First Teal Tuesday!

Carlotta's support system is vast! You're wonderful and amazing! Thank you! 

T.E.A.L.= Take Early Action and Live   OR   Tell Every Amazing Lady

Awareness is going to going to be the key (as in all cancers) to help women know the signs, get early detection, and beat Ovarian Cancer. When we wear teal on Tuesdays, we open ourselves up to conversations about why we're wearing it. When we post pictures of ourselves wearing teal, we spread the awareness that there is another women's cancer, one they call 'the silent killer'. When we hashtag (#) our photos we connect with others who are battling and/or supporting. We invite you to join us each Tuesday! Wear TEAL!  

Now, we have some happy news to share! For the past five days, Carlotta has been feeling better! Some of the bloating has gone down! She has had less pain and is taking less pain medication! She feels God's healing, knowing He's heard your prayers.  She's sleeping better, able to eat a bit more, and is able to be up and moving (a little at time)!  I was speaking with her on the phone the other day and she was saying that too much laying around and watching t.v. had her agreeing with Rose, from the Golden Girls show.  

Picture it: Sophia is having chest pains and the girls talk as they wait for an ambulance.

Rose: “There shouldn’t be heart attacks. Or cancer, or anything like that. There should just be a certain age when you have to turn your life in, like a library book.”

LOL! She may have agreed to that statement, but truly believes that God is going to pull her out of this and she'll be here for us all in the years to come. From the beginning Carlotta has said, "God is good. All the time." Though she's had been in a lot of pain and was extremely uncomfortable, she believes this. This storm is just a short setback and she will continue to praise Him through it! In the meantime, please keep praying! Although she is feeling better, she's currently dealing with another side effect from the chemo we think.

She goes in for a biopsy on Wednesday the 8th. This will tell the Oncologist and medical staff exactly what type of Ovarian Cancer she has. They will be able to give her the specific chemo treatment for her type. As her mother had lost the battle to Ovarian Cancer years earlier, and by the tests and scans they've already done, her doctors have been almost 100% certain that it is Ovarian. Please be praying for the procedure and all the staff that will handle her biopsy. 

Side Effects Started

Carlotta's first round of chemo started Friday, September 26th. She had been told she could be there up to 8 hours, but with no complications that could have possibly arose, she and Glenn were home a couple hours earlier than anticipated. She was given a few new medications to take for the first few days after treatment. Unfortunately the side effects of those medications had her going in to the Emergency Room early Monday morning for severe pain and frequent urination. They administered her something for the pain as well as for the nausea she was experiencing due to the chemo. They ran a few blood tests and did a CT Scan to make sure there wasn't any new developments or infections. There weren't, and after her pain was at a tolerable level she was sent home with a prescription for a stronger pain medication. She spoke with her Oncologist and he said that unfortunately, due to the size of the masses, they are going to be pushing on her organs and causing pain. Pain management is all they can do until the chemo starts shrinking them down. Also, due to the pain and pressure, Carlotta is not getting much sleep. Please be praying for these specific things! We know you are and we are thankful!