It is to be expected…. Two steps forward one step back. Yes I am talking about recovery and not cycling. I go with what is in my face. Two days ago I noticed some swelling and pain in my left ankle. My excellent home health nurse jumped all over it. It was quickly diagnosed as cellulites. It is an infection of the skin basically and can be really dangerous because it spreads really fast. So yesterday I got some IV antibiotics and the chickenhawk will be dosing me through the IV in my hand for the next few days until the infection clears up.
I am feeling like I’ve got the flu; no energy, weak, fever. It is funny how my tolerance for feeling this way is really high. I am not as much as a basket case as I was before the cancer. I’m just sick and these are just symptoms, and they ‘aint so bad.
Speaking of basket case, when I first learned about what was going on I pretty much freaked out. I was sure I would have to go back in the hospital. That made me feel terrified, depressed, angry. It really brought up some major feelings. I know full well that I’ll be back in the hospital at some point, I need to get my brain around that day. I’m not sure how I am going to do that. Well one day at a time.
So for now I am curtailing my activity and just chillin’ around the house.
Showing posts with label update. Show all posts
Showing posts with label update. Show all posts
Friday, December 5, 2008
Sunday, April 20, 2008
IV Chemo Round I
Well just when you think everything is going along really well, BAM there is something to put you back into reality. The chickenhawk and I had a busy week scheduled. We had to go down the hill to doctors visits on Monday, Wednesday and Thursday. A couple of the trips were early so I would have to get out of bed earlier than normal... We were pretty psyched up for it. Chickenhawk's younger sister came down from Oregon without her kids or husband to spend the week giving us a hand. It was a huge contribution because she could take care of the kids really easily while we spent the week at doctors appointments.
Thursday was my last set of appointments. I had to go to a class on chemotherapy that they make everyone go to before they can get IV chemotherapy. Thus far my chemo therapy has all been oral and as a result not as gnarly as intravenous chemo. The oncologist decided that I was ready to receive some IV chemo. Now this IV chemo is not really for killing cancer cells, it is for strengthening my bones. The drug that they gave me is called zometa and it only takes 1/2 hour to get it onto me. So right after the class they took me downstairs and hooked me up to the IV pole.
In the class they gave us all handouts about our specific chemo drugs. These handouts tell you all of the "potential" side effects. Mine was constipation (always constipation) muscle, joint and bone soreness, fever, chills, muscle spasms, fatigue, nausea and a few other things. The nurses at the chemo clinic were really nice, they tool really good care of us and I barely had time to crack a magazine before we were out of there. On the way home, it felt like the last day of school before summer vacation. We were done with the hard week and had the whole weekend to chill out. I was singing along with the car radio and feeling great. Got home around 3 and took a nap.
When I woke up, the world had changed. I was starting to feel not so great. On Friday morning I was toast. I cant really remember what happened on Friday other than I felt really really bad. It felt how I would feel if I rode three days of the tour de france in the alps. I was hammered. My temperature started to creep up and basically all of the aforementioned side effects happened in a big way especially fatigue. I slept like crazy. I had trouble moving due to all of the pain and had to break into the emergency morphine stash a couple of times. It was pretty much a new low point in the cancering process. The crazy thing is my chemo is one of the more mild chemos. Holy sh%$! I cant imagine getting through the rougher ones.
I felt a little bit better on Saturday and I watched 3 movies... Unbreakable, Life is Beautiful, and 3:10 to Yuma. I did not talk on the phone. I didn't have the energy. I could barely eat, going to the bathroom was a challenge. I am writing this on Sunday and I starting to feel back to my "normal" self. I watched Paris Roubaix today with KD and that was the highlight of the weekend. Boonen is frickin amazing. He ran that race perfectly.
I'll post more soon, gotta go to save energy.
Thursday was my last set of appointments. I had to go to a class on chemotherapy that they make everyone go to before they can get IV chemotherapy. Thus far my chemo therapy has all been oral and as a result not as gnarly as intravenous chemo. The oncologist decided that I was ready to receive some IV chemo. Now this IV chemo is not really for killing cancer cells, it is for strengthening my bones. The drug that they gave me is called zometa and it only takes 1/2 hour to get it onto me. So right after the class they took me downstairs and hooked me up to the IV pole.
In the class they gave us all handouts about our specific chemo drugs. These handouts tell you all of the "potential" side effects. Mine was constipation (always constipation) muscle, joint and bone soreness, fever, chills, muscle spasms, fatigue, nausea and a few other things. The nurses at the chemo clinic were really nice, they tool really good care of us and I barely had time to crack a magazine before we were out of there. On the way home, it felt like the last day of school before summer vacation. We were done with the hard week and had the whole weekend to chill out. I was singing along with the car radio and feeling great. Got home around 3 and took a nap.
When I woke up, the world had changed. I was starting to feel not so great. On Friday morning I was toast. I cant really remember what happened on Friday other than I felt really really bad. It felt how I would feel if I rode three days of the tour de france in the alps. I was hammered. My temperature started to creep up and basically all of the aforementioned side effects happened in a big way especially fatigue. I slept like crazy. I had trouble moving due to all of the pain and had to break into the emergency morphine stash a couple of times. It was pretty much a new low point in the cancering process. The crazy thing is my chemo is one of the more mild chemos. Holy sh%$! I cant imagine getting through the rougher ones.
I felt a little bit better on Saturday and I watched 3 movies... Unbreakable, Life is Beautiful, and 3:10 to Yuma. I did not talk on the phone. I didn't have the energy. I could barely eat, going to the bathroom was a challenge. I am writing this on Sunday and I starting to feel back to my "normal" self. I watched Paris Roubaix today with KD and that was the highlight of the weekend. Boonen is frickin amazing. He ran that race perfectly.
I'll post more soon, gotta go to save energy.
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