I am newly diagnosed with leukemia and this is my story of how it all unfolded. May 8, 2019 was the day my life completely changed.
I noticed something seemed off
This all started after began experiencing symptoms such as dizziness, fatigue, bruising and blackouts. A few months prior I started a keto diet just to improve my overall health and ended up losing approximately 40 pounds in a matter of 6 months.
It was in the late days of April that I noticed something seemed off and I wasn’t feeling myself lately. I had taken my daughter, whom is special needs to Disneyland for a few days and when we came back we both had cold-like symptoms. I took us both to the urgent care that evening we came back into town and I don’t know what came over me but while being seen by the doctor I made sure to ask if they could please do some labs because I hadn’t been feeling well (this was on a Friday). Little did I know I was soon to be diagnosed with leukemia.
I was referred to an oncologist
That weekend, Sunday they called and said my labs were concerning and I should see my primary physician as soon as possible. Monday came around and I saw my doctor where she requested more labs to be done. We had made a follow up appointment on Thursday…. A few days passed and it was soon Wednesday, I was called to come in sooner. My doctor sat down with me and told me that my labs came back and it showed that I was producing a lot of white blood cells and it was rapidly increasing. I was referred to an oncologist to confirm my diagnosis and he too said I was showing early signs of leukemia.
Everything was moving so fast and next thing you know, I was admitted into the hospital, getting a picc line put into my left arm, doing a bone marrow biopsy and getting ready to begin my induction round of chemotherapy. Where did this all come from, what was happening, how had I just become newly diagnosed with leukemia?
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