One year anniversary

December 14, 2000

Hello to All Our Friends in the Group:

Today is our one year anniversary for Randy receiving 60% of my liver. It was a

humbling experience as we reminenced with the group at Cleveland Clinic

yesterday during our check-up. Today as each hour clicks off, we remember where

we both were and what was occuring in the operating room. I was finished by

6:00PM and Randy at 10:30PM. It was a very emotional time for all of us

yesterday and tears were shed. Our chief surgeon just held us both really tight

for a long time and we were all smiling -- all of us acutely aware we were one

of the lucky couples who had beaten the odds. Randy is normal and healthy in

everyway, has gone back to work, and our life has now moved forward. We have

effectively looked this beast in the face and taken back precious time by having

our surgery. We accomplished in one year what would normally have been a 2-4

year process.

We want to thank everyone for their wishes and prayers for us throughout the

whole ordeal - especially who visited us in the hospital, came up during

our surgery to help with our family, and kept the list updated as to how we were

doing. And to Joan- whose wise advise helped us when we hit a snag before the

surgery and offered to fill in if needed if an adult could not be found to be

with my children and the support she gave me on Christmas eve when they took

Randy back into surgery to check for a leak(which all was fine but I was

250miles away, it was snowing, and I had just gotten home the day before).

Without all of you wonderful people and friends, this could have been a lonely

experience-- but as a group, we are one powerful entity.

May God Bless You All,

Cheryl & Randy McCullough

December 14, 2000

I'm very happy for you both. Your message lightens my day.

December 15, 2000

Thank God it was a success Cheryl. Tell Randy I wish you and your family a

very merry Christmas and the greatest of New Years. Thank you for all the

late night chats and will write you when Jodi and I get back from Miami next

week. Love, Genny & Jodi

May 18, 2002

Dear Group: I can't believe it but today is the one year anniversary of Jodi's transplant. I haven't been able to read my email this week but wanted to take a few minutes to again thank everyone for the support and prayers before, during and after our surgery. I would not have made it without you guys and hope to get back active with the group when my mother gets better.

Please pray for as she and her hopeful living donor are being tested in Gainesville. Also please pray for Patty O'brien, I just read her numbers were not good.

Thank you and God bless each and every one.

Genny/Jodi's Mom

Living Donor Transplant 5-18-01

May 18, 2002

Congradulations !

Tony

May 18, 2002

Dear Genny,

It is hard to believe it has been a year already....but so glad everything worked out. I know everytime you see Jodi you know it was worth everything you have been through. Being donors, we see things somewhat differently than the recipients. But it is still a very humbling experience.... if more people could be as giving after they leave this world, then we would be a rare breed... living donors wouldnt be needed. But as I have said before, I would do it all again in heartbeat.

Give Jodi a {{{Hug}}} for us and also one for Colt.

Congratulations!!

Cheryl & Randy

August 31, 2004

I realized this morning that my one year anniversary on Xolair came

and went without appropriate fanfare.

Something else worth mentioning - we are in the process of renewing

our health care insurance at work. I learned last week that Xolair

is the #2 drug on our 'most costly drugs' list, and I am the only

one taking it. Prilosec was the #1 drug.

As we go through renewal, I am faced with the task of justifying the

economy of Xolair vs. all of the other drugs I was taking and

potential hospitalization from when I wasn't on Xolair. Problem is,

we look at the cost of prescriptions independently from the cost of

physician treatment, which is wrong. With all of the new

regulations regarding privacy, we can't look at utilization on a

case by case basis to make decisions about how much things should

cost our employees.

I doubt that my situation is much different than many other

employers, except that in this case I am the user of Xolair. I have

to make a case for why our medications and procedures must become

more expensive for the users - our costs this year are up over 25%

with no change in employment. No way am I going to get out of this

one without getting caught in the crossfire.

Either way, despite the fact that I am going to have to pay more, I

am not going to quit taking it.

Greg

June 9, 2010

Happy Anniversary, Heidi!!!!

That's fantastic that you are doing so well on Bee's program. That was very

smart of you to keep a journal. I've never been one to journal, but I think it

would have been a great way to keep track of all the milestones. You know, I

have to think really hard to remember how sick I used to be. I barely think

about it anymore, yet I know I was in rough shape. I wish I had a journal to

remind myself of all the details, too.

My second year anniversary is coming up on the 16th of this month. It's very

exciting!

All the best,

(a group moderator)

>

> Hello friends,

> Just wanted to write a quick note to everyone. I wanted to share that today is

my one year anniversary on Bee's diet. It has been a hard first year for me. I

did a lot of little cheating because I had severe cravings for chocolate, but I

am happy to say that FINALLY I am rounding the bend and am getting over them, so

perhaps my healing will come along quicker now. I have had a lot of improvements

like no more bloating and inflamation or illiocecal valve pain and my menstrual

problems, and the weird symptoms that went with it, are getting better every

month. I have detoxed and retraced in weird ways and expect much more. I have

kept a journal and can go back and read how things have changed and improved

over the last year. I will chalk up this year as a good breaking in period and

look forward to many more. So hang in there guys...things will get better.

> Heidi from Iowa

>

June 9, 2010