT FAR....GO TO THE DR, GET YOURSELF ANTIBIOTICS and DON'T BE STUBBORN.

Had a whole lot of questions slung at us from all directions, words like incubation, entubation, resucitation, how's, what if's and all that jazz....we weren't prepared for those.........educate yourselves on the meaning of those words, because believe me we were both shocked at how serious things really were. Because I hadn't had any major medical issues since my diagnosis, we had become pretty blase about the whole thing.....then POW....down I went with pneumonia and it knocked me bad.

But I'm back, a hell of a lot wiser, a hell of a lot more wary, but still positive, although I have to admit it has taken me a real long time to get back to positive again.....I've had some other issues since I've been out of hospital, but I'll save that for my next post.

If there was one good thing about my hospital stay, it was that my mum just happened to be in Tauranga for something totally different, Erin managed to contact her while she was here, so she and my Aunty Anne, and my nephew Bobby made a point of calling in to the hospital as well, that was choice. I thought to myself, come on then you nurses I dare you to come and upset me while MY MUMMY and MY AUNTY are here.....hehehehehe!

Just while I'm on the subject of family....I need to say a huge thank you to My Aunty Pipi and her husband Stewart, who offered me a glimpse of some alternative/hollistic treatments in Auckland. Took my son and I into their home for the night and took us to see her Doctor......that was great and we all really appreciate what you did for me.....we had made arrangements for another appointment but for one reason or another I haven't been able to get there again. Pipi, if you get around to reading this......THANK YOU SO MUCH!

Until next time,
Bill

Quick update:

Hi,
Bill is home and recovering well. Just needs to bide his time and concentrate on himself instead of everyone and everything else for a while.

Erin

Hi, Erin here!

Hello folks, just letting you all know that Bill is in Hospital at the moment with pneumonia. He is doing well and responding to treatment well and according to the Dr's today should be well enough to come home tonight or tomorrow. (He has been there since Monday morning). Bit of a wake up call for our kids and me, yet another curve-ball in this disease for us to learn about. Unfortunately it seems we have to learn everything the hard way, but we'll file this away under "experience gained" and baton down the hatches for whatever gets thrown our way in the future.
Will keep you up to date while he is recovering. Thanks for caring everyone.
Erin

Everything is kapai!

Kia ora ano

I turned 50 last Sunday, 7th September which also just happens to be "Fathers Day". My family and I had discussed for some time leading up to "my big day" what I wanted to do. Finally decided to have a bbq breakfast at home, which was the easiest for me.....just a quiet one....YEAH RIGHT...

Got up that morning around 7.30ish and on my doorstep was one of my oldest mates with a whole rump steak and a 18pk of cans in his hands. 1/2 hour later 3 brothers who were all raised in the "house next door" to mine and who I consider my brothers too showed up and they all had the same idea as the first mate who arrived. Then came another 2 mates, by the time 10am rolled around things were getting pretty noisy.....I have to admit that this time with my mates was really quite special for me, before everyone else arrived you know......we hadn't all been together at the same place at once for almost 2 years.

Then everyone else started arriving, my neighbours (who just happen to be my cousins) and my wifes girlfriends to mention just a few. Needless to say, a few bottles were consumed, a few sausages were bbq'd and I had a bloody good time. I thought I was doing ok until I drove my wheelchair into the fence (lol) that must have looked pretty stupid. Have to admit I was never very good in a car either after I had had a few drinks.......not that I ever did anything stupid like DRIVE under the influence aye........mmmmmm.

There was my wife again working her butt off getting everything ready. She had been on at our sons for the past 3 weeks, don't forget it's your dads birthday on fathers day, I need you all here to help put the marquee up and do the cooking etc etc etc.......the only one who had an excuse for the day was Timoti he was playing rep rugby in Hamilton. Yes mum, we know mum, where else would we be mum................So they put the frame for the marquee up on Saturday which was good, and then we didn't see the lil rats until Sunday afternoon, Erin had to rely on our neighbour (cousins husband) and their son to put the cover over the marquee and they even cooked the bbq. Never mind , we got through ok and I had a good time.

As far as my disease goes, had a slight mishap a few weeks back on my powered wheelchair was coming down from my garage which is at the top of a slight incline to the house. My weak leg got caught under the chair and I slouched forward onto the control stick and couldn't get myself off it needless to say I had a graze or 2 but nothing worth worrying about now, it's actually quite funny thinking about it even if it hurt at the time.
I am feeling weaker but am not really sure if it's because now that I have the power chair, I am not using my walker anywhere near as much, nor am I using the manual wheelchair. I think this may be half the trouble, I'm getting lazy. I should be using the other aids more to keep my strength up....trouble is, I get really tired quick when I use them at least on the power chair I last a bit longer "strength wise" so I'm not so tired at the end of the day....I don't know, Im damned if I do & damned if I don't......BUT IM STILL POSITIVE......
Catch up again soon!