Rolling with the changes...

Everyone has a friend, relative, or someone they know who has cancer.  To them, it is a characteristic of that someone until they either die, or the cancer goes into remission.  One thing I have learned is that each person and their cancer are so very different.  “They” say that you will feel the effects of chemo on certain days, “they” say that you will lose your hair during or after cycle n, “they” say that certain anti-nausea medications are God’s gift to cancer patients… and all I can do is smile and laugh, because no amount of research and planning can help me know what to expect so I can be prepared. 

For my second cycle, I moved chemo to Fridays because I wanted to have a good Saturday, since day 3, 4, and 5 post chemo are nauseating and make me exhausted.  And of course, once I started my second cycle, my nausea and fatigue moved to day 1,2,3, and 4.  That said, I am considering moving chemo to earlier in the week next cycle. My doctor said that there is no reason that I should be feeling nauseous, however, after 6 weeks of feeling nauseous after chemo, I am begging for new medications.  The next step is to try a series of anti-nausea medications versus 1 every x hours.  This ups the amount of medications per day to well over 12-13, but who is counting?

I have begun to experience the infamous “metal” taste when I eat certain foods.  I now pack plastic utensils and peppermints in my purse a.k.a. medicine cabinet.  In addition to my changing taste buds, my emotions have also been affected.  The medicines make me “hormonal” – I think it is the steroids.  Andrew jokes that if I start working out I may be able to make the transition to professional bodybuilding or WWE (that’s wrestling I was informed)J!   Most of my days end with me going to bed much earlier than I am use to, it’s a fight to stay up past 8 some nights.  That said I must say Thank you to my awesome husband who has been by my side, put up with my ever changing moods, and has carried the load when needed. 

Dealing with all the hair loss in the shower was taking too much time, so I cut my hair into a “pixie” style haircut.  Elizabeth keeps telling me that I have a boy haircut, and I remind her that Tinkerbell and I have matching haircuts.  She argues that Tinkerbell has a bun on the top of her head. Disney needs to get their story straight because technically Tinkerbell has a couple different haircuts, so any help on that end would be nice Disney.  Andrew and I did pick out a wig last week.  I have to say, it is not uncomfortable, keeps my head warm, and Elizabeth really likes how normal I look.  Personally, I do not mind the short or no hair, wearing hats, or trying out different scarves (they are ‘in’ right now, right?).  Either way, how often in your life do you get to wear any kind of hair you want and get to go ‘over the top’ with accessories?  Why not have a little fun with it? 

This is about how much hair I lost each time I took a shower.  I think I spent more time trying to collect it before goin gdown the drain then actually showering!!

 

 

The vacuum took a beating as well :(-

 

 

My thinning hair-

 

 

 

PS. I am giving a shout out to my friend Patty at Brian Joseph’s.  She did a great job with my wig, and for those of you knowing someone recently diagnosed, she has a formula that, if applied before and during treatment, saves your eyelashes and eyebrows- which does not help me, but I’m all about sharing the knowledge.

This week will be my last treatment for Cycle #2 – then I have a week off….YIPPEEE!  I am hoping that this week off will be a little healthier then the last, but any version of less nausea sounds energizing.  Again, I want to thank everyone one of you for your encouragement, blessings, cards, warm dinners, gift cards…the list goes on.  Every day is a challenge, but with all your love and support you make this battle a little bit easier.

"What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us."