Sunday morning, February 10^th — Still in India!

I am sitting in Room 208 at Nutech Mediworld in my wheelchair, alone.  My laptop rests on a cushion, propped up on the bed and a cuppa strong coffee sits on the bedside table by my wheels.  Mum left on a plane bound for Brisbane, Australia last night and the room feels empty.   At the request of Dr. Shroff and Chavi, I have extended my stay in Delhi for another ten days.  I will return home to Aspen on February 19^th so I can squeeze in another three-day procedure and therapy to maximize my treatment. 

Seven salmon pink Gerber daisies stand proudly amongst delicate tiny white flowers upon my window sill and all I can think of is how much I am already missing Mum.  These were Mum’s birthday flowers that I purchased two hundred feet down the street for only 100 Rupees (US$2.50).  Mum was amazing this trip.  She was selfless and comforting.  I really needed her these past two weeks.  For two weeks I have been feeling weak.  While the stem cells bring life to my body, they also deplete me tremendously, making me feel frail.  Yesterday was the first day in literally fourteen days that I felt strong and my normal self.  I was back to my routine physical therapy session, standing tall afterwards in my leg braces for a good thirty minutes without feeling dizzy.  Yesterday morning Mum packed her belongings into her suitcase and again we went without a hot shower resorting for a sponge bath with water boiled in our little electric kettle.  (Hot showers are sporadic). 

For three weeks Mum was a resilient warrior standing by my side, encouraging me, and remaining positive despite India’s challenges.  Together we faced my most grueling hospital procedure, overlapped by the theft of my belongings and the tediousness of dealing with police and Indian governmental bureaucracy in reapplying for my passport, exit visa, and customs.  We feel like we’ve been through the ringer yet still Mum was outstanding.  I could not have survived this ordeal alone.  India has challenged us to the max.  I felt dependent on Mum to an extent for her strength and unconditional support, which helped pull me through the most dif ficult circumstances.  We belly laughed at the ludicrousy of situations and India’s nonsensical ways, which inexorably conflicted with our westernized mindsets.  After a few days of getting used to each other, Mum and I settled into our daily routine:  morning coffee; cereal and juice; pull the blinds up; rotate using the bathroom; get dressed; physical therapy; lunch; more therapy; a game of scrabble; dinner; more scrabble; reading; a movie; and bed.  Last Thursday was Mum’s birthday, and because she is a year older a newfound wisdom was bestowed upon her:  she beat me at scrabble! 

I won’t see Mum until October, which will be my fourth visit to Delhi.  Saying goodbye is always difficult as we live on other sides of the globe.  While the telephone and Skype brings our worlds that much closer, I feel like she is eons away.  My heart aches for Mum, especially right now as small tears roll down my face.  Nobody in this world loves me like my Mum.  I am her blood and I am her second brain.  She is compassionate and beautiful. 

Mum, I will promise to stick to my chosen path and proceed with the strength you and the Universe have bequeathed upon me…I will aspire to walk for you and for me.  That is my goal.  That is my dream.  I will keep the faith, meditate, pray, and fill my being with light and courage.  I will chant “Nam Myo Ho Renge Kyo…Nam Myo Ho Renge Kyo…Nam Myo Ho Renge Kyo…Nam Myo Ho Renge Kyo”  as you chant in unison from across the oceans.  The Lion King of Sutras–The Lotus Sutra—will help us remain in the ever present now, satiating our souls with love, compassion, and good karma from our mystical univer se.  Believe Mum, as I will hold the belief that anything is possible.  I am healing.  I am creating every moment right now.  My future is now.  I try to move forward without expectation.  I am not attached to an outcome and I accept my body as it is—right now!  While I have physical imperfections, I believe I am perfect as I am.  This is my path.  Perfection is ever expanding.  I embody perfection.  Perfection is growing every moment through me and is a dynamic state of being.  It is not an end.  I will tap into my higher potential—my God Self—knowing that I am capable of achieving more, and visualizing every pure embryonic cell gestating from a perfect state manifesting the Divine throughout my physical body.  Mum, hold this belief as I do.  I am changed.  Through this journey I have matured.  I am wiser.  I am Amanda.  

The traffic relentlessly drones on yet the sun is shining this morning.  The smog/fog isn’t too bad and a patch of hazy blue peeks through above the neighbor’s roof.  A handful of Indians are brushing their teeth behind the roof’s cement wall.  I am sure they see me…in fact, one particular man peers over at approximately the same time each morn in the hope of snagging a glimpse of topless Amanda (or Mum).  I think it would be a sight for sore eyes first thing in the morning to see either of us naked, but my friend stares on cue each day.  I’ve been told the windows in our building are reflective, yet our friend gazes in anticipation reg ardless.

Where there’s life, there is hope.

What is a miracle?  Is it something that is scientifically impossible or an act of Divine intervention?  I see a miracle as faith realized when I pay reverence for the grace God has given me.  Peace enters my soul.

At Dr. Geeta Shroff’s hospital, I continue to witness miracles taking place regularly.  Mike Chan, an incomplete quadriplegic who was wheelchair bound last summer, returned to India from Hong Kong walking!  When I met Mike in July last year, he could barely lift his torso with his arms and hands pressing down on his wheels.  These past few weeks, I saw Mike walk without calipers, standing over six feet tall with a grin from ear to ear.  Yes, Mike Chan is WALKING. 

Krishna is a young Indian lady who sustained a spinal cord injury from a tumor on the spinal cord nine years ago.  Krishna is now walking and she took her first steps without calipers three weeks ago.  Her legs are getting stronger each day.  As I watched both Mike Chan and Krishna, I saw miracles taking place before my own eyes.  I held the faith in my own healing and believed with absolute conviction that I too will continue to improve.  If they can do it, I can too!

Returning to India and observing the other patient’s progress instills hope in me and keeps my faith alive.  Each patient encourages the other.  I have heard it said that “Where there’s life, there is hope”.  Human Embryonic Stem Cells give life, and hence they give hope. 

Each patient shows improvement.  Rusty Leech, Louis Micelli, and Tim Dunne, all paraplegics who have finished their first treatment with Dr. Geeta Shroff, have improved.  Rusty Leech (www.RustyWithoutWheels.com) was a complete T10 spinal cord injury for almost ten years.  After two months of HESC treatment, he has some bladder and bowel control; deep muscle sensation in his hips; stronger lower abdominal muscles; some return of his gluteal muscles; he can feel muscle contraction in his quads and inner thighs (more in his right leg); and he has slight toe wiggles.

Martin, a visually impaired diabetic patient, has almost normal blood sugar levels and is down to just one insulin injection per day.  His diabetes has improved by 50% since HESC treatment.  Martin’s kidneys are normal for the first time in his life since childhood, and he is peeing on his own (Martin catheterized for many, many years until receiving HESCs).  Miraculously, Martin’s eye sight is improving.  He is now wearing spectacles and is able to distinguish between colors.  Martin is a true hero.  Amazingly he has made these huge strides on his own, leaving his wife and twin six-year-old c hildren in Australia.  Martin has more courage than anyone.

As for me, my strength increases and I am showing promise of more movement in my upper thighs and abdominal area.  When I void urine on my own, the flow is steady and it takes less effort (especially after two cups of coffee in the morning).  I will have a three-day procedure beginning Monday and I will be a brave girl as I enter into the procedure on my own without Mum or a caregiver to support me.  I feel so blessed to be granted this opportunity to receive HESCs and to allow my body the time it deserves to heal and gain strength.  My heart spills over with gratitude like a river swollen after heavy rain—flowing and always transforming.

Hospital Accreditation

Dr. Shroff ought to be very proud of the new hospital.  Patients are comfortable, nurses are on duty 24 hours, and it is run efficiently.  As any business or building in Delhi might experience the occasional power outage or hot water shortage, Nutech Mediworld is relaxed and feels like home.  The nurses are the sweetest, most attentive angels I have ever experienced.  Most of the nurses are petite and come from north eastern India.  They genuinely care beyond the call of duty. 

Nutech Mediworld underwent an international inspection this week.  I am proud to report on Dr. Shroff’s behalf, that both hospitals passed comprehensive inspections.  The Green Park Nutech Mediworld attained the ISO certification (International Organization for Standardization).  The ISO was founded in 1947, as a worldwide standard-setting body composed of representatives from various national standards organizations.  ISO is non-governmental organization that has the ability to set standards that often become law.  The older hospital—Nutech Mediworld located at Gataum Nagar, New Delhi—was granted a BCI Certificate.  This Certificate was awarded as a Platinum British Standard, which only one other hospital in Delhi has acquired.  Congratulations to Dr. Shroff, Dr. Ashish Verma, and her phenomenal staff for attaining such an accreditation. 

“Human Embryonic Stem Cell Therapy has restored life into my limbs and “hope” back into my vocabulary!”

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“It’s not what happens to you, it’s how you embrace the changes that take place and who you become!”

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