Buongiorno! This is Linda, Lauren’s Mama and I am happy to share that Lauren has been discharged from the Transplant Unit at Careggi Hospital! The Doctors have been pleased with her overall progress, her counts have been in the ranges they need to be and she is now free to return to our Casa. This… Continue reading Discharge Day
Ciao! This is Lauren’s Mom, Linda. I am happy to share that Lauren is one step further on her Transplant journey. She was able to leave her hospital room and come out of “isolation”. She is no longer on IV nourishment or a catheter. She was able to take two walks down the halls of the… Continue reading Lauren is out of Isolation!
It’s taken me a few weeks to feel ready to write about isolation. It is has been both parts expected and completely, totally unexpected. There have been days that have been so calm and almost ‘easy’ that then the opposing face-on-the floor (or more literally the toilet) days have been almost like whiplash. The first… Continue reading Isolation: Life from the Inside
“Linda e il suo partner di lavoro, Tina” = “Linda and her work partner, Tina” Buongiorno! This is Lauren’s Mom, Linda, sharing another major part of our day-to-day life while Lauren is in isolation. Let me introduce you to my working partner, and friend, “Lagostina,” or “Tina.” She has been “under a lot of pressure” to make… Continue reading Meet “Tina”
Ciao from Firenze! This is Lauren’s Mom, Linda, writing the next several posts while Lauren is in isolation. I will keep you up to date on her progress and try my best to paint a picture of what this transplant experience is like. I will start with the “Casa AIL” that we are staying at. … Continue reading Our Italian Casa
The countdown is on…3 weeks of isolation starts today! BEAM chemo starts tomorrow… Some rules of isolation: 3 pumps of soap per hand wash. Booties and full scrubs/masks, on all nurses and my one visitor. Clothes are stored in individual plastic bags. I don’t leave room. 😁 I have a snack drawer by my bed!… Continue reading Greetings from Isolation
Ciao! Greetings from Sicily! It is unbelievable to think that we have been walking around the island of Sicily. It is beautiful and peaceful at the sea. Our family reunion time is coming to an end. Tonight Gino, Joey and I take the train back to Florence to spend Thursday and Friday with Lauren. Lauren will be admitted to the hospital and… Continue reading Preparing for Isolation
Ciao Family and Friends! We just got back to our Casa last night. ‘Tired’ doesn’t even begin to describe how I was feeling after spending last weekend with my family down in Valenzano (in the provence of Bari). It was incredible to see and meet so much of my family I didn’t even know I… Continue reading To be Italian
While Lauren is in-between rounds of chemo, she and her parents had the opportunity to connect with relatives, specifically Gino’s Aunt (Zia) Carolina who is 94 years old. Below are pictures and a message from Linda on 9/15: This is the wonderful dinner we finished with our family! Zia (Aunt) Carolina is 94 years old… Continue reading One Big Happy Family Reunion
Per a message from Linda: We are here! Long plane ride and it was hard to sleep in the sitting position…..I slept better on plane from Amsterdam to Florence. Downtown Florence is full of people who drive crazy! Afraid to cross the street…beautiful architecture and all kinds of people running around! Lauren made a wonderful… Continue reading Mom and Dad Made it to Italy
MS Mamma 