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Good-bye
Hospital, Hello Home You're probably looking forward to an exciting reunion with your family at home. Don't worry if you feel butterflies in your stomach about leaving, especially if the BMT unit has been your home for a long time. Once you're back home, you'll probably forget you were even nervous. Before you leave the hospital, you might want to take pictures of yourself with the hospital staff. Keep them posted on your recovery through photos and letters-knowing you're doing well is their greatest reward. Clinic Visits Even after your discharge, your recovery is not yet complete—your bone marrow is still not ready to meet the requirements of daily life. You’ll have to make frequent trips back to your hospital’s transplant clinic so doctors can examine you and treat any problems that may arise. (If you live far from your hospital, you’ll probably stay in a nearby hotel or Ronald McDonald House before going home so you can return to the clinic easily. After a few weeks, you’ll be able to go to a clinic closer to your house.) At first, you’ll have to visit the clinic daily or every other day. The time between your visits will gradually increase. Eventually you’ll have checkups just once or twice a month, then once or twice a year. Occasionally patients need to return to the hospital for short stays if serious problems develop. |
Healing
at Home Once you’re home, it may take several months before you’re ready to return to normal activities. Keep reaching for your goals, but also give yourself time to heal. At first you’ll have to avoid crowded indoor places like malls, movie theaters, and churches or synagogues. You may be able to visit these places when fewer people are there—weekday mornings instead of weekend afternoons, for example. Your restrictions may be different than those of other kids who had their transplant the same time as you. You’re recovering at different rates—try to be patient. For a while, you’ll probably have lots of medications to take. To keep track of them, make a chart showing how much of each you need and what time you should take it. It’s important not to miss |