Today’s my next round of chemo… I’ll be glad to have one more under my belt. I was busy at work today… so I didn’t have much time to think about it. That’s good… praise God for work! I do know to enjoy the energy I have right now… because a couple hours after chemo, that will all change for several days. But… all the side effects are temporary… they will pass… and I’ll feel good again.
I sure wish Ric felt good… he’s still in so much pain. The pain medication helps very little… and the antibiotics don’t seem to be helping… the swelling on the side of his face is getting worse. I keep praying for him. He’s dealing with so much… I still don’t understand why he’s having to go through this. But… I keep praying.
Before chemo today, Penny Moss from WSAS-TV will meet with me again to do a follow-up on my progress so far. We’re going to meet outside the David Lee Cancer Center… and then hopefully shoot some video of the actual chemo treatment. The chemo treatments are so much easier than I had ever realized… maybe this will help alleviate fears of anyone facing a similar situation.
Karen Shirey from CAMC Health Education met me at chemo today… reminded me of the need for lots and lots of fluids during chemotherapy, especially for the first 3 days after a treatment… the medications can cause organ damage… so important to get everything flushed out of my body quickly. Also, need to eat lots of protein, due to muscle damage caused by the chemo. And a reminder to eat no raw foods, due to risk of infection. I must admit it’s a bit scary to think of how toxic these chemicals are that are curing me. I must remember that the chemo destroys the cancer cells… the normal cells will heal themselves.
We did the TV interview at the Cancer Center today… seemed to create quite a stir in the hospital… lots of special procedures had to be followed, mainly to protect the rights of the other patients, which of course is quite understandable. I think everyone in the hospital sensed that it was a good thing though… an opportunity to show folks what a great cancer center we have right here in Charleston. My oncology nurse, Donna, was surprised to find out that she was going to be interviewed as well! She’s so knowledgeable and so personable… and just did a terrific job. One funny thing happened just before the TV camera came into the room (which by the way, having a TV crew in the center… is very rare)… just minutes before they were to enter the room, the window-washers working outside the building, moved to the outside of the very room we were in! What a hoot! The nursing staff was trying to communicate through the window, that they needed to move on… and they did, leaving a big streak of soap behind!
As usual, I felt fine right after the treatment. Knew I probably wouldn’t have much appetite for a few days… so ate some protein rich foods… and drank lots of water, while it still tasted like water.
It’s only 8:15 pm now… but the fatigue is setting in… so going to go to bed. Poor Ric… still in pain… and I know he’s worried about how I’ll get through the night. I’m worried not only about his pain, but how little he’s had to eat… and how little sleep he’s had. I remember the night of our first date… and we saw each other from across the street… he remembers my smile… I remember his soft eyes. Little did we know 6 years ago what was ahead!
Of course we wouldn’t change a thing if we had known.
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