Chris and I went to a pub today with our friend Angela and had a roast dinner, which was very nice. I am having a restful day today as it is chemotherapy number 3 tomorrow.
I am looking forward to tomorrow on one hand because once it is over that is another session out of the way and hopefully I will be half way through, and not looking forward to it on the other hand because it is not very pleasant and I dont feel great afterwards.
I feel pretty fed up a lot of the time now, although the last few days have been a bit more positive. I am fed up with not knowing how I will feel from one day to the next and the impact that has on everything, fed up with the random side effects that seem to pop up at any time, fed up with having a constant runny nose, fed up with not being able to do any exercise, fed up with having to go to bed at 9pm every night no matter what and really fed up with having to wear a wig! But I just keep trying to remind myself that all this is not forever, and one day, life will be back to normal. I am luckier than many people because at least mine is treatable and curable. I also have wonderful support from my family and Chris, who look after me and cheer me up when I feel down in the dumps.
Cycle 2
Today I woke up feeling pretty awful with a bad headache, runny nose and pain in my back where I had the bone marrow. I also felt completely worn out. I went to see the consultant for my pre-chemotherapy meeting and blood test at 9.00 and it all went ok. I told him about the sharp stabbing pains I have been getting in my head, and he basically said that all aches and pains are magnified when you are going through chemotherapy and it was probably nothing to worry about. He had a look in my nose and said that he could not see anything and looked at my back and said that it did not appear to be infected. He said that it can just take time for it to heal inside and described the bone marrow biopsy as “an assault!”. I prefer the other consultant.
Anyway, it all looks ok for Monday and my blood count is ok. I went back to bed when I got home and slept for most of the day. I have a busy day tomorrow and so I need my rest. I cant wait for the weekend when I can sleep more……..
Cycle 2
The sun is shining at the moment, but my journey to work has been plagued by floods so far this week. One of the country roads I usually go on is under eight inches of water, so had to re-route last night and this morning.
I found it quite hard to get up this morning, but this was probably due to going to bed later than usual because I had been out having dinner last night with a few pals I had not seen for a while! It was great fun, we had a good old catch up and it was nice to see everyone again.
I have a lot more energy now, and able to do more things each day such as work longer hours etc. I still leave the office at 4 because driving in the dark still wears me out a bit.
Tomorrow I am off to see my consultant and have a blood test in readiness for chemotherapy session number 3 next Monday. I feel quite well at the moment, the nose bleeds seem to have stopped, as has the permanent runny nose. I am getting strange stabbing pains in my head which can be quite painful but I will ask about these tomorrow.
It is lunchtime now, and I am off to cook my chicken hopot in the microwave!
Cycle 2
As I write this, I am sitting in front of a roaring log fire having a nice glass of red wine. This is about as wild as Saturday nights get at the moment!! Saying that, last night I did venture out to a pub for a couple of hours with an old college friend who I had not seen for some years. I was still in bed by 10.30 though!
I feel as though I have much more energy now since coming off the steroids, and I have not woken up in the night for ages. I had an awful week last week with the hospital stay, having a very near miss after the car skidded on the ice and not being able to get to work because of the weather. I also had to have a day off work on Friday because I was not feeling 100%. I still have a very annoying cold which does not seem to go away and this, combined with the nose bleeds is not too pleasant. It is chemotherapy number 3 a week on Monday, it is going quickly thank goodness.
I am looking forward to tomorrow, it is our godson’s baptism, so we are off to church in the morning. In the afternoon, we are going to Mum and Dad’s for afternoon tea, Mum has promised some “home baking”!!
Cycle 2
I was admitted to hospital on Sunday after being sick and passing out in the bathroom at 5am Sunday morning. It was horrible, I went very hot and dizzy and the room was spinning, I felt better when I lay down though but we rang the hospital and they said to come straight in to A & E to be checked. So off we went, got seen straight away and had a private room in A & E! I had blood tests and a chest x-ray and was hooked up to a drip. I nearly passed out again when they tried to get me to sit up in a wheelchair to take me to the x-ray department, and I was getting really worried by this point.
To cut a long story short, I was taken to the emergency assessment unit and the doctors seemed to think I was very dehydrated. I was really thirsty and drank loads of water all the time I was there. I was moved to the gynaecology ward, which is the only place there were any beds, and got chatting to a few people. There was one woman who kept talking loudly and waking everyone up in the night!
On the plus side, I had a chest xray and the tumour in my chest has shrunk a lot and is now about half the size it was. This is a huge relief, as there is no guarantee that the treatment will work, but the fact that since 23rd December, it has reduced so much in size shows that it must be working. This has cheered me up, and I no longer feel so down in the dumps!!
Cycle 2
I am fed up today. I feel sad, depressed and tired. I have a cough and a runny nose, my hair is still falling out in patches and it is freezing cold. I feel as though I have had enough. I am sure it is just part of the strange mood swings side effect, but it is getting me down today. I have stopped bursting into tears, but this feeling is worse.
Cycle 2
This week has flown by so fast, I have neglected my poor blog!!
It has been a busy week, I was off work on Tuesday, spending the day feeling queasy but was then quite energised on Wednesday, Thursday and today, so have been working. Suddenly remembered it was the end of the month yesterday and my invoicing figures were not looking good, so have spent a couple of days catching up.
The side effects from Monday have not been too bad, I have a runny nose and I did have a sore throat for a day or two. They did tell me that some of the side effects could be flu-type symptoms. Other than that, I have slept through the night for two nights in a row and today is my last day of steroids. So hopefully, I should start sleeping through the night every night!! I don’t feel so tired now either.
I also got a date through for my CT scan, it is on the 3rd March. This is only a month away and will follow the third cycle of chemotherapy so I will be at the “half way point” at this stage. I can’t wait for the scan, I really want to know what is happening inside and it will be such a relief to know that the treatment is working.
Hair still coming out all over the place, although it seems to have slowed down a little. I am now hoovering every day as it gets all over the floor!
Cycle 2
I had my second chemotherapy cycle today. I thought from what they said that I would only be there half the day, but ended up being there until 4.30 anyway. There was a bit of fiddling around because my veins were not taking the needles very well and they had to change veins halfway through, with another 4 attempts at getting the needle in! It turned out that I was tensing my arm and holding my breath when they were trying to get the needle in which apparently can make the vein go flat. Did it in the end though!
My Dad stayed with me the whole day which was nice and Chris’s Dad, Peter came in too and brought chocolates and biscuits!
I felt ok this evening, but have not been able to sleep since 11.30pm and feel a bit sick and have pins and needles in hands. I also have a sore throat. I don’t think I will go to work tomorrow. I am hoping I don’t get the horrible cramps in my feet again, although they have told me to take paracetamol in the morning to stop this happening.
Cycle 2