It begins, again. Karen and I barely sat down in the lobby before Erin grabbed us for the first of my last rounds of chemo. Shoes come off and I step on a scale and she records my weight. We follow her to one of the treatment rooms and I take my place in a recliner where I will sit for the next four hours. Normally the process won't take this long but there is protocol to follow. We go through the meds I will be receiving and the wonderful side effects. My port is accessed and flushed and a dextrose drip is started to go with one of the drugs that will help combat nausea. Orders for my chemo are sent out to the doctor and we wait. The actual chemo drugs are administered over a two hour period, followed by a 10 minute push with 5FU. And then we are done. For this time, for the next two weeks.
Really, when you think of it, the compounds, the drugs and medicines we receive are pretty amazing. The medical community can take your pain away in few moments and yet, sometimes anti-biotics can take a long time to have an effect, and occasionally, they don't work at all. A half hour ago I just finished throwing the ball for the girls; (Anna and Sadee) and I was feeding the rabbits when I noticed a tingling in my left arm. The sensation was similar to when your arm falls asleep in a big way; the kind of pain that gets your attention when the blood flows back into your arm. And then I felt the same thing in my right arm.
WOW!! I knew I would probably experience nerve tingling because that is one of the major side effects, but I did not expect to experience it this soon. But... this afternoon when I touched a cup of cold pop my fingers reacted with kind of mild burning. And when I was out for my walk the cool evening air felt sharper on my cheeks than would be justified by a temperature in the mid-30's. I ran my gloved hands below my eyes because I thought I could feel tears on my face. An increased tendency for tearing is another thing I will have to live with this winter. When winter really comes I was told I will have to cover my mouth so I don't take in the cold air because it can make me feel as though I cannot breathe.
So, here we are at a sort of beginning; a beginning of what I hope will be the end of this particular part of my journey in life. My pump buzzes every few minutes, giving me my dose of chemo. For the next few days I will be juggling the pump, and my ostomy, and then on Friday, the pump is removed. But the chemo goes on and on. This is our life now, but it will not be our life forever. I am thankful for the staff that help us, for the friends and family that give us their love and support. And I am thankful for Karen. I could not do this without her.
I heard winter will arrive next week. Get out and enjoy the weather while you can.
Peace and love to all of you,
Mike
2 comments:
Mike I understand the nerve stuff. I have nerve damage that runs down my left arm. I also have raynaud's http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raynaud%27s_phenomenon that's a link if you are interested. That tingling and numbness isn't fun to live with but you can. You sort of get used to it. Warm and hot water become your friend. You sound like you are in good spirits, I hope this medicine bag treats you well.
Hugs and warm thoughts and wooly socks and gloves (angora is better).
It sounds like it is back to the familiar with more twists added just to keep you off balance. I send you many good thoughts and prayers. Your courage is amazing! Much love to you and Lisa.
Nelson
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