Happy Saturday!

Well, all of those countless hours spent on diligently cleaning my catheter drainage bags were for nought: I got a UTI earlier this week. After a few days of misery in the bladder area, I went to Urgent Care, where the UTI was confirmed via urine sample. Fortunately, I got started on antibiotics right away, and I’m feeling much better.

And in general, I’m doing better every day. Energy level, appetite, and my overall outlook are improving. I’ve started to “lightly interact” with work (checking email, Slack messages, etc) and I’m honestly looking forward to returning full-time on Feb 3.

In other news. my cousin Kelly was diagnosed with colorectal cancer last month. Her diagnosis is eerily similar to mine, but less advanced (lymph nodes not affected). We’ve been chatting, and I’ve been sharing with her what I’ve learned from the past year.

She just shared the news about her diagnosis in a Facebook post, and her story really underscores the importance of screening for colorectal issues. Unlike me, Kelly didn’t have any symptoms. She got a positive result from a LetsGetChecked mall-in test (which led to colonoscopy and diagnosis). While such mail-in tests do not have the same level of granular accuracy as colonoscopies, they are certainly better than doing nothing. I’m so glad that Kelly was proactive, and able to get screened through that method. I’ll be cheering Kelly on, and offering guidance, as she starts her treatment process in the near future.