First stage of my journey IS OVER

Yippee, Yahoo, Hooray, Woo Hoo, Bloody Ripper, Bonza, X$##& Fantastic!!!

6 down NONE TO GO

As you may be able to sense, I’m a little bit excited that I’ve just finished my last chemotherapy session yesterday!!  Just a little bit pleased, actually, I feel like I should burst into a song and a tap

dance (but I don’t have the energy). 

Now all I have to do is put up with the next week of feeling yuk and then enjoy gradually feeling back to normal.

I’m going to try and plan a little celebration this time in three weeks because for the last six X three weeks, it’s been something I’ve dreaded.  Waking up, knowing that you have to go and get poisoned isn’t very pleasant, and then you walk into the hospital and get even more depressed.  Then you get hooked up and have all these yucky feelings in your body. 

However, looking on the bright side – the lump has shrunk, the chemotherapy did exactly what it was suppose to do.  Compared to other people, I cruised through.  Nearly everyone I talked to, or eavesdropped (you do a lot of that whilst being poisoned) has had nothing significant happen to them. 

Lady next to me yesterday, had severe mouth ulcers and couldn’t eat.  Another lady couldn’t wear her dentures because of ulcers.  Someone else got incredible reflux and found it difficult to eat.  Another lady got an infection (didn’t say where) and as really sick.  A few blogs I read, people ended up in hospital with pneumonia    So, I was really lucky.

You can’t really complain (but I still will) of

·         having a somewhat yucky stomach for at the first week (cross between slight sea-sickness and morning sickness  - or so I’ve been told)

·         bowel issues (don’t worry I won’t elaborate, except shopping centre toilets are not the place to have them,

·         no energy – can’t believe how my fitness levels have dropped – and considering that I didn’t have a high level of fitness, you can imagine how low it is.  I now am a fan of park benches, seats outside coles. 

·         no hair (oh how I’d love to have my hair back – my hair envy dreams are increasing – the other night, I had a lousy hair colouring episode, but at least my hair was long.  (Actually, Kris – it was your fault, you were dying my hair and you didn’t do a great job)

·         drippy right nostril , weepy right eye (don’t know why just my right side is drippy and weepy).  Apparently my drippy nostril is because of a lack of nasal hairs and my weepy right eye may be over compensating because it things that it’s a ‘dry eye’.

·         + to top it all off, enforced menopause, which has meant hot flushes, sleepless nights and a little bit of depression.

Really, in the bigger picture of things, it wasn’t too bad……..

However, as you can see by the next two photos, my veins were starting to rebel with needles.  I had a student phlebotomist taking blood and she needed three attempts and then a call from a more experienced person.  So, result – two pricks in one arm before a successful attempt in the other arm (which resulted in a bruise)



Left Arm - two pricks + chemo bruise




Right Arm  - successful vein, blood tests



And then, for the drip for the chemo – also a fair bit of bruising.  So, my veins will be pleased for a bit of a break.

So, where too from here:

No action for the next few weeks.  Until I have a surgeons appointment 12 July.  Then, they’ll tell me the surgery plan (dates, what, how etc) – expected to be late July, early August.  They usually wait a month or so from chemo so that my immune system and general health can improve. 

Being able to garden!!!  I am so looking forward to being able to plant some seedlings in about 6 weeks.  Oh for the smell of soil!! 

Back at work on a part time basis from 29^th June (my birthday present)!  Actually I’m really looking forward to it.  I hope my team is as well!!  I’d say there’ll be a fair bit of adjusting for all, they are used to me not being there!!

But, there’ll be a transition phase…….I’m going to take it fairly easily for the first few weeks because I think it will be a bit of a shock going from doing nothing back to doing something.  Also, I’m not sure how long this energy depletion will last.  The oncologist said probably another 5 – 6 weeks at least.  I also don’t want any stress to build up which impedes anything. 

I’ll then have to take some more time off for the surgery and then about one month after 6 weeks of radiotherapy.  Apparently I can combine this with work – it only takes about 30 minutes per session, so apart from travel, parking etc, might only be over an hour each day.

So, not much really to say apart from:

 

(Apologies for side view - wouldn't flip for some reason)



NO MORE BLOODY CHEMO

IST STAGE OF MY JOURNEY IS OVER, AND NOW FOR THE NEXT STAGE……

Thanks to all my readers, and thanks to all who’ve been thinking about me, supporting me and generally wishing me well…. So far, it’s worked!!