Guest guest Posted October 7, 2003 Report Share Posted October 7, 2003 ---Hi Laurie: Do you have two bedrooms? If you do, have hubbie room with the kids making a tent with pillows etc....fun for them. If you don't have kids then have him sleep in the livingroom and you set up in the bedroom. The best solution would be to go to hotel for a few days whether or not they want you to. You need to make that decision in the best interests of all. It will be alright, don't panic. Hope this helped a little. Elaine In Thyca , " laurie leo " wrote: > hi all...this is such a great place for ideas, i was wondering if you > all might have one on this: > we sold our house a few months ago because we are building one. in the > interim, there were construction problems and long story short: we > are STILL in the apartment waiting for my house to be done (feb/march > next year). ALL of my friends have small children/infants or are > pregnant. i have NO family and my in-laws live about 3 hours away. > the hospital told me to sequester myself in the basement (i don't have > one) or stay away from the family after RAI (we have no extra > room!!!). i can't stay in a hotel (obviously they don't want me) and i > don't know where to go. i called the american cancer society in this > area and they had limited ideas. any input would be helpful...if it > were warmer, i would pitch a tent in the backyard!! > laurie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted October 7, 2003 Report Share Posted October 7, 2003 thanks for the thought...i do have kids (4 & 9) and they already share a bedroom! also, we only have 1 bathroom and i would like to err on the side of caution because of the ages of my kids. the hotel idea is pretty much nixed because they will wonder why i won't allow my linens to be laundered with the rest of the hotels and i have a moral obligation to tell them what's going on... i'm keeping that thinking cap on though... L Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted October 7, 2003 Report Share Posted October 7, 2003 elaine Majewski wrote: > The best solution would be to go to a hotel > for a few days whether or not they want you to. Sorry, I really think this is bad advice. As a radioactive person, staying in a hotel will put untold numbers of people (in unknown states of health & immunity) at risk, without the benefit of knowing that they should be taking any precautions. This at-home isolation is often a dilemma. If you really have a very small space, your husband can stay in a hotel (or with friends) for a few days, or sleep on the sofa. There are a lot of links from the archives http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Thyca/message/33681 including members' experiences and how they handled it. Together, we can all help you come up with a solution that will keep your husband - and the general public - safe from your radioactive self. NYC Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted October 7, 2003 Report Share Posted October 7, 2003 Take your own linens to the hotel. Strip their linens off and leave them in the corner. Do not use their bedspread. Tell them that you want no towel or linen service for the one or two nights you will be there. Most hotels are now very happy to accommodate that request. If you want to be " stealth* about it, just pull your linens off in the morning, fold them up and put theirs back on. Same with the towels. That way they won't worry that there is something weird going on and you won't have to tell them anything. Lot's of housecleaning for you, but it seems like you would pretty much have to do that at home too. Also, you could bring your own sponge and cleaner for the bathroom. Double flush and double rinse the tubs. Nothing more than you would do in your home. I think that would work. Woodbridge, VA Dx'd 8/95, 1 cm nodule w/multifocal papillary. RAI 30 mci (11/95), RAI 150 mci (6/96), RAI 150 (6/97). Clean scan 1998. Clean Thyrogen scan 2000. Thyrogen Scan on July 18, 2003--Clean! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted October 7, 2003 Report Share Posted October 7, 2003 Hi, Laurie, Loved the tent idea, but... How about having your kids go on vacation to grandma's? (I stayed home during my husband's isolation but I sent my 2 to my mom's for several days.) Could your family stay in a hotel? (Expensive alternative, I know, but better for all concerned, healthwise.) Would any friends take your kids? Maybe you could alternate with a few families if it's too much of an imposition on one family. (I know my kids will give anything for a sleepover!) I know it's sometimes hard to ask others for help, but it makes people feel good to lend a hand in situations like these. Give them a chance to feel good! ;-) ---Anne Husband is the thycan; pap w/foll var; RAIx4. > hi all...this is such a great place for ideas, i was wondering if you > all might have one on this: > we sold our house a few months ago because we are building one. in the > interim, there were construction problems and long story short: we > are STILL in the apartment waiting for my house to be done (feb/march > next year). ALL of my friends have small children/infants or are > pregnant. i have NO family and my in-laws live about 3 hours away. > the hospital told me to sequester myself in the basement (i don't have > one) or stay away from the family after RAI (we have no extra > room!!!). i can't stay in a hotel (obviously they don't want me) and i > don't know where to go. i called the american cancer society in this > area and they had limited ideas. any input would be helpful...if it > were warmer, i would pitch a tent in the backyard!! > laurie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted October 7, 2003 Report Share Posted October 7, 2003 Laurie, I tell the patients that contact me that the person to stay home is the patient and that the family should leave and stay with friends or in a motel. Medicine today makes it your responsibility not to contaminate those around you. Clearly, you understand that from what you are saying. Are you in a community where there are other thycans who might be able to assist you? Gail dx: 1968, TT, pap. & foll. well differentiated w/hurthle cell, RAI, rad.neck dissection,lung surgery, hashimoto, tg antibody 575, iodine resistant,existing thyca nodules in lungs. Last surgery 1972 GO RED SOX!!!! ALL of my friends have small children/infants or are > pregnant. i have NO family and my in-laws live about 3 hours away. > the hospital told me to sequester myself in the basement (i don't have > one) or stay away from the family after RAI (we have no extra > room!!!). i can't stay in a hotel (obviously they don't want me) and i > don't know where to go. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted October 7, 2003 Report Share Posted October 7, 2003 wow...you guys are the greatest! it really helps to calm the hypo nerves when i can vent here. then i can concentrate on being proactive! i called the American cancer Society who put me in touch with an organization - www.hostsforhospitals.com - they find housing for people going thru any type of cancer treatment in my area! i can't believe it! i need a place for only 4 nights then a friend and her whole family are going to Disney for a week and offered to let me house sit for that time. by the time i go back home it will have been 10 days and i won't worry about infecting my kids at all!! i am a bit concerned about how i will feel, but it will only be me and the TV!! i NEVER thought that one of the reasons i wANted my new house to be built would be so i have a place TO RECOVER FROM CANCER!!! THE TIMING ON THIS COULD NOT BE WORSE...but i suppose it could never be great either!! anyway, keep that website handy in case anyone ever has to travel for treatment and will need someplace to stay long-term...hotels can be very costly for a week or 2 at a time! thanks again for all the input...i really feel like you care and more importantly, understand! Laurie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted October 7, 2003 Report Share Posted October 7, 2003 > Take your own linens to the hotel. Strip their linens off and leave them in > the corner. Do not use their bedspread. Tell them that you want no towel or > linen service for the one or two nights you will be there. Most hotels are > now very happy to accommodate that request. If you want to be " stealth* about > it, just pull your linens off in the morning, fold them up and put theirs back > on. Same with the towels. That way they won't worry that there is something > weird going on and you won't have to tell them anything. Lot's of > housecleaning for you, but it seems like you would pretty much have to do that at home > too. > > Also, you could bring your own sponge and cleaner for the bathroom. Double Hi. As much as the logistics of non-hospital isolation are difficult, staying in a hotel puts untold numbers of people at risk. The housekeeping staff might include a pregnant woman. There is no way that we can clean a hotel room perfectly, therefore putting innocent people at risk from our radioactivity. Having been a thyca patient, who knows if a radioactive person stayed in a hotel room that I was in before I got there, thereby possibly causing my thyca? It's just not worth the risk. That's not to say it's not difficult. My hubby and kids went " on vacation " both times I went hypo. My kids loved it. But, in reality, it's a pain in the neck (no pun intended) and expensive. But for us, that was the right choice. Hope this helps. n/NJ > flush and double rinse the tubs. Nothing more than you would do in your home. > I think that would work. > > Woodbridge, VA > Dx'd 8/95, 1 cm nodule w/multifocal papillary. RAI 30 mci (11/95), RAI 150 > mci (6/96), RAI 150 (6/97). Clean scan 1998. Clean Thyrogen scan 2000. > Thyrogen Scan on July 18, 2003--Clean! > > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted October 7, 2003 Report Share Posted October 7, 2003 ly, I do not agree with . I do not encourage you to do it, but if you are inclined to go this route, you also need to bring plastic sheeting to protect the mattress, your own pillow (for drool in your sleep)and plastic to cover furniture you may choose to sit on. Plastic wrap to cover the phone mouthpiece and an assortment of baggies to cover other things,paper cups for the lav which you will need to take home with you, large plastic trash bags. Two days is generally not enough time for these precautions. You will also need to bring food. Gail dx: 1968, TT, pap. & foll. well differentiated w/hurthle cell, RAI, rad.neck dissection,lung surgery, hashimoto, tg antibody 575, iodine resistant,existing thyca nodules in lungs. Last surgery 1972 > Take your own linens to the hotel. Strip their linens off and leave them in > the corner. Do not use their bedspread. Tell them that you want no towel or > linen service for the one or two nights you will be there. Most hotels are > now very happy to accommodate that request. If you want to be " stealth* about > it, just pull your linens off in the morning, fold them up and put theirs back > on. Same with the towels. That way they won't worry that there is something > weird going on and you won't have to tell them anything. Lot's of > housecleaning for you, but it seems like you would pretty much have to do that at home > too. > > Also, you could bring your own sponge and cleaner for the bathroom. Double > flush and double rinse the tubs. Nothing more than you would do in your home. > I think that would work. > > Woodbridge, VA > Dx'd 8/95, 1 cm nodule w/multifocal papillary. RAI 30 mci (11/95), RAI 150 > mci (6/96), RAI 150 (6/97). Clean scan 1998. Clean Thyrogen scan 2000. > Thyrogen Scan on July 18, 2003--Clean! > > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted October 7, 2003 Report Share Posted October 7, 2003 Laurie, Keep in mind, that even at your friends house you need to practice the same safety precautions you would take in a hotel. Hosts for hospitals is something I've never heard of. Sounds wonderful. Gail > wow...you guys are the greatest! it really helps to calm the hypo > nerves when i can vent here. then i can concentrate on being > proactive! i called the American cancer Society who put me in touch > with an organization - www.hostsforhospitals.com - they find housing > for people going thru any type of cancer treatment in my area! i > can't believe it! i need a place for only 4 nights then a friend and > her whole family are going to Disney for a week and offered to let me > house sit for that time. by the time i go back home it will have been > 10 days and i won't worry about infecting my kids at all!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted October 8, 2003 Report Share Posted October 8, 2003 Just for the record, and to defend my self, I don't endorse going to hotels either. I was just trying to demonstrate what she would have to do, given no other choice. Staying at her own home or even a friend's is no different/or better. You still leave the same amount of residue. Granted, if you stay in a hotel you do not know who you are putting at risk that comes in after you. There really is no great answer for this. I know that personally, if I were having this done at this time there is no way that I would be able to send my two kids and husband to a hotel and have them be able them be able to function at school and work. I think that if you don't have a safe means of containing yourself after RAI, then the hospital should be bound to take you in. Absolutely ridiculous. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted October 8, 2003 Report Share Posted October 8, 2003 > Just for the record, and to defend my self, I don't endorse going to hotels either. I was just trying to demonstrate what she would have to do, given no other choice. Staying at her own home or even a friend's is no different/or better. You still leave the same amount of residue. Granted, if you stay in a hotel you do not know who you are putting at risk that comes in after you. There really is no great answer for this. I know that personally, if I were having this done at this time there is no way that I would be able to send my two kids and husband to a hotel and have them be able them be able to function at school and work. I think that if you don't have a safe means of containing yourself after RAI, then the hospital should be bound to take you in. Absolutely ridiculous. > OK--here is the scoop.i did contact the host for hospitals and spoke to the director. i told him the entire situation and they know what type of liability i will be. the program has many families that donate not a room in their house, but entire guest houses, converted garage apartments, etc. the host family will be notified as to what is happening to me and that i will be radioactive, and we will meet prior to the RAI treatment. i will of course make every effort to use the same precautions that i would with my own family and my husband has generously offered to come and clean the bathroom of the guest quarters when i leave. i hate that this is happening to me, i would hate it even more if i inflicted it on someone else! and the hospital just laughed at me when i asked if my stay could be extended! L Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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