Cushing's and Match Day and Other Celebrations

Hello all. It looks like this is the first post for 2012 for me! I've purposely delayed posting anything as I waited for more information to share about my Cushing's Syndrome workup.


The first photo above shows Gil and me at a restaurant in Ann Arbor recently. The second photo shows Adam and Evan holding their "envelopes" which contain their matches for their residency programs -- explained later in this post.


And now a health update: After months of tests and scans, it looks as if the adrenal tumor we knew I had (which had not been causing any trouble so were just watching it) is the lone cause of the excessive ACTH and cortisol levels in my body. I am scheduled for surgery to have the tumor removed -- laparoscopically hopefully -- on April 23rd. (I'm told the most of these tumors are benign and are very rarely cancerous so my fingers are crossed.)


I'm hoping that once the tumor is removed, and my metabolic and hormonal balance is restored, I can lose the extra 20 pounds I've gained over the past year due to the Cushing's and that I can soon start feeling like myself again!


Another highlight of our year was Match Day for medical residency programs for Adam and Evan which occurred last week. Adam will be doing his Dermatology residency at Harvard. Evan will be doing his Diagnostic Radiology residency at University of Michigan. Both must complete a year of internal medicine residency prior to entering their chosen fields. Both will be doing that year in LA -- Adam at Kaiser Permanente Los Angeles and Evan at Huntington Memorial Hospital in Pasadena.


Since Evan will be in Ann Arbor in another year (July 2013), Marika has made her decision to attend the University of Michigan medical school this fall. She is thrilled that she and Evan will be in the same city for a few years together.


I spent a long weekend in Chicago a few weeks ago with a couple of gardening girlfriends at the 2012 Chicago Flower and Garden Show on Navy Pier. It was inspiring and we came home with some good ideas and garden sculpture art. (I had been looking for years for "just the right" garden Buddha sculpture and found it from one of the vendors.)


I've joined a wonderful yoga studio in downtown Milford just a few miles from our home. I'm loving the level of activity and the meditational aspect of the practice and find I am going nearly five days a week. It's restful and focusing as those of you who have tried yoga already know.


Gil is doing well with his health. He would love to be exercising more -- who wouldn't? We continue to meet every couple of months with our Karmanos friends which is socially rewarding and reaffirming for the gratitude we feel about the lives we've been fortunate to live since the stem cell transplant -- almost 2-1/2 years ago.


Our next trip is to LA in May when both boys graduate from USC medical school. We have a big weekend of celebration planned.


We'll celebrate all the good fortune from the first half of this year.


Medical school graduation for the boys in May.
Marika's attendance at the University of Michigan's medical school.
Karen's 60th birthday.
Gil and Karen's 33rd wedding anniversary.
Adam and Laura's one year wedding anniversary.


And so it goes!


Hope all is well with you and yours.


karen.raff@gmail.com
Cell: (248) 830-0517


gil.raff@gmail.com
Cell: (248) 762-4652