Starting chemo April 2023
Comments
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Good morning gals!
So enjoyed our chat on Monday and yesterday got ahead of me. I’m at the infusion center and yes Bird, you are spot on that this is my first of 4 AC’s. I’ll admit I am a bit nervous but I’m sure everything will be fine. The whole “Red Devil” name really is quite an awful descriptor! I am glad they were able to use my port today otherwise my treatment likely would need to be rescheduled. It got black and blue after blood work last week. Thankfully it’s not infected and likely a blood vessel was hit with the blood work last week.
Dogmom: I’m so glad you have an appointment scheduled with your surgeon. I agree it’s time to get some conversations started. Ugh, so sorry that your pup’s “surgery” is in fact a consult. I’m sure you have been preparing literally and mentally and now are back to the waiting game. Ugh ugh ugh for the wait and the stress of waiting.Bird: I am really glad your dad is now “in the system” but my heart goes out to you that he has taken such a turn for the worse. It must be so hard and worrisome getting to see him soon. I am truly so sorry for this stressful situation. It is so incredibly hard. 😔
I put my phone on silent yesterday and decided to not take calls from well-intentioned friends. I just didn’t want to keep talking about the “c” and my new treatment today. I did send my friends nice texts. I gotta say, I might just keep my phone on silent and really limit my conversations. I just need some “quiet” right now. I regret how many of my friends know my actual treatment days because the calls and texts are just a lot for me right now. The phone on silent really helped me set boundaries with this.
So I’m off to wet my hair for cold capping.
I’m curious how my tastebuds will react!Hope you both are feeling ok.
Cat0 -
Good morning Cat. I hope your first AC is a smooth ride. It's really just more of the same and nothing to stress over. The hair shedding did get annoying and the taste changes were distracting but like everything else, we seem to adjust because we have no choice. Smart that you silenced your phone. It's a great way to take charge of the conversations you're willing to have at any moment in time. Thinking of you! Let us know how it goes!
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Hi gals,
Im home from AC #1. Not feeling so great, queasy so have taken to the bed. Im feeling a bit better now that I’m resting and in the bed. Dogmom: thanks for the encouraging words. They really do help.
Hope everyone has a good day tomorrow. Wishing you a good visit with your fur baby Dogmom!Cat
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Glad you are home and resting Cat. AC 1 is now in the rearview mirror and we're counting down. AC seems to require lots more rest than than the previous chemo did. Napping has become a core competency. Give your body whatever it needs, especially sleep and hydration. We'll plow through EC/AC like we did all of the other things that have come our way.
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Cat: Congrats on getting number 1 behind you. Yes, I felt the side effects of it much earlier than the other meds. Definitely get lots of rest and take all the nausea meds at the first hint of anything. For me, just sort of a yuck feeling persisted the first few days. Appetite changes usually arrived on post chemo day 2. Then several days of a sort of morning sickness feel the smells of my pantry and ideas of certain foods made me feel a bit queasy. Falling asleep during evening tv persisted for a week as well. I’m now 9 days from my treatment and feeling pretty normal again. Good for you setting boundaries. I am glad that it brought you some peace.
NJ: I am sorry that it is a consult and not the actual surgery. That is disappointing but hopefully the surgery can happen next week which seems like it might be good as you will still be feeling well and can take care of him.
My dad has been admitted to the hospital and we are hoping that once they get the UTI under control and some new meds for depression and sleep issues, he will improve enough to go to the memory ward. They really want him there and feel that they can help him. So we will see. Mom has met with the social worker who is helping with solutions and she seems more positive to have some support and reinforcement that my dad really had deteriorated to the point where extra help was absolutely necessary. This is super petty, but my brother seems to be using his busyness at work as an excuse for not going to see them in over a year. And then mom generously seems to equate that to my cancer. “Oh, I just want you both to take care of yourselves.” I’m like seriously. I have no hair and lack a functioning immune system. It’s not quite the same.
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Bird: It sounds like your dad is on the path you were hoping for so that's good. UTIs can turn the universe upside down and cause mental and physical chaos for the elderly. I'm glad your mom is getting support from a social worker and I'm sorry that your brother isn't stepping up, especially given the circumstances. Aren't moms notorious for making excuses for the slacker kid? It's not petty at all to be annoyed by it. Sounds like mom might be going for the path of least stress - no expectations so no disappointment.
Cat: How are you feeling today? Thinking of you and hope you are getting some good rest.
Mini rant: Annoying neighbor who prompted "I don't do cancer on weekends" yelled across the lawns to me yesterday "Why did you cut off your hair? It's so short! You never know! You might have kept some of it! Why did you do that?" I secretly wished I had the hose in my hand. Would have hosed her down.
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NJ: Ugh. So rude. Seriously. You look great and I am sure you are relieved not to shed. It is so irritating when folks don’t mind their business. Hoping consult goes well today.
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Deleted my rant about that same woman making me cry this morning. I think I'm just really over tired.
Swedish death cleaning update: Electronics I no longer have a use including all those random cords and adapters. Really old cell phones! All of the anti-nausea candy that I loved during round 1 of chemo but can no longer stand. Old school light bulbs. Do they even make these anymore? So much stuff to get rid of.
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NJ: I saw the rant and didn’t think you were oversensitive. She sounds like a lot and it would irritate me also. I mean, yeah, it’s an awful situation. But cancer unfortunately puts us in all kinds of awful situations. We are doing the best that we can do. Lots of gentle hugs to you. We have a box, I kid you not, of really old electronics, that we have been shipping around the world for the last 11 years. I managed to get my husband to take hard drives out of some stuff and dump them in the electronics dump in Vienna but he was beside himself. We are hauling around the hard drives of course. We also have ancient cell phones in there. There is nothing of interest on any of it. He is just paranoid to throw it out so we just move it. Since we were overweight last time, we need to make some serious clutter decisions. I love shedding stuff. It’s finding places for it to go that can be tricky. Were you able to schedule your dog’s surgery yesterday? I hope that all went well.
Cat: I hope you aren’t feeling too terrible. AC does hit harder from the get go . But it will get better.My daughter’s treatment is finished and her teeth look good. They are going to send the retainer and we will have to have it fitted here. I think we also need to have wisdom teeth removed. Oh joy. They are coming in okay, but look like they are pushing the other teeth. My oldest son was born without wisdom teeth. Sadly, the other two have them.
We are seeing Oppenheimer today, in two groups, husband and daughter in Vienna, me and my son in Helsinki. And my son and are I trying to finish the Lord of the Rings series on Amazon before he flies back tomorrow. Busy, busy 🤣. My oldest son and his friend fly in Tuesday. Barely time to wash the sheets.
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Hi Gals,
Just checking in on a Friday afternoon!
I was queasy when I got home from AC on Wednesday, and have had some bouts of nausea here and there, but generally speaking have really been feeling good. I know it is the IV meds and the steroids that are keeping me feeling well right now, as has been the case in the past. I anticipate a “crash” in the next few days but am enjoying feeling pretty good right now and getting some things done over the past couple of days. Bird: thanks for the good tip on taking the nausea meds proactively- totally agree and am doing that. Also agree that the feeling for me is a lot like that queasy morning sickness feeling.
Dogmom: I love that you shared your neighbor story because it helps me feel affirmed and normal for drawing some hard boundaries over the past few days. When I am feeling well, I really don’t want to be spending half my day talking about the “c”. Yesterday I had 2 friends who wanted to stop by. One offered to buy me soup. I politely declined as my daughter and I each recently made 2 big pots of chicken soup and froze a bunch. Phew. The second friend already had goodies to dropoff. I asked her to leave at the door and my daughter would retrieve and thank you so much! (made it clear I did not want to visit yesterday and appreciated her thoughtfulness). Lastly, had 3 friends (who love to slice and dice “the c” ad nauseum) call for updates. Dodged all the calls with texts. I would’ve been on the phone at least 30 minutes or an hour with each of them… They are extroverts and just can’t help but to loop back to “the c” and are also positive toxicity gals. (I did call 2 of them this am but had them boxed in on the time.) Dogmom: I am sorry about your neighbor. She has consistently been A LOT and I would be very upset by all of her insensitive and over-bearing comments.
Swedish Death Cleaning: It’s happening here. My daughter doesn’t have regular employment right now (odd jobs) so I have loaded her up with “treasure” and, well, apparently “junk” (no nibbles on the southwest iron mirror that was SO awesome 25 years ago!) to sell. She has made a couple thousand dollars and I am happy moving stuff out!
Dogmom: what’s the update on the pup and surgery?
Bird: I am glad your dad is in the hospital and getting the care he needs. I totally agree with Dogmom. Your brother’s situation is absolutely nothing like yours. I agree with Dogmom that your mom is probably exhausted and doesn’t have the bandwidth to deal with your brother’s lack of response. How frustrating for you. People and family certainly can be beyond frustrating and inexplicable.
Glad your daughter’s teeth turned out well! Yay!
How’s the wig working out and other hair/head accessories?
Ok, I’m clearly on the “roids” with my long post.
Xo
Cat
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Cat: I'm glad you're still feeling good and that the meds are doing their magic for you. You really have been an inspiration with dodging phone calls and all of the intrusive c talk that goes with them. Awesome that your daughter is selling stuff! Big win that she's making a profit doing it! Kudos to her!
The pup pup is scheduled to have his amputation on 8/10. Regular vet is lined up to help out as needed and he'll spend the day in daycare with his regular vet when I have chemo on 8/17. Female pup pup also had a vet visit today and is on antibiotics. As long as the dogs get the dog meds and the people get the people meds on some sort of schedule, I'm calling it a win.
Yes - that neighbor just wouldn't let go on the dog is in pain topic. I was crying and asked her to stop and she would not shut up. I said "Please stop" and then "I have nothing left emotionally. Please stop" and she kept going and going. Her empathy for my dog being heard mattered more to her than bringing me to tears I don't know how much more obvious a boundary I could put out there than "Please stop." I don't want to be asked how I feel 4 times per day by the same person. I don't want to be asked how the dog is doing 4 times per day.
Bird: Apologies for not asking earlier. How is your father doing today? I hope things improve for him over the next few days.
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Oh - here's an interesting topic: Someone told me yesterday that they plan to walk on my behalf in a race for the cure event this fall. I sure hope my name isn't attached to it. My diagnosis is personal information.
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Cat: So so happy to hear that you are feeling well. I really hope it continues. For me, the first few days were the toughest and then it was relatively smooth sailing. And good for you drawing all sorts of boundaries. I’m with you. The south is lovely and folks are so kind, but boundaries are tough. I’m not really a hugger or a kisser with folks either so that is always a bit awkward. I mean, I do it usually, but I am sure I look a bit stiff🤣. That was funny in Belgium where kissed on the cheeks is how you greet your friends. I always looked weirded out and my Belgian pals were like oh yeah, you’re American and like your space. Um, yes. That. And that is a brilliant idea for your daughter!
NJ: Alright! Productive day on the books! Good for you and I’ll be thinking of your pup on the 10th. I’m glad the other one is sorted as well. Lots of work and also lots of joy, right? I think those races are anonymous. At least I hope so. I know you don’t want your name out there. And it really sounds like your neighbor is bored and pops out when she sees you. Which is Urgh and unnecessary.
I am taking my middle kiddo to the airport today which is always bittersweet. He is such a sweet kid and we get along really well. I’ll absolutely miss him. But hopefully he has a good semester and a nice surprise roommate. We have no idea what to expect. I feel bad. His apartment is furnished, but I would have liked to help him settle in. Instead I am sending stuff via Amazon and Instacart. We did manage to finish Oppenheimer and the LOTR dries on Amazon yesterday. It was quite an accomplishment. Luckily, my husband and daughter will come back this evening.
Dad is in assisted living, but we are all wondering how he will do. Mom said he was happy when she kissed him goodnight last night. I am hoping that he rallies a bit and can enjoy the social aspects of the place. We will see. But I am thankful that he has a place for now. I need to have a long talk with my oncologist about my treatment to see when it is feasible to try to go there.
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Good morning!
Bird: I'm so impressed that you have the energy for airport drop offs! A new semester is always exciting with the possibility of meeting amazing new friends. I'm going to pull the chemo brain card here. I can't remember if your son goes to school in the states or in Europe. I have no doubt that you will do an amazing job at remote decorating for him. New semesters are full of anticipation and excitement. When do classes start I'm glad your father is settling in and seems happy. I hope your mom is catching up on sleep and self-care.
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Hi Gals,
Checking in! I am still doing well with my steroid infused energy. I anticipate a crash in the next day or so as has been the pattern for me in the past, but it sure feels good to feel a little “normal” and have some energy to get some “to-do’s”, “ta done”!
Thanks for both of your supportive words on my boundaries practicing. It really is something I struggle with as a “people pleaser”. I’ve realized though that when I am feeling well, I REALLY don’t want to be spending the bulk of my day talking about the “c” in person or otherwise, and especially just because the timing is good for my friends. We all have long roads ahead of us and these conversations can happen later I think.
Dogmom: I am appalled by your neighbor’s behavior. I can’t believe she didn’t apologize to you when you clearly and understandably were upset by her relentlessness and inappropriate comments. She certainly sounds like a very socially awkward person. I agree that you couldn’t have been more clear about your boundaries. I agree w Bird that it sounds like she waits at the window to see you then pops out. I am so sorry you are dealing with her and I wish I had some good advice. I'm going to think on this one.
Bird: glad your dad is in the assisted living. Is it memory care as well? Just curious. Hope your mom can get some rest and hopefully you might get some peace of mind rest as well.
I’m having chemo brain with Dogmom too. Bird, where is your son going to school and what year is he? The good-byes are hard, even when temporary.
I’m planning on getting on our call tomorrow, Monday, at 10:00 am.
Does this work for you all tomorrow?
Cat
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Hello! Yes. I can make the call at 10 tomorrow.
Cat: Yes. My dad is in a specialized memory care facility. It’s all they do. So that is good. Nobody wanted him i n a skilled nursing facility as that was the other option if this doesn’t work. This at least has social programming and professionals who work with them. He hasn’t fallen any more so that is good and seems calm. But he can’t feed himself and isn’t walking independently now. So that isn’t great.
Ethan is in Texas at the University of North Texas and he is a junior this year. He is criminal justice/anthropology/history major 😀. He wants to be in federal law enforcement. Like FBI. I hope he decides to teach history.
NJ: My mom hasn’t slept a night at their TN home alone ever and they have lived there almost 10 years. She isn’t sleeping well and is so worried about him. It’s super sad. She keeps fretting that he might never see their cats again. Or that he doesn’t have a light by his bedside even though he is so out of it that he doesn’t care about these things. She is supposed to be focusing a bit on self care, but it is hard. She is planning to visit is this next May/June and we want to go on a cruise to the Norwegian fjords. It’s good for her and me to have something to plan.
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Hello all! Can you believe it is Wednesday?! My son missed a connection due to a late flight and ended up spending last night in Amsterdam. They were actually pretty excited as they got a hotel room and hit the town. Ha. Now they are in Paris and hopefully will be in Helsinki this afternoon. Otherwise, not much happening here. I am feeling well and looking forward to a nice weekend. We even have some sunshine here today.
Things seem to be quiet on the home front in the US. Dad is settling in. Mom is full speed ahead in booking and planning for her trip here and the cruise next June. So that is exciting. I think having things to look forward to is so important. I’m in charge of flights, hotels and an extension tour in a Iceland. We both figure we should see a bit more since we don’t know if we will be there again.
NJ: Your dog’s operation is tomorrow, correct? I bet you are busy with some prep work for that. I’ll be thinking of you and hoping all goes super smoothly. I also hope you are faring okay with your neighbor this week.
Cat: Hoping that you are continuing to feel healthy and not too exhausted. You’ll be halfway through AC next week. Hurrah! I love to see all of us making such good progress.
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Hi Gals,
I so enjoyed our chat on Monday. I felt pretty good yesterday (the first half of the day) and woke up wanting to get some projects done. I didn’t put a lot on my calendar this week in anticipation of possibly not feeling well so now I’m a little bored. I washed my king sized duvet cover and then (drum roll) decided to IRON it. This was Herculean as it turned out and midway through the ironing I started to feel queasy. I got this ridiculous project done but I really wasn’t feeling so great from 4:00 pm on last night. I took to the bed around 9:00 pm as we say in the south. Oh well, I feel better this am.
Bird: I am so glad your dad is in the memory care. I am sorry your mom is going through adjustments. This must be so hard on everyone. I totally agree that we all need things to look forward to and I think it is wonderful that you are planning the trip with your mom. She sounds like an amazing lady and reminds me of my mom who had a lot of Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah!
Bird, sounds like Ethan got a fun little bonus night in Amsterdam. My daughter studied abroad in Amsterdam about a year ago and it was awesome. Hubby and I went and visited her there and had a wonderful time!
Dogmom: thinking of you as you get ready for your pup’s big surgery. Sending hugs and good thoughts your and your fur baby’s way as you both get through this big surgery (and hoping nosey neighbor stays away!).
That’s about it for me. Headed to the movies with a friend later today. I need to get out of the house and away from the ironing board! 😊
Cat
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Good Morning!
Bird: Sounds like a silver lining in that missed flight! Amsterdam is a great city. I hope they had a ton of fun! Glad your mom is spending some time looking forward and that your dad is settling in. Iceland is amazing. I didn't let all the natural beauty of Iceland distract me from the shopping opportunities! 😆 I picked up some wool items when I was there about 10 years ago that I still wear every winter. Favorites are the leg warmers. I take them out of my cedar drawers in the late fall and cross my fingers that the moths haven't gotten to them. They look funky and are toasty warm over jeans on very cold days.
Cat: So glad you are feeling good this morning. Ironing a king size duvet sounds like quite a chore! The schedule you described is about the schedule that I'm on for the non-steroid days. I have some energy in the morning and I start thinking about a nap in the early afternoon. If I don't nap, I don't feel well by late afternoon. The naps really help. With all that our bodies are going through, taking to the bed seems a right rather than an indulgence, especially after ironing a king duvet!!
Yesterday was a day full of waiting. I had an 11am dryer vent cleaning scheduled. They finally showed up at 3pm. It's funny. He used the same excuse he used last time - issues with the truck. They were at the mechanic. Anyway - glad it's done. Now I just have to drop the receipt at the HOA and that box is checked.
Not sure if I mentioned but the storm door blew off my house during one of the storms we had over the past few weeks. I lugged it behind the shrubs and left it there. The HOA will probably fine me for having it up against the house. 😅 The guy is coming to measure to replace that today. Weird that they have to measure for a standard 36x81" storm door that they installed on my house 5 years ago but here we are. :) I thought I had an ENT appointment at 11 today but then couldn't find it on their web site. Was glad I was mistaken. I have therapy at 3 and a CT scan of my neck at 5:15 for that swollen gland I had a couple of weeks ago. Busy day.
The dog has a 7am drop off for surgery tomorrow. I'm thinking he should have grilled steak with his dinner tonight. I'm sure he'll second that motion!
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NJ: Your stuff makes me tired just thinking of it. Good job plowing through it. Sending good vibes for your CT scan as well. And yeah. The dog totally deserves steak!
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Good morning all! My son made it and we cooked out fajitas. They are off exploring today. I am going for a walk with a neighbor this afternoon, but otherwise not much going on. We might take them out for dinner tonight and do a little road trip on Saturday. Then they go to Tallinn, Vilnius and Riga for a little trip. I can’t believe it is a Thursday all ready!
NJ: Thinking of you and your pup today and hoping all goes smoothly and easily. I also hope the CT scan went alright and that swollen glands were just a sign of your body fighting an infection. Mine typically swell up a bit right after my chemo and then settles back down.Cat: No thank you to king size duvet ironing. That was indeed an ambitious project 🤣🤣. It’s funny. The kids are all very European in that they don’t really do top sheets. Just duvet covers that are washed along with sheets weekly. But I, with my upbringing, can’t let go of the top sheet and do a duvet and cover AND a top sheet. It is literally always a bit confusing for the house cleaners we have hired as they don’t always know exactly how to arrange it all.
I welcome any Iceland suggestions. I was thinking we might take a tour like this:
We will do the Blue Lagoon for the first day as a cruise excursion. Then I thought we would do a 2 or 3 day tour and then return to our hotel for a night and fly out the next day. It seems like this covers some essential and quick Iceland. But I am so not a minibus tour person. But it seems the most practical as I don’t want to drive. Plus, mom doesn’t want to do too much hiking and such I am sure. I just want to choose the right company. This one looks reputable enough.
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Good morning!
Big day for Digmom and her pup! Wishing you both all the best and pup absolutely deserves steak tonight! So glad you have good support in place too.
Dogmom: hope the CT went well. Any update? I’ve been fighting chest congestion for at least 2 weeks (taking Mucinex). My team (oncologist) wants me to get a chest x-ray so I’ll hopefully get that done today with a rainy day in Georgia. I’m a little nervous about it but I had a PET CT in April and it showed no other signs of “c”. Just more tests make me a bit anxious.
Bird: glad your son made it to his destination. I’m craving fajitas now! I have no input on Iceland as I’ve never been there but it’s on my bucket list. Your excursions look wonderful.
Questions: Bird, I’m almost done w “Radical Remission” and have enjoyed it. Are either of you doing any supplements? Also, are you both hungry with the steroids? Any tips on weight management? I find myself hungrier than usual and I really am unhappy about gaining 10 plus pounds. I’m trying to eat heathy and mostly do but the increased appetite is definitely a challenge for me.
I’m listening to a crazy, true story podcast about a young woman who faked her cancer for monetary gain, “Scamanda”- fascinating. Just finished reading “West with Giraffes”; historical fiction. Really enjoyed it and thought it was very well written.
Cat0 -
Meant to add: totally agree about the naps. I don’t “feel” tired for a nap but when I lay down, I’m out like a light and go into a deep sleep so I’m sure my body needs this nap. I also feel better in the evening if I’ve had a nap. I get nauseated/queasy at night when I haven’t napped.
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Those tours look great and some soak time at The Blue Lagoon sounds fantastic! I'm envious!! My trip to Iceland was really limited. My ex wanted to spend the whole week in Reyjavik with week long passes to Laugar Spa. He had been there on a trip with friends and had already done the tours. I really didn't get to see very much. I'll have to go back at some point. Laugar spa was interesting. Not very posh but they had outdoor thermal pools and all sorts of ways to cool off like overhead buckets of ice water with pull cords and giant barrels of ice water that you could dunk in. I mostly shopped for woolens in the city on that trip. :)
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Cat: I am not doing many supplements now due to treatment. Antioxidants, for instance, can interact with the chemo so my oncologist doesn’t want me to take any. So my multivitamin is on hold. I do take a probiotic though which he okayed. He also okayed daily cranberry pills to prevent UTIs (and they apparently can possibly help make chemo more effective). I also take Vitamin D due to the climate here. Everyone is deficient so my oncologist felt it was good to continue taking that. I have a lot of ideas for post chemo though. And I feel that my probiotic has been helpful during chemo.
I don’t get as many steroids as you both do so I haven’t really had many side effects. I only get them in the IV before the chemo. I do have some that they sent home “just in case” but I haven’t felt badly enough (yet) to take them. And I do worry a bit about side effects like bloating and weight gain and hunger. I think you have the right attitude though. Just make snacks as healthy as you can tolerate and remember that you can lose the weight again when finished with all of this.
And yeah. Tests freak me out as well so I totally get that.
NJ: My mom is a major knitter so will really enjoy looking at wool and such in Iceland. I really like the idea of some leg warmers. They are really common to wear here in Finland.
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No news on the dog yet. I called about 15 minutes ago. They told me I'd get a call when he's out of surgery and waking from the anesthesia.
CT results should be out there some time today. My expectation is they'll say "What swollen gland?" because by the time I had the scan, the glands were back to normal :)
Cat: Good luck with the chest x-ray. Hopefully they'll get you on whatever meds you need to resolve the congestion. I wouldn't stress over the weight. We're sleeping a bit more, not getting as much exercise and then there's those damned steroids. I'll focus on weight loss and healthy sleep and exercise habits after chemo. I got the same info as Bird regarding supplements - not to even take a multi-vitamin. I have kefir or Greek yogurt just about every day for probiotics.
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NJ: I hope you hear something soon on your fur baby soon. The glands sound like a temporary thing so that is good.
Off to bed !
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Good morning!
NJ: I am hoping that you have your fur baby home recovering safe and sound. Did they give you a timeline for when he will start to walk? Do they just naturally adapt?
Heya Cat!I’ve got a slight cold today. I had a bit of a sore throat overnight and feel just a bit run down today. Nothing too exciting. No fever or congestion or anything like that. I’ve reached out to see what I can take for it if it gets any worse. There is a lot of pollen here now. My husband came back from Vienna with what sounded like a cold to me. He’s been coughing a lot and swears up and down it is allergies. Which, maybe. Or a cold from travel. It is irrelevant, except I suspect he passed it on. Luckily, I am a the end of a chemo cycle and think my immune system is probably kinda sorta normal. Hopefully rest and extra fluids tonight will sort me out. I really don’t want to delay the next treatment. I just want to get this done!
Beautiful weather here at the moment. I download a zillion books and podcasts, but don’t end up listening to them. I am also a huge reader and am finding reading slow lately. I think because my brain is just so scrambled. I downloaded Radical Hope and will read that next. Right now, I am slowly reading THE EDEN TEST | By Adam Sternbergh. It’s like a domestic suspense thriller. It’s okay. I am hoping I want to read more when I finish treatment and my brain calms down a bit.0 -
Good morning!
Bird: Ouch on the cold! Glad you are keeping a close watch and fingers are crossed that you don't have any delay for your final chemo. I look forward to the day when we don't have to worry about these things. Soon!!
Bird: I have similar issues with concentration which make reading really difficult. When I had to read an email 3 or 4 times to comprehend what the author was trying to communicate, I knew it was time to go out on short term disability. It's gotten worse over time. I look forward to the fog lifting post chemo!
Cat: Thinking of you - hope all went well with the chest x-ray!
Fur baby was out of surgery and on his way to recovery at 5:30 pm. Post surgery he had a blocker which should have covered him for pain last night and they put a soaker catheter in during surgery so they can deliver pain meds through that today - similar to a soaker garden hose. The expectation is that he'll come home once his pain can be controlled with oral meds - likely tomorrow. They'll try to get him up and walking later today and will have to remove the soaker catheter before they can send him home.
The plan for today is to set up a cozy safe space in the kitchen for the dog. He'll be with the vet when I'm in chemo on Thursday. The rest of my appointments next week should be quick so I'm thinking he'll be okay to stay home for those.
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Morning gals,
I had a good day yesterday. I’m feeling surprisingly well so far w the AC but I do think the afternoon nap is important for me. I’m always out like a light when I nap and it definitely seems to pave the way for a non-queasy evening.
Got the chest x-ray yesterday yesterday, easy. Should get results this am when I go in for blood work.
Thanks for sharing about the supplements. I’m not taking anything right now but am going to ask about probiotics and B vitamins today. I do eat a Greek yogurt every morning so that’s good.
I had a wonderful walk w my friend (a BFF): the one who does the positive spins, wants to go through my mom’s jewelry etc. Anyway, I told her I’ve reached my limit right now of people telling me my “silver linings” in this situation. She totally understood and took it so well. What a relief! We are having lunch with 2 other friends today. I’m looking forward to it!Bird: sounds like you do have a cold. Hope you are feeling better. I am SO excited that you are almost done with chemo!!!
Dogmom: thought of you and pup all day yesterday but knew it would be an exhausting day without dealing with chemo fatigue so I didn’t want to bother you, add to stuff coming at you. How is pup? How’d the day go? Did pup feel like some steak? Hoping all went as well as it could.
Cat0
