Yi Trying to Sleep Video
All the time while Yi is trying to fall asleep, I try to ask him if he is asleep. I think it is hilarious.
Bears Vs. Seattle Seahawks Video
While I was in Portland we found out that the Chicago Bears were going to be playing against the Seattle Seahawks. Seattle is only a few hours from Portland so Carrie, Sara, Bahar, & I decided to go show some support for the Chicago Bears. So we found tickets, drove up to Seattle and had an awesome time.
All the fans in Seattle were crazy. Everywhere we went the fan heckled you, but that didn’t work because we won! Which is one of the few wins that the Chicago Bears had in the 2009 season.
Netty Pot Video/February 2010 Update
Just a short & quick update for February 2010. All the tumors are stable!! One grew about 5%, but that is still considered stable!! WOO HOO!! Keep up your Prayers! Thank you Jesus!
Dad’s Retirement Appreciation Luncheon
In December of ‘09 my Dad invited me to fly down to Kansas City and attend his retirement appreciation luncheon. I’m very proud of my Dad for working over 40 plus years! He has done a lot and has had a lot of ups and downs. However he did it successfully while raising me and taking care of my mom. Read more
December 2009 Update
For the past 6 weeks I have been on two chemo-therapies. Chemo R1507 IV therapy every two weeks for about an hour a session & Nexvar oral chemo everyday.
On December 22 I got my results from my CT Scan. Read more
November 2009 Update
As you know I have been MIA from the computer lately and I haven’t updated at all. No videos or posts. I’m sorry about that, but I have been updating a lot of pictures. Especially from my recent trip to Portland, OR. Portland was awesome and I hope to post some information of my trip and other things that I have been doing these last few months.
So, during the summer I was taking a clinical trial oral chemotherapy. After taking that chemo everyday for 6 weeks the Dr.’s saw that the tumors were still growing. Although they did have another trial open for me. They called me the day before I left for Portland and told me to come in and sign the paper work to start another clinical trial.
The trial is 2 chemotherapies. The 1st one is an iv chemotherapy that is an insulin growth factor. The 2nd chemotherapy is just like the oral chemo that I took during the summer. I have been looking for an insulin growth factor since May of 2008. It has been hard to find this chemotherapy because of the limited amount of people who can been on this trial. Finally, I’m on the insulin growth factor chemo. Dr. Rushing from Indiana University has been talking about this chemo for a long time. I’m sure he is just as glad that I’m on this too.
Chemotherapy schedule: IV chemo every 2 weeks at the University of Chicago. Oral chemotherapy taken twice daily.
I’m not really sure how long I will be on this, but I’m just happy that the University of Chicago has given me this opportunity. They have been extremely helpful on getting me the treatment that I need on a timely basis.
Just one step closer to killing these tumors!
Last Day in Costa Rica
Our last day consisted of a nice relaxing day. We traveled to a town called Buena Vista which is in the mountains/volcanoes. We went to a area of natural hot springs. Thad and Severus found a wild Boar and decided to pet it. Then every else had to do it too. Funny wild Boar really enjoyed it.We took advance of the natural surroundings and took a tractor ride to the springs.
While at the springs we applied mud all over our bodies. When you are at the springs you shower of the mud with cold water, then you bath into 2 different hot pools. Sorry, I forgot to warn you about some of the pictures. Some of them maybe too sexy for you to handle.
We enjoyed the time so much we all contributed $30 total for each of us to receive a 20min massage from a blind woman.(not at the same time)
After the hot springs we went to happy hour to one of Thad & Jodi’s favorite places because the view was so beautiful. Then we took a small hike down to the beach while the sun was going down. Then, this happened:
Secret Beach in Costa Rica
One day we wanted to have a beach day. Thad & Jodi knew of a beach called the “secret beach”. Basically no one really walks to it because it is a good hike up and down some hills.
So Jodi & Bahar decided to walk from the house to the secret beach.
Thad & I drove the car to the beach because we had all the equipment for food and water. It was still a good hike for us with our equipment.
We set up camp and had some cactus and some left over food of the Mahi Mahi that we caught.
This was one of my favorite places to go because there was NO ONE on the beach and there was NO trash on the beach too. There were a ton of hermit crabs everywhere! I had a good time catching them plus I went on my own little adventures on the volcanic rocks that were on the shore. I was just walking around on the rocks and trying to catch crabs to eat, but that didn’t work out.
Thad driving us in Costa Rica from nickschmidt on Vimeo.
August 2009 Update
Just after the trip to Costa Rica and before the 197 mile CowaLUNGa bike ride I was going to have chemo in Louisville. I have been going to Louisville for over a year and I was pretty sure I was going to go, so I bought airline tickets for my next 2 sessions. Usually they have patients only do 4-6 round of that type of chemo. I have done way, way more than that, probably around 17 rounds.
Well I had an MRI in Chicago because I was going to leave the next day for Louisville. I brought up my old scanned images for a pathologist compare.
Turns out, there was a new tumor by/in my liver. To be honest, I was a little upset. Bahar & I left everything at her house and walked about 8 miles on the lakeshore after we received the news. After the walk, I was fine and I talked to my Dad & BJ to give them the news.
The next thing was to call up Dr. Rushing in Indy to see what he thought. He wanted me to do an insulin growth factor receptor chemo. Well I remembered a doctor at the University of Chicago, Dr. Undevia that actually was doing the hands on study for the insulin growth factor. So I called him up and he called me that day or the very next day.
He told me that he may have a drug that is even better than the insulin growth factor and the chemotherapy was in a pill form. I immediately said, “I love you”. I was really excited to hear a oral/pill form chemotherapy!
I met with him and he told me that the insulin growth factor study is closed at the time and maybe open again back in September. There is no way that I could wait until September for chemo. Then he told me about a new study that he is “excited” about. The oral drug is called Bravanib. It’s just like the Yondelis in Louisville, the drug tries to cut off the blood going to the tumors. But this drug was in a pill form and I would take 4 pills a day.
On August 11, 2009 I started daily taking the Bravanib pills. I have to take the pills in the morning so I can feel any of the side effects and write them down in my diary. Yes, I have a diary of when I took the pills and the side effects.
The first few days, I was hazy (I call it “drunk”) for about an hour or less. Then I feel perfectly normal. A lot of people who have been on this drug have felt tired. I am not tired at all, I feel perfectly fine.
I actually started to get back in the water at Northwestern University. I have been swimming alone and a daily basis. I’m planning on racing the 2.5k for Big Shoulders on September 12, 2009. I have never swum anything that long (2.5k converts into 1.55miles.) before, but I know I can do it no problem. As long as all my wounds are healed up from the old and new port. I do have a stitch still hanging outside my new port, but no infection. I would like to get it covered before I jump in Lake Michigan.
I will be posting on Teamschmult.com more events that I plan to do soon. (e.g. City Chase on August 22, 2009).
It looks like I’m just going to have to kill these tumors by working out and getting back into shape, however I KNOW these pills are going to work too. Thank you JESUS! And God, well same thing.. and everyone who still prays for me, well just everyone THANK YOU!
Costa Rica Deep Sea Fishing
While we were walking on the beach we met one of the chef’s at the Four Season hotel. He owned a boat and had a mate & captain that could take us out for some deep sea fishing.
He would provide food, drinks, bait, and equipment for everyone. He even smoke of the meat if we wanted.
The next morning we met the chef, the captain, & mate at the beach and took the boat out for a 5 hour fishing battle. We drove the boat North close to the Nicaragua border in a town called Murcielago. We fished just off the No name Mountains.
The water was blue as can be, the water was a little ruff, and it was awesome to see the water crashing against the mountains. However some people didn’t like the ride that much.
Everyone on the boat was sea sick, but Thad & I. We had a great time fishing, but we made Jodi & Bahar get up and move around to stop the sea sickness. (No I don’t have any video of people throwing up.)
We caught a total of 10 Mahi Mahi!!! Bahar, Jodi, Thad & I were the only people that fished. As you can see in the picture we enjoyed our catch. Plus we didn’t have enough hands to hold up all the fish, 2 of the fish are in the cooler behind us.
It was an amazing time. We saw dolphins and turtles. We hoped to see a Whale shark, but this time we didn’t see any.
After we got on land, a local person filleted all our meat for us and he kept 3 of the little fish for his labor payment. We probably took back to Thad’s house about 30+lbs of Mahi Mahi.
And of course we ate it for days!!
Deep Sea Fishing in Costa Rica from nickschmidt on Vimeo.
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