Chemo #3!!

Well, here I am again……my third chemo infusion today…..

It is interesting to me how it does NOT become any less scary when you walk into the infusion room.  Today, I woke up with a headache so that did not help the situation at all but what made it just a little bit more rotten (lol) was arriving at 9:00 am for blood work, seeing my oncologist at 10:00 am, and waiting two full hours to get a chair in the infusion room :-(.  NOT FUN.  But, my infusion started a little after 1:00 pm with the anti-nausea meds and steroid, and about 30 min later the lovely red devil…..as people seem to call it and about 30 minutes after that was cyclophosphamide which is always lovely as well.  Then they finish up with flushing the port and using heparin.

Today I had a different nurse than usual.  Usually I have nurses that are upbeat and happy.  This woman has been working at Fox Chase for 45 years in the infusion room.  Not much of a sense of humor but she was nice enough.  It was interesting because the moment she started giving me the anti-nausea drugs, I got nauseous.  First time that happened so far.  And now, 4 hours later, I’m having interesting waves of nausea.  This is not fun.

Not sure if I mentioned that I am now bald!  It is quite empowering I must say but I find that most days, in the morning I forget that I am bald and when I look in the mirror I feel a flood of emotions.  My sister suggested waking up and putting a hat on immediately to kind of keep those emotions at bay, but……..it is what it is and I can’t change it.

So, I have 5 more infusions left now.  So much better than saying I have 8 infusions to go.  I can’t wait until I can say…..4 more!  3 more! 2 more!  DONE AND LET’S PARTY!!!!!

For anyone that might be at the beginning stages of what seems to be the biggest nightmare, let me say this to you:  as scary as this is…I never thought in a million years I would be able to sit here and tell you that I have 5 more left!  I never even thought I’d be able to discuss my surgery…..I urge you to keep your faith; let me help you (or at least someone in a support group that knows what you are about to go through).  If it wasn’t for Jill, Jenn and Janet….I would have been lost and scared to death.  It truly helps to speak with someone that went through it (or is going through it ahead of you)!

I am going to take compazine and hour early tonight….just because I already feel nauseous.  This is usually not the case so I want to make sure I get rid of it and am hoping for the best this time.  I am also praying that I’ll have my eyebrows and eyelashes through all of this!  If not, again, it is what it is.

Thank GOD for my husband today, by the way.  He told me jokes, tried SO hard to get me out of my funk that I tend to fall into the day of chemo.  He made it all the better, as always and I am so grateful.  Thank you to every single person that sent me a text and put beautiful messages on Facebook.  IT MEANS THE WORLD TO ME.

I’ll write again to keep this updated as I can.  Love & light as always to every one of you! xoxo