I was able to recover from Round 4 of chemo with a very relaxing (didn’t-do-much-relaxing) week up north with the family. I’m not sure how I could have survived the “toughest round of chemo” in my normal home/work environment. I was thankful to have the week to sleep, sit by the lake, sleep, be surrounded by family, and sleep ☺
This past Thursday marked the first of my last 4 Chemo sessions. The drug of choice is Taxol, expected to be more tolerable drug than the AC drugs I just finished. It does come with a new set of side effects. This weekend I have already experienced muscle and joint pain, low levels of white blood cells, and most bizarre are the unusual sensations of burning and tingling in my feet and hands. These along with the now common occurrences of low blood pressure, lack of energy, diarrhea and nausea, mouth sores, and hair loss. Oh wait, the hair is already gone, so we can cross that off the list.
I’ve been having trouble all week sleeping at night, but Friday night was the worst. I couldn’t get to sleep, got up out of bed several times, and was even able to greet Michelle when she strolled in at 1:00am after being out with friends. I’m sure I startled her while I was sitting at the kitchen table eating a yogurt. The doctor did prescribe another drug Ambien for insomnia both falling and staying asleep. I’m glad to have the help sleeping but this drug has some interesting side effects like getting out of bed while not being fully awake or doing an activity that you do not know you’re doing. The next morning you may not remember that you did anything during the night. Reported activities include: driving a car, making and eating food, talking on the phone, and sleepwalking! Wow. This could get interesting.
I have so many different drugs now I’ve had to quite regularly text my new favorite pharmacist, Robby Moss, Kelly’s boyfriend to keep them, and the combinations of them, straight. The doctor is generously giving me what I need to take care of whatever ails me, but it does get confusing.
My motto: take it one day at a time, and just deal with whatever comes along. Only three Chemo sessions left, Yeah!
Monday, July 18, 2011
Tuesday, July 12, 2011
Chemo Round 4- June 30th
I had my last "AC" chemo session today. I feel like crap, but Dr. King was cheering so it must be a good thing. These two “AC” drugs are some of the big daddy drugs of Chemo treatment. My next 4 sessions will only be one drug Taxol, and I should have an easier time, again according Dr. King. Whew, can't wait!
Since I just had this 4th round yesterday, I don’t know exactly what to expect, but I anticipate it may go like the last. I usually don’t feel too bad on the day of treatment, but yesterday I felt extremely tired after, and came home and slept for several hours which was a little different than previous sessions. Some of the continued fatigue may have come from my blood counts going down a little after round 3. But as the nurses said, I'm still within a safe range to get another round of Chemo.
The great news is I’m half way through my Chemo treatments, which is cause to celebrate. I’ll do that next week on vacation with family at Izaty’s Resort on Lake Mille Lacs. The doctor thought that would be a great way to recover from this last session. I may have to make plans at the end of chemo in August.
I'm also sorry if your summer feels like it’s going by too fast with this weekend being the 4th of July which is often considered the middle of summer; this would be my fault. I've been praying for the summer of 2011 to fly by. When it's over, I'm done with this crazy treatment.
Continued thanks for the love and care so many are sharing with me. Giving and receiving are different aspects of the flow of energy in the universe; it’s the abundance of this that keeps the energy flowing in me.
Since I just had this 4th round yesterday, I don’t know exactly what to expect, but I anticipate it may go like the last. I usually don’t feel too bad on the day of treatment, but yesterday I felt extremely tired after, and came home and slept for several hours which was a little different than previous sessions. Some of the continued fatigue may have come from my blood counts going down a little after round 3. But as the nurses said, I'm still within a safe range to get another round of Chemo.
The great news is I’m half way through my Chemo treatments, which is cause to celebrate. I’ll do that next week on vacation with family at Izaty’s Resort on Lake Mille Lacs. The doctor thought that would be a great way to recover from this last session. I may have to make plans at the end of chemo in August.
I'm also sorry if your summer feels like it’s going by too fast with this weekend being the 4th of July which is often considered the middle of summer; this would be my fault. I've been praying for the summer of 2011 to fly by. When it's over, I'm done with this crazy treatment.
Continued thanks for the love and care so many are sharing with me. Giving and receiving are different aspects of the flow of energy in the universe; it’s the abundance of this that keeps the energy flowing in me.
Chemo Round 3- June 16th
Sorry for the delay in my update from round 3 of Chemo, this session has been a bit
harder on the body. The ugly part of the previous sessions lasted 4-5 days. I would still suffer from fatigue, but the heavy duty blahs had definitely subsided. After round 3 the ugly part lasted about 10 days. The week of June 27 was a bit rough at work. It’s hard to describe this blah feeling. My head gets fuzzy and I can get a little dizzy. Val Felsch from work told me to lean on the wall while we were waiting for the crowded elevators in the A building on Monday of that week. She thought I looked a little unsteady on my feet. It’s probably those symptoms that add in the fatigue that consume me late in the afternoons. I’ve got to figure out how to manage the number of meetings I have between the two buildings at work, I definitely get my exercise and still try to use the stairs if it’s a short flight or two, but it’s not easy on some days. Naps after work were a must between 5-7:00pm, something light for dinner, a little email work, and then back to bed at 9-9:30pm. On to round 4!
harder on the body. The ugly part of the previous sessions lasted 4-5 days. I would still suffer from fatigue, but the heavy duty blahs had definitely subsided. After round 3 the ugly part lasted about 10 days. The week of June 27 was a bit rough at work. It’s hard to describe this blah feeling. My head gets fuzzy and I can get a little dizzy. Val Felsch from work told me to lean on the wall while we were waiting for the crowded elevators in the A building on Monday of that week. She thought I looked a little unsteady on my feet. It’s probably those symptoms that add in the fatigue that consume me late in the afternoons. I’ve got to figure out how to manage the number of meetings I have between the two buildings at work, I definitely get my exercise and still try to use the stairs if it’s a short flight or two, but it’s not easy on some days. Naps after work were a must between 5-7:00pm, something light for dinner, a little email work, and then back to bed at 9-9:30pm. On to round 4!
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