Today is recovery day seven from my treatment day and I am can say that I am feeling A LOT better- especially since the Neulasta shot is wearing off. (I am not looking forward to three more of those!) The toughest thing now is energy- very much lack of. Dr. Matin said the week after treatment is the roughest! I am doing all they say- protein shakes-small meals, trying to exercise, lots of Gatorade. But it is hard when you really don’t feel like eating and nothing taste good. (except for Arby’s Roast beef sandwiches- which was all I could eat when I was pregnant too and Icee’s ) I am also fighting a sinus infection but thankfully the Zpac is helping. Hopefully by the weekend I can feel a little normal…we have so much to do to get everything ready for the kids to school Monday- (Tanner starts Kindergarten and Taylor will be in 3rd grade) attend a birthday party and I actually have a photo shoot scheduled for Saturday afternoon. And I really want to be able to make it to church on Sunday.
Reflecting back on last week…..
Thank you all for lifting me up in prayer last Thursday for my first of four treatments. I will say it was really wasn’t as bad as expected. After having lunch with my hubby we got to the clinic and had a very short wait to get started. The normal lab work and visit with Dr. Matin. I am so happy that I listened to God and followed my heart- second options are well worth it!! Changing treatment facilities and doctors has been wonderful. The Cancer Care Center at East is a lot more personable and love…love that you don’t have to wait three to four hours and when you call you actually talk to a person and not wait hours on a call back!
When Christie my chemo nurse walked me back to the treatment room my stomach hit the floor. All I could see was chairs and IV bags. The room was very cold-everyone was sitting in the chairs was wrapped in blankets. So naturally I went to the one in the back-the area with little to no light. Christie just had a way about her that made me relax- she explained everything as she did it. When they put the freeze spray on my port area I was amazed that I did not feel the actually needle going it. Just hope it is that easy next time. The energy there was all smiles- everyone was so friendly. Even the other patients. I tried so hard not to stare but I will say I counted my blessings. So many are far off worse than I am. All I could do is pray for them. The first drugs that were administered was nausea meds-benedryl. When it came for the Taxotere meds I honestly had no thoughts…cancer…breast cancer…nothing. It was because of you all lifting me up in prayer during this time. I was very relaxed and was looking forward to a long nap with my ipod since that particular bag would take over an hour. That did not happen. I was brought a little bowl of ice and purple gloves. I had to soak my fingers in/out of the ice water until the bag was gone. This was to keep the Taxotere from entering my nails/fingertips, which can make them break and/or cause numbness. So now I was not a happy camper…..but Mickey keep me in all smiles. He also keep feeding me snacks and keep me well hydrated. (which made me made several trips to the bathroom- I think I was annoying everyone by getting up so much) Christie then gave me the bag of Cytoxan- this one was very quick. I couldn’t believe that I was done…one treatment…done!! After checking my blood pressure and labs again I was on my way home. (was a little light headed but did great!) I have heard of so many people say…”I cried through my first treatment”- it was tough-I did want to cry but I wanted to Glorify my God and stay strong. This is one of those trials that you have no choice- you just chose to get through it with all you got!
Friday after my treatment was a normal day…I moved right along caring for all the kids. It did help having Mickey home with me. Friday afternoon Tanner went with me to get my Neulasta shot. He was such a trooper. He asked my I squeezed his hand so tight…I told him because “ It Hurt”. He told me that mommy’s aren’t supposed to hurt…awwwww! Our weekend was just being lazy-movie and snuggle times. We are so thankful for all the calls, emails, text messages and meals. My husband even took the kids to a water day on Saturday and to church on Sunday to give me extra rest. By Sunday afternoon I was in screaming pain…even with pain meds! Sure hope this part gets easier.
So hopefully I will continue to improve this week so I can stay strong and prepare for my next treatment on Thursday, August 19th. Keep praying- and feel please respond. I love hearing from all those who are along this journey with me. I will update soon!
Heather
From the fullness of His grace we have all received one blessing after another. John 1:16
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