Here's the latest:

"Dear Ones,

Pat is recovering well, according to her daughter Meredith, Drs are working on stimulating the nerves behind her right eye, so if we can also focus on that area in our distant healing that would be great. Yesterday, she was experiencing headache, about level 6. The great news is also that her speech is restored and she looks great. Per nurses suggestion, the more she rests the better she'll feel later... also, Dr. Shila Chokshi, the director of Integrative medicine at Tampa General Hospital and her assistant Kimberly Grace are also supporting her through the energy healing

Thank you again for your thoughts, prayers and healing for her and her family...

always with gratitude, love and trust in life...
achala"

Thank you all for your continued support.

I've missed some updates so I'll post the whole string here. If you'd like to skip the some of this lengthy message, the latest update is naturally at the top and the explanation of the exact form of cancer and prognosis is at the bottom. Thanks ya'll!

7/8/07:
"Good evening. We are so thankful to have another great progress update! Late this afternoon, mom went into a regular room! She is talking and eating up a storm. They think they will get her up walking tomorrow. AMAZING! She is still sleepy as you can imagine. We still need continued prayers for her right eye, the safe and steady absorption of air pockets in her head, and for her continued recovery to full health. The dr. told us not to freak out about the air pockets as they will naturally be absorbed by her body. In the meantime, the air can cause some strange things although not dangerous (we think this may be a cause of her vision loss in the right eye). She has shown some pupil response in the right eye, which is great.

I have one other need… do any of you know of a CNA (doesn’t have to be certified CNA) who would be willing to attend to mom overnight a few nights in the hospital? We need someone ASAP who can track her medicine doses, ask about the name and purpose of meds, and other needs that may arise. We are willing to pay the going rate. If you know of someone that might work out, please let me know.

Thank you again for all of your prayers for peacefulness and health. They are working!!

Love,
Mer

# # #

Good afternoon. I bring yet another great update! She is still in the ICU and we expect she will remain in ICU until Saturday.

All of the packing is out of her sinus and nasal cavities and she is breathing comfortably through her nose. Mom is alert enough to be her own advocate for whatever she needs. For example, she is talking and has asked that I antibacterialize my hands on several occasions. For those that know her, you will know that this is very normal behavior. Hee hee. We are so blessed that she is healing so well!!

She also has had her first headache. I know this doesn't seem like a good update, but you can only imagine that after such a surgery it would be completely normal to have a headache. She gets good meds to help with pain so she was quickly rid of her first headache. :-)

Your thoughts and prayers for us and for mom's return to full health are so helpful and supportive. In addition, it would be wonderful if you could pray specifically for the return of vision to her right eye. She has no vision currently in her right eye, but has perfect vision with her left (thankfully). They will be running more tests to determine what may be going on with her right eye. The surgeon mentioned that there was a lot of moving around of the right eye during tumor removal. He also mentioned that another patient who had similar surgery had his vision return after some time. We hope the same for mom.

Much love and thanks,
Mer

# # #

Thu 7/5/2007 7:33 AM

Good morning again! It is with great thankfulness that I deliver another update with GREAT NEWS! Mom had the breathing tube removed late yesterday afternoon, and that went very well. Her swelling is down significantly and she is not experiencing pain. She is very alert now and is able to make words with her lips. No real sound comes out yet as it will take a bit for her throat to recover from the tube. They are giving her speech therapy for this, and that is perfectly normal. She is still in ICU and I am not sure if she will be moved to a private room today, or if they will wait until tomorrow. The nurses are so great and attentive in the ICU (1 nurse to 2 patient ratio), mom said that she was not in a rush to move to a private room quite yet.

I hope everyone had an enjoyable 4th of July holiday. I cannot thank you enough for all of your support and prayers that you are sending our way. They are working wonders!

With love,
Mer

# # #

Good morning, everyone. We are thankful for some great news! This morning at about 5:30 mom has opened her eyes and is in the transition to a full awakened state. She is still really groggy, but we ask regularly if she is comfortable and she nods yes. We ask regularly if she is in any pain, and she nods no. So everything is moving along better than normal after a surgery of this magnitude. Everyone including mom is doing great! Although she is and has been breathing fully on her own since yesterday morning, she is getting some help keeping her airway clear with a tube that goes into her mouth. We believe that this will be removed today upon her becoming more alert so she can cough as needed. She will continue this journey with the excellent staff in the Neuro ICU.

I will update again at this next significant milestone.

Thank you SOOOO much for all of your thoughts and prayers. Please continue to do so. I send love and gratitude to all of you, our wonderful friends and family.

Love,
Mer

# # #

July 02, 2007 6:33 PM

Latest update: Mom is in ICU and they are keeping her asleep until morning. All went well. Thanks for your thoughts and prayers.

Love,
Mer

# # #

July 02, 2007 2:56 PM

Hi friends. So far so good per the surgeon. A few more hours to go. I'll email again when I can.

Love,
Mer

# # #

Hello friends and family. I thank you all for your continued thoughts and prayers for the health of my mom, Pat Stone. Please keep ‘em coming! Monday at 7am eastern begins her surgery. It can last from 6-9 hours. I will email everyone as soon as I can get to a computer with updates. I hope this will be early evening on Monday. I will also send periodic updates at significant milestones in her treatment and recovery.

Her prognosis is excellent. With several weeks of surgery recovery, and a few more weeks of radiation after that, she will be the picture of health. Your thoughts and prayers for wellness and peacefulness are so appreciated. Jim and I, my mom and dad, and my mammaw are in awe at the love and support we have received from all of you. We are blessed beyond words.

Much love,
Mer and family

Here is a full description of her condition for those of you who are interested in more information:

Her form of cancer is rare; therefore the information you find online will vary greatly. This means that most professionals have some difference of experience and opinion. The experts at Moffitt are some of the best in the WORLD and have given us every indication that her prognosis is excellent. The name of the cancer is olfactory neuroblastoma (aka Esthesioneuroblastoma). Mom’s tumor is confined to her nasal and sinus cavities. This makes for an excellent prognosis when treated with surgery and radiation. She will have very little visible/noticeable scarring from the surgery. Surgical complications are rare. Her long-term plan is to use diet, exercise, light sun exposure, enjoyment of life, extensive gardening J, and many other well-known complementary treatments to ensure she remains healthy. This will be confirmed through ongoing regular check-ups."

Thanks for all you're doing for Pat and her family.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: Cris,

Okay Everyone -- Here's a new challenge! You can see there's an entire network of friends and family support. I'm getting updates from lots of different people.

"Hello Quantum Touch friends,

I had the opportunity to speak with Achala early this afternoon (Tuesday) and receive an update on Pat’s condition. I will relay it to you as best I can. Tony[husband], Meredith[daughter], Maribet[QT practitioner], and Achala[QT practitioner] have been giving Pat constant love and support at the hospital over the last week. We are grateful for the positive encouragement from the doctors and nurses who have been providing such wonderful care.

The monitoring devices picked up an irregular heart rate – this condition seemed to worsen during the nighttime. Medication to regulate the heart rhythm did have a positive affect and Pat felt the improvement and had more energy. The doctors felt that this may have been a condition that Pat has had and that regulating the heart would only hasten her recovery. This afternoon she had surgery for a pacemaker. It is expected that she will be in Cardiac ICU overnight and be moved to a private room as soon as possible.

Please continue sending all of the love, prayers, and distant healing for Pat. Please continue to focus on the right eye and a healthy heart so that her body may continue to find harmony, balance, and a complete recovery.

Love and blessings to all,

Marcia"

Sending to (((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((Pat))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))and (((((((((((((((((((((((((Family and Friends))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))
Light, Peace and Loving Healing Energy,
Cindysue

Thank you Cindysue. We appreciate you.

Cris,

I will continue to have Pat on my daily treatment list.

Thank you for doing such a great job of keeping us updated.

Blessings and love

Hi Mhari! Thank you!

Still sending.....

((((((((((((((((((((((((PAT))))))))))))))))

Love Mo.xx

Thank you Mo. Pat will be so thrilled to learn of all the support she's getting here.

Cris,

I finished a session with Pat and just had to share. There was so much love and joy radiating from her I could tell she was involved with QT. She took the energy well. At the end of the session, I was the one smiling like a Cheshire cat from the energy shared.

Love and blessings

That's our Pat, Mhari!

Here's a July 13 update from yet another of her admirers:

"To QT friends,

What a difference in Pat since my previous visit of July 6!. She was alert, conversant, though a little tired as it was mid-afternoon. During the visit, she was moved to a private room just two doors down the hall, which will be much quieter. The Rehab. nurse visited for intake of her anticipated move to TGH Rehab. on Monday. Likely she will receive Physical and Occupational therapies. Christina [QT Practitioner, Pat's workshop assistant & Occupational Therapist] keeps a close eye on her OT status, according to Pat. Don't know status of the Speech Eval, but Pat's speech is articulate and pragmatic. She expressed her gratitude for all the support everyone has been giving her.

Love and blessings to each of you, Ann [QT Practitioner]"

Yet another update. It's like I'm there! This from Pat's daughter:

"Hi again! More great updates from TGH!!! We are delighted that mom is now in a private room at Tampa General. She has had the best 2 days yet as of yesterday and today. The doctors say that she will be here until Monday, at which time she will be discharged from TGH and admitted to the rehab facility next door to the hospital. I suspect she will be there for 3-5 days getting occupational and physical therapy to fully regain her strength. She is up and about once a day for a few hours. She walked to the sofa in her room and sat in the recliner for a while. She still has some headaches for which she takes two Tylenol and then takes a little nappy.

I am also pleased to report that we have had a wonderful caregiver named Leeza who stays with her from 7:30pm to 7:30am. Last night was her first night and she is very nice and very helpful to mom. It is such a wonderful relief for us to have her to help us with the night shift. We hope that Leeza will be able to follow us to rehab, and then to my mom’s house when she finishes rehab.

I believe that it is all of your wonderful prayers that brought us Leeza and have carried us successfully though mom’s surgery and healing. We cannot thank you enough for your continued prayers for return of vision to her right eye, continued absorption of air pockets, return of strength, and her overall return to full health.

With love and gratitude,
Mer"

Thank you for your updates Cris, it's wonderful to hear Pat is recovering so well. Still sending ...
(((((((((((((PAT)))))))))))))))

It's beginning to be more a Healing Story than a Healing Request. Not quite, but almost there.

Here's what I learned earlier this week:

"Good morning! I have more great news! Mom has been released from the hospital and has been admitted into the TGH Rehab Center. She arrived to rehab late evening on Monday. Yesterday she had a busy schedule; 2 occupation therapy sessions, 2 physical therapy sessions, an evaluation meeting with the staff neurophychologist, a meeting with the rehab admissions representative, and a speech/memory evaluation with a speech language pathologist. She passed her psych, speech and memory tests with flying colors; no more sessions needed. She walks by herself with only the assistance of a walker, and a spotter to make sure she doesn’t fall. She got dressed with only minimal assistance too! As you can imagine, my mom was pooped by last night so she slept very well. J We suspect she will be in rehab for a couple of weeks, but we will know more by Tuesday of next week. She is in Room [NNN] bed [N] of the TGH Rehab Center. She has a gorgeous view!

We are SO thankful for each of your prayers, as mom is recovering so beautifully. Your continued thoughts and prayers for return of healthy functioning of her digestive tract, return of vision to her right eye, and her return to overall full health are appreciated and welcome.

Much love,
Mer"