The Mueller family has much for which they are thankful, having finally reached the other side of more than two years of intense trials and tribulations.
Marty Mueller has endured more in a short time than most people have in a lifetime.
Two major back surgeries in the past two-and-a-half years, colon cancer a year-and-a-half ago, and a blood clot a year ago last summer have been grueling times for Marty Mueller.
The family is now "keeping their fingers crossed that everything's good from now on," his wife, Dessilee, said. Though Marty must rely on a pain pump to dispense a continuous drip of medication, he is cancer-free today, and for that the couple are thankful.
But how did they maintain their sanity and a sense of gratitude in the midst of the constant barrage of medical issues and the range of emotions that come with such an onslaught? Sometimes, people have to grab encouragement wherever they can.
"We were both just thankful he was alive and kicking," Dessilee said.
That may not have been the case, the couple said, had doctors not detected the cancer early. And they may not have caught the cancer early had Marty not battled back pain that sent him to the doctor.
At age 50, Marty had put off having a colonoscopy, but when he began to experience back pain, he went to the doctor. It was then, while taking film of his back, that doctors found a mass, ordered a colonoscopy and realized that he had stage 1 cancer. "The back pain was the Lord's way of showing me my cancer," he asserted. They believe his back pain became his blessing. Because it was caught early, the cancer had not spread. Marty now offers this advice to others: "Make sure you do your checkups."
The Muellers are thankful through the two-year ordeal during which Marty was unable to work; he received paid disability so their finances did not come to a halt. He is grateful to finally be back to work full time since June.
The Muellers recognize that having each other made the journey, as difficult as it was, more manageable.
"We've been each other's best friend for almost 27 years," Dessilee said.
Dessilee considers herself fortunate that, as a stay-at-home mother, she was able to accompany her husband to each of his doctor's appointments and hospital stays.
"I stayed from the time he checked in to the time he checked out," she said.
The couple talked of being open and honest with one another about expectations and desired outcomes when walking through their valley.
They got through the struggles "day to day, one day at a time," and added this advice: "Be patient and don't give up. Rely on who you can."
They also relied on "lots of prayer," their family and supportive friends. Between the two, they have three children and six grandchildren.
"Take advantage of who's there when you need to cry," Dessilee advised. The couple also praised Marty's doctors, describing them as some of the best.
This Thanksgiving will be extra special as the Muellers look back on what they have come through and set their sights on what is before them.
"When you go through something like this," Dessilee said, "you're thankful for what you have and that you're still together."
What the couple does have is hope, which they see as they look at each other, their three children and their six grandchildren, including the one who was born Nov. 2 -- all the more reason for them to reiterate their belief that things will be all "good from now on."
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