Chemo: Day 2

Day 2 is now coming to a close and I am doing well. Doing well is taking a lot of energy, but it is worth it. Yes, I do feel like I have had chemo, but I am not debilitated. On a scale of 0 [kill me know, death would be better than this] to 10 [chemo? is that what that was?], I put myself at an 8. Seriously, that is great!

So here is how today went.

Woke up around 8:30 am after falling asleep around midnight. Leslie says that I slept peacefully. Drinking so much water does mean that I had to get up twice to use the bathroom, but I had no difficulty falling back to sleep. Generally after waking in the morning, I head across the hall to my office to review what email is waiting for me. Respond as needed. This morning, I also added my drug regimen: take the second Emend and two decadron. Cracked the first bottle of water.

Went downstairs and Leslie was already working on the first meal of the day and the all important coffee. [I consider myself truly lucky that I have not developed 'metal mouth' so I still enjoy things like coffee.] Once again, we had homemade oatmeal and I was able to eat about 5 bites and drink about half of the coffee.

Two and a half hours later, I started to feel a little woosy... that is a clear indication it is time for a snack. Leslie washed and peeled some fresh peaches, placed them into the blender with some low fat plain yogurt, and some ice cubes. Smoothies! I had a quarter of a cup, while Leslie enjoyed a normal full-sized glass. So delicious and light.

Time to head back to the hospital for my shot. The neulasta shot has had me concerned, even fearful. I am not a fearful person, but I don't like the unknown all the much unless it is about travel! I had read [yes, too much time on the internet] some horror stories about this particular injection. As promised, Nurse Judy called me in when she was ready for me. I was seated at the open floater chair, and we started chatting. I confessed that I was a little fearful. She immediately suggested that we move to an open infusion chair so that we could pull the curtain.

Nurse Judy asked me a lot of questions. We created the scale mentioned above, we talked about food, when to take some of the optional drugs, and where to place to shot. Most folks get this shot in their inner thigh or stomach. Nurse Judy prefers the upper arm. Sold!

The benefits to having the same nurse are numerous. She knew what side of my body to work on, she knew to push slowly, and that I hate needles but won't faint. She asks wonderful questions, and we are starting to develop a personal relationship. I appreciate all of this. This shot took almost no time, and again, it was painless! So far, I have had no bone pain, though I have some aches in my joints. Obviously, I will be monitoring this.

Leslie and I headed across the street for my 2 hour graze. We selected Rebecca's Cafe. I had hoped that they would have a salad plate, a small plate with several small portions of their different salads. Nope, so I choose a lemon poppyseed bread and a coffee. I was able to eat about 4 bites, and I wrapped the rest to keep in my snack bin at home.

Back to the hospital to meet my new GYN, Dr. David. Dr. David is about 64 years old, and I liked him. He is open, asks great questions, listens well. For once, I felt totally comfortable talking about the things that GYN's like to talk about. I especially praised Dr. MaryJane during our discussion of my breast cancer dx. After chatting [being interrogated] for 30 minutes, he left the room and I changed into a gown. Yup... time for the exam. Without going into too much detail, I find these exams very painful. Yes, I know they shouldn't be, but there it is. At one point Dr. David said "could you pretend to be relaxed for just a moment?" Good guy.

He told me to get dressed, and we went back to talking. He explained that based on my symptoms, the 'book' indicated a uterine biopsy, and that for most women this was a fairly easy procedure, but based on my physical attributes, he suspects that this will hurt like hell [just like that last time I had one.] He looked me in the eye and said "You have been through a lot in the past three months. Let's start with an ultrasound. If that indicates the need for a biopsy, then we will have to do it."

Again, I found myself thanking him for looking at the big picture. As we sat there, Dr. David got quiet, an intense quiet. Then he looked at me and continued, "I am not always sure where the line is, but, my father died of breast cancer. I have had an annual mammogram since the age of 20, and then one year, we found something." He looked down and continued, "And, I called Dr. Maryjane. That is what I think of your doctor. I went to the best." It is an insitu dx, but he elected to have both breasts removed.

I responded, "I am so sorry to hear about your Dad. It is so hard that there is so little research for men." I am sure that my response was inadequate. So another great doctor on my team! One more and we can play baseball in addition to basketball!

Walking back to the car, I started to feel some pain in my joints. Aha! Time to go for a walk. We headed to the Shaws Spa and Supermarket. I was only able to do two rounds, plus shopping. Picked up some Wheatina as an alternative to oatmeal, wheat germ to add some fiber to breakfast, more low fat yogurt, disinfectant wipes for cleaning the kitchen, and some chicken thighs for dinner. Once home, I collapsed for a two hour nap.

Oh! Two hour mark. Time for a small piece of the lemon poppyseed cake. For dinner, served, at 8pm [two hour mark] Leslie had made fried chicken thighs [in peanut oil], basmati rice, lima beans and sliced tomato from the garden. I ate a whole chicken thigh, a little rice and half a slice of tomato. So perfect!

What we learned today:
1. I need to eat small portions every two hours to avoid feeling nauseous.
2. to avoid eating only carbs, I need to have small portions of protein already in the fridge for those in-between meals. I have another chicken thigh and three hard-boiled eggs in there now.
3. This is going to take a lot of effort to maintain.
4. My husband is amazing.
5. I am still feeling stupid and disorganized mentally. I have started a grid for notating medications, fluid intake, and food eaten [Nurse Judy asked me to do this.]
6. Exercise is good, and makes me feel better.
7. I have wonderful friends who have called and emailed. My support system is strong.
8. My husband is amazing.
9. the Neulasta shot isn't bad

[p.s. 1 1/2 hours to write this entry. Getting better, I guess.]