I don’t much remember what life with Lilly was like before she got so sick with an adverse rabies vaccine reaction called meningoencephalomyelitis in January 2012. Taking care of her fills my days. Our world has gotten quite small, but we feel joy at even the tiniest “normal” thing — such as playing fetch. Here, friends, is a little video update.
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It’s official. I’ve fallen out of the habit of blogging. It’s complicated. Today, for example, my plans to finish work early so that I could clean my house (which is getting scary) got slaughtered by imminent, unexpected work demands from 3 different clients. Since it looks like I’ll be cleaning all evening, I’m trying to make some space in my brain to write a real update about Lilly. Let’s see how it goes.
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The headline is that Lilly is fine, but here is a recap of how she gave me a BIG scare on Wednesday.
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It has been a ridiculous week in Lilly Town. Here is a quick recap of our efforts to help Lilly recover from a terrible bladder infection. It stems from her symptoms and treatment for rabies vaccine-induced brain and spinal cord inflammation. We are now 13 months into this saga.
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If you’d asked me in January 2012 when Lilly first suffered an adverse rabies vaccine reaction if she would survive, I would have said, “Probably.” If you’d asked me the same question in August 2012, when Lilly’s brain inflammation returned so severely, I would have said, “Probably not.” Now? The answer is that I simply don’t know, but I am hopeful.
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After Lilly’s massive vaccine-induced brain inflammation relapse in August 2012, we began again to rebuild her strength and her life. This time, we added a chemo drug called cytarabine … in addition to all the other immune-suppressant and seizure drugs. Lilly gets 4 injections over 2 days every three weeks. She will have her 8th cycle of chemo this coming weekend. At this point, we suspect she may need these injections for the rest of her life — however long that is.
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Over three days in early August 2012, Lilly went from a good, steady recovery to near death. Tired one day. Wobbly the next. Bordering on coma the next. Her adverse rabies vaccine reaction (massive brain inflammation) had returned with a vengeance. It had been 6 weeks since our 4th attempt to wean Lilly’s steroids. She had a few smaller setbacks when we lowered her steroid dose in the spring, but nothing compared to this total collapse.
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In part 2 of our year in review, you can see how well and how quickly Lilly’s first recovery went. Remember, at this point we assume Lilly will get better steadily and fully recover. Check out these pictures and video, and you’ll see why we were lulled into a sense of security.
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Wednesday, January 23, 2013, marks the one year anniversary of the rabies vaccine that nearly killed Lilly, our canine heroine. This whole week, we will review the year in pictures (and video). It’s a great opportunity to see how far we’ve come. It’s a great chance for those new to our story to catch up. Today, photos from the first hospitalization.
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It was easier to have Silly Lilly Saturdays (or any day) when the weather was warm because we could be outside all day. Now, it’s a bit more challenging. After taking off 12 glorious days for the holidays, I noticed a distinct difference between having Lilly with me and Lilly having me with her.
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We’re back. After 12 glorious days “off,” Lilly and I find ourselves nearly ready to begin a new year. We spent 7 of those 12 days home all day in a binge of Silly Lilly Whatever Days. We slept. We walked. We hung out. We were grateful. We’ve seen a few blips since our last regular reports, but all in all … Lilly is steady and doing well 21 weeks since her massive vaccine-induced brain inflammation relapse.
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Overrun with gratitude are we that Lilly is alive to celebrate Thanksgiving, when so many times this year that goal looked impossible. We made a little meme to celebrate. Amid whatever struggles you face may you find peace in even the smallest reason for gratitude.
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We’re dog tired here at Chez Champion of My Heart. About 10 months into this medical saga with Lilly’s rabies vaccine-induced meningoencephalomyelitis (brain inflammation). Between being incontinent (both ways) and fussy at night, we haven’t gotten a good night’s sleep in a long time. So, this week, we’re trying yet another strategy.
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I learned an important lesson last Friday. Hiking with a cat is quite a bit different from hiking with a dog. It’s a lot slower process, and it shocks the heck out of people you encounter on the trails. Meet our friend BUG … the adventurous kitty from Wisconsin.
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Last weekend, Lilly got her 3rd cycle of cytarabine injections (4 sub-q injections over 2 days). She handles it like a champ. Honestly, other than the fact that everything about her reeks of medications, you’d never know she was getting pretty aggressive treatment for rabies vaccine-induced meningoencephalomyelitis (brain inflammation). This week, we saw some improvements.
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