They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old:Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.At the going down of the sun and in the morning,We will remember them.Laurence Binyon, Ode of Remembrance An early start on the 25th of April for Anzac Day, and the dawn service. It’s a beautiful … Continue reading Anzac Day & Fairbridge →

The MSGym founder, who fronts all of their videos, talks about ‘the neural edge’. It’s the point at which an MS person just can’t process any more,  and has to retreat to their safe place. That might be home, it may be bed, sleep … whatever it takes, for as long as it takes to … Continue reading The neural edge & spoons →

Six months seems like a milestone. Six months since my stem cell transfusion, six months where I feel that I have a future. The treatment stops progression, and the ongoing improvements I am seeing are an incredible bonus. Sitting on the plane coming back from Melbourne, I started considering the next 6 months and what … Continue reading The last 6 months, the next 6 months →

I am sitting on the plane, blissfully upgraded to business class with frequent flier points, flying back to Perth after a weekend in Melbourne. Well, I’m drafting this blog post but will upload it when I get home as this plane isn’t wifi enabled. There was an immediate flash of annoyance then I reminded myself … Continue reading Melbourne & Escher →

Just a quick update; my blood results are back and they are slightly lower, after going back up. If you haven't been following the progress, here's a summary; September 18, due to the chemo therapy, they dropped to extremely low white cell counts (WCC)over a few months, they climbed to close to normalin February, they … Continue reading Rhituximab after-effects on blood counts →

Well, its 6 months today since I received my stem cells, back into a body with a dead immune system with the expectation ( but no certainty) that the progression of my MS would be halted, and the hope that I'd see improvements. EDIT; my immune system was heavily suppressed but would have recovered very … Continue reading 6 months today →

One of my favourite places, after a 3km paddle, watching the sun set and the colours change as dusk fell. Followed by a barbecue with a couple of beers, watching the footy in a big screen, with people I've known for years. Small moments count for so much. My paddling is gradually getting better, my … Continue reading A favourite place →

I was going to write some burbling post, about how beautiful Fremantle is at the moment, and seeing the best in all circumstances, and being grateful for the good times to carry us through the bad times. But .. Estimated 49 dead this evening, shot while worshipping peacefully in two mosques, in Christchurch in the … Continue reading A tragedy in NZ →

I suspect I am still slightly neutropenic, so will keep avoiding crowds, but my latest tests came back with a step change improvement. My heamatologist put me on the same injections as I had in Moscow. These injections stimulate the bone marrow to produce more stem cells, which helps reboot the immune system. This minor … Continue reading Blood results better →

And ... I'm neutropenic again ! My blood test at the end of last week showed that my white blood cell count and neutrophil count have plummeted down. This is not completely surprising, and according to my heamatologist, a known effect approximately four to five months after Rituximab, one of the drugs I had in … Continue reading Neutropenic again →