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Hanging in there
Hi friends, long time no type. I’ve been a bit in my own head, or rather, bed…in some instances. This round was not kind to me. I threw up for the first time during this whole process – it was not fun. Luckily, it was not like my drinking hangovers where it lasts for the next couple days. It’s over once it’s over, so that’s something, Puking is THE WORST thing for me, but I powered through it like a champ! I think the key here is continuing to take the nauseous medication throughout, rather than just at the outset. Some of the chemo drugs can really eff up your…
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The Hotel Life
I’m down here in Rochester, living the hotel life. Tomorrow, I’ll meet with the Mayo surgeon to hopefully set my surgery date. Before I meet with the surgeon, I’ll be getting a bunch of ultrasounds thanks to a Mayo study. I can’t quite remember what the study is for – something about the vascular system (in relation to cancer). When I went through it the first time (the study will do an ultrasound before, during, and after chemo), I could clearly see the tumor. Hoping this time around I won’t be able to see anything! Tonight, I ordered myself way too much food from a fab Italian restaurant here. Feel…
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Surgery!
TLDR; probably January 28th. Woke up at 7 am and figured I might as well get ready for the 9:30 appointment, which was a really good idea considering I got lost somehow and made it right at 9:30 to the check-in desk. And then there’s waiting. Because this is a study, a nurse coordinator picks you up and ushers you into a room with four different ultrasound machines. It took them a bit to find whatever they were looking for – I know they were looking at the clip placed during the breast biopsy because you could see it on screen. Compared to the last time they did this (pre-treatment),…
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Chemo Infusion #4
Today was fun! I made another chemo buddy. 🙂 This is why I don’t mind the infusion part – it gives me time to get to know folks. This infusion was about an hour shorter than normal. One of the drugs they gave me in half-time, maybe two of them. But first, I got there at 8:30 for a blood draw. I was meeting with the oncologist nurse at 9, so the bloodwork got done early (sometimes you have to wait for it to come in). I’ll give you the “bad” news first: my platelets are low, and there’s nothing really we can do for that other than give it…
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Post-Chemo #4 – Day 2
TLDR; I’m doing pretty well today! But first, a… Mom Update The current place where she’s at is pretty crappy, it sounds like. It can take 20 minutes to an hour for a nurse to show up in her room after she’s pressed the call button. The nurses aren’t following care directions either, so sounds like Mom is pretty frustrated. She’s supposed to be moving to a different facility for Medicare reasons, but she also has another lung infection. The “care coordinator” doesn’t know what’s causing it, so she can’t really go anywhere until they solve that. The halo is staying on for at least 12 weeks, as the trach…
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Chemo Round 4: the Aftermath
Hi! Luckily, there are very few after effects to talk about. 🙂 This has been a decent go-round. I still credit drinking lots of water. Having a five-day weekend to nap also was a big help. The week after chemo generally doesn’t involve a lot of quality sleep. I sleep a lot but it’s interrupted. There’s always one night where I wakeup in the middle of the night and can’t go back to sleep. So this time, I got to sleep in. (Usually it’s been on a school night!) I did not attend any T-give activities – that allowed me to not do a dang thing but rest. This was…
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Working While on Chemo
Having done four rounds of chemotherapy at this point, it’s clear that the 8th day out of chemo is where it really gets better. The first week after was not bad at all this round, but it’s that 8th day that really gives me some energy back! So it was easier to move around today. I don’t get as winded, and my heart rate even calms down a bit. It’s almost like a switch turns on somewhere. I’ve been busy with work this week! It’s so nice to have that while I’m going through this. As I said, I love what I do, so having the “distraction” is great. Even…
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New symptoms
I am very unhappy to report a new symptom: leg swelling. Once again, I am brought back to those days I was pregnant with Evelyn at the end of the summer. Why does chemo seem so much like pregnancy?! ???? The swelling isn’t too bad. I make sure to keep my feet elevated while I’m working (using an ottoman under my desk). Makes it harder to go places, though. I was hoping to get back into the office but I’m starting to feel uncomfortable straying from my house on the chance I’d start bleeding uncontrollably from the nose or even start to feel nauseous. Plus with the COVID cases being…
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Chemo Eve: #5
I was up early this morning for a blood draw. Only Josh was a little late and then right around the corner, there was a 5-car accident that had just happened. I was about 10 minutes late. But then I waited to get into the room, then another 5 minutes with ice to numb the port area (much better than the lidocaine). Then I have to check back in with the receptionist for the appointment with the oncologist. At this point, it’s probably 8:30/8:45. While I was sitting there, I got a VM from the oncologist’s nurse asking me to let them know if I was planning to come in…
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Chemo Round 5
Five down, one to go! Easier said than done. Symptoms takes a couple days to really kick in. The first thing I notice is the dry mouth. It’s not bad right away because this is when I guzzle the most water. Water, the cure for everything cancer-related, keeps away the dry mouth and mouth sores. The other is fatigue. A lot because my legs are still swollen (I’ll start the water pills tomorrow AM). Next week will be the worst of it. I’ll need to do lots of resting. But for now, I feel good and am in good spirits! I had a fun time with my chemo buddy, another…
