Hey Everyone,

Thanks for coming back to my blog and keeping up with what’s happening on the CDG Pressing on battle.

I confess that although I believe that I will prevail thru this disease I get pretty tired of the mundaneness of the fight.  Each day is filled with roughly 4 hours of actively fighting the disease homeopathically.  Don’t get me wrong I believe that everything we are doing to fight this disease sans the heavy drugs is the best way to go.  I feel good, my energy is good, and darn it I look pretty good….. :-).

BTW, did I mention that I am now “retired”?  Yes, that’s right.  Long term disability is the new normal for this dude.  In order to fight the disease full time I figured I had better give up my 60 hour work weeks.  They really are not conducive to trying to get healthy.  I remember not too long ago Terry and I were having a little spat.  I was all wound up about some work obligations and she was following me around the house firmly reminding me to call this doctor and remember that apointment until I had finally reached the end of my rope.  I remember telling Terry, “what do you want from me? I am trying to do my job and trying to get all these other things done regarding my doctoring.” Her rebuttal truly shook me and woke me up.  She plainly and clearly responded back to me, “I want you to fight for you life like I am doing.”  This was a tiny weenie bit of a wake up call.  (that’s a major understatement) So, after much thought and prayer I decided to get serious about getting back to health again.  I decided to pursue long term disability so that I could spend all of my energy on getting healthy.

Some folks might feel anxiety or fear about leaving such a great job.  But, our God assures me that he has my back.  In Psalm 112:6-8 we are told, “For (the man who fears the Lord) will never be upended; others will always remember one who is just.  He does not fear bad news.  He is confident; he trusts in the Lord. His resolve is firm; he will not succumb to fear before he looks in triumph on his enemies.”  I truly believe that God the Father will provide for all our needs and that he has been with me and my family through the many challenges and trials we have faced since the disease reared it’s ugly face two years ago after 5 years of remission.

So, now that I have the “retired” part out of the way I can bring you up to date regarding my recent trips to “Cyber Knife” hotel.  It turns out I have 6 lytic lesions.  That’s greek for cancer in certain bones.  I have one lytic lesion in my right and left lung rib each and 4 lesions in my back mostly near or on the spine.  The reason we had to make 5 trips to the Cyber Knife hotel was that the nasty C decided to land on my C-1 vertebrae.  Yea, that’s the one that keeps your head attached to your spine.  I think I may have mentioned this in my last blog.  Anyway, it was decided the best course of action would be to use the Cyber Knife to radiate the C-1 area.  We had to do five treatments which is why I call it the Cyber Knife hotel—-it seemed like I lived there for 2 weeks.  Now, after 5 treatments my neck is still stiff but not as much as before AND I believe we stopped the C from damaging any more of my C-1 vertebrae.  The next course of action will be to figure out how to eliminate the other lesions naturally.  We are looking into treatment options as we speak.

If you or a friend or a family member is dealing with tough stuff such as this—whether it’s cancer, drugs, alcohol, mental illness, etc., I would encourage you to look to God’s word to give you comfort and confidence.  I don’t know what I would do if I didn’t have scripture and God’s promises to lean on daily.  I especially love Psalm 91:14-16, The Lord says, “If you love me and truly know who I am.  I will rescue you and keep you safe.  When you are in trouble, call out to me.  I will answer and be there to protect and honor you.  You will live a long life and see my saving power.”  I know that I am healed.  It’s just a matter of whether that’s here on earth or in Heaven.

Wishing you all a joyful Christmas.  One filled with joy, happiness, and great family memories.

Be blessed and a blessing to others this Christmas Season!!

All the best,

Craig, aka Papa G