Tuesday, 20th July, 2nd bout of Chemotherapy.
Just as a round up of how the first cycle went here's some bullet points of the good and bad things I experienced.
- Days 2,3 and 4 felt really nauseus had to eat constantly
- Day 5 - Poppy's 2nd birthday party, ate my body weight in crisps and dips
- Day 7 - Nasty, painful acne like break out on face - predominantly chin(s)
- Day 8 - got medicated moisturiser for skin
- Day 14 - skin calming down and not sore anymore
- Napping most afternoons while Amber sleeps
- Days 7-21 apart from skin issues felt pretty damn normal thank you very much.
2nd Cycle
- Day 1 - took medication as prescribed, felt a bit fragile but not too sicky
- Day 2 - felt wiped out, didn't feel up to doing very much, slept for about an hour at 4 then went to bed at 8.30pm for 11 hours
- Day 3 - Oh my God I feel like death warmed up, had to go to hospital for routine Physio appointment but didn't feel well enough even to drive myself the 5 minute car journey to the hospital. Went up to Forster Suite (the Chemo ward) while I was at the hospital just to check what I was feeling was normal, they checked my BP and heart and all was fine, they just told me to rest.
Slept for an hour when I got home, then had my sister come and be with Amber so I could rest some more. Felt the worst I have ever felt since being diagnosed, couldn't get comfortable sitting, standing, lying down, too hot, too cold. Horrible.
- Day 4 - Had to get out of the house, went on a family day trip to Woburn Safari Park. Best thing we could have done, had an amazing day, don't know if I would have been feeling any better if I'd just been at home anyway but regardless I felt a million percent better than the day before.
- Day 5 - Tea party at the In-laws - ate my body weight in prawn sandwiches, cakes and sugary treats (I think day five could be my favourite day!)
- Night 5 - woke at 11pm with sharp pain in stomach, just made to toilet - too many prawn sandwiches :(
- Day 6 - Feeling back to normal again
- Evening 6 - Back on toilet, think I'm going to actually die - really shouldn't have eaten so many prawn sandwiches. Phoned chemo emergency helpline incase I needed to be admitted to hospital - I didn't, just got told to take some immodium!
So now I'm back to the normal stage again hopefully until cycle 3. My only concern is the one thing that is meant to get worse is the fatigue and that really knocked me back this time. I don't know how I'll cope if it multiplies at the rate it did between cycle 1 and 2 for the next four cycles as I really struggled this time. Although I think the worst part was for me that I didn't know how long it would last for, next time I know I need to right off days 2 and 3 get some help with Amber and relax. Hopefully that will be enough, we shall see.
Monday, 26 July 2010
Am I losing my hair or my mind?
I woke up on Sunday morning quite excited to be able to do something pro-active about my hair loss, I expected to be dictated to by my body and not to have any control so this felt quite good.
So I had a shower without washing my hair (I wanted to give it 100% of my attention so did it separately over the side of the bath). Then psyched myself up to wash it all away...
It was soooo disappointing, not only did it not all come out but I was now left with a hairstyle where it was too weak to put product in it and too fluffy to be without. I wore my hat when I went out today :(
Monday, I washed it again, a bit more vigourously, and yes lots of my hair is now coming out and my sleep cap is looking more like a cat every day but I still have hair.
Is it wrong for me to want it to all fall out now? It just seems like such a pain that I've dreaded this moment for weeks and now it's here I want it to hurry up and finish already. It's the being between hairy and balding that is so frustrating. I look unsightly without a scarf or hat (really and that's being polite, my sister described me as someone off 'The Witches' by Roald Dahl) and the weather has been really muggy so I've had an overly hot head which has been really uncomfortable.
I've given up wearing my stupid pink hat at night cos it just disturbs me as I turn my head at night as I can feel it rubbing against my tender remaining strands of hair.
The sensation I have on my head is weird, its best described as when you brush your hair in the wrong direction, or if you've ever had long hair and have it in a ponytail all day then take it out, its uncomfortable but not painful. In the heat my head was really itchy and walking around even at home without a scarf is pretty much unthinkable until it's all fallen out, as I'm leaving a trail of hair wherever I go. My tiled bathroom floor looks like I've had it carpeted by the time I've finished in there in the morning.
I'm glad Amber is young enough that she won't remember any of this as the other morning when I was washing my hair over the side of the bath and there was a pile of my hair the size of a large mouse sitting in the bathtub that had been fished from the plug hole. She looked at me and said "Better", "OK" which in Amber speak means "It's Ok, and will be better soon". Bless her for not freaking out!
So anyway today is Monday, 26th I still have hair clinging on for dear life to my scalp but I have a rather fetching bald spot with Mr Baldy Man length strands trying pathetically to fill my head. Tomorrow night is my first Pampered Chef show since my hair started falling out so I'm going to have to decide if it will be the first outing for the wig or if I'll stick to the scarf. We shall have to wait and see.
This week has been a lot of firsts that I didn't expect to have - the first time of leaving my house wearing a 'cancer scarf', the first shop at Sainsburys wearing a 'cancer scarf', unexpectedly bumping into a friend at the petrol station wearing a 'cancer scarf', going to the zoo wearing...etc.
Surprisingly enough I'm starting to forget I'm wearing it which is a huge relief as I thought I would feel like I was wearing a flashing beacon on my head saying Cancer Patient (and the nice thing is even if people do think that I'm not aware of it so don't have to be consious of it).
For those of you that are wondering why I haven't just shaved it all off, there is a reason...
Apparently the longer your hair is, the larger (and stronger) the hair follicle, this is to enable it to hold onto the hair (in non chemo patients). If you cut your hair too short too close to Chemotherapy your follicle will still think it has long hair in it and will hold onto the root too tightly for it's weight therefore gravity won't be able to pull the hair out.
Once the hair has started falling out this is even more imperitive, because if the hair can't fall out on it's own it will remain in the shaft and could get infected (very bad for Chemo patients with no immunity to fight infection off).
So now you know!
So I had a shower without washing my hair (I wanted to give it 100% of my attention so did it separately over the side of the bath). Then psyched myself up to wash it all away...
It was soooo disappointing, not only did it not all come out but I was now left with a hairstyle where it was too weak to put product in it and too fluffy to be without. I wore my hat when I went out today :(
Monday, I washed it again, a bit more vigourously, and yes lots of my hair is now coming out and my sleep cap is looking more like a cat every day but I still have hair.
Is it wrong for me to want it to all fall out now? It just seems like such a pain that I've dreaded this moment for weeks and now it's here I want it to hurry up and finish already. It's the being between hairy and balding that is so frustrating. I look unsightly without a scarf or hat (really and that's being polite, my sister described me as someone off 'The Witches' by Roald Dahl) and the weather has been really muggy so I've had an overly hot head which has been really uncomfortable.
I've given up wearing my stupid pink hat at night cos it just disturbs me as I turn my head at night as I can feel it rubbing against my tender remaining strands of hair.
The sensation I have on my head is weird, its best described as when you brush your hair in the wrong direction, or if you've ever had long hair and have it in a ponytail all day then take it out, its uncomfortable but not painful. In the heat my head was really itchy and walking around even at home without a scarf is pretty much unthinkable until it's all fallen out, as I'm leaving a trail of hair wherever I go. My tiled bathroom floor looks like I've had it carpeted by the time I've finished in there in the morning.
I'm glad Amber is young enough that she won't remember any of this as the other morning when I was washing my hair over the side of the bath and there was a pile of my hair the size of a large mouse sitting in the bathtub that had been fished from the plug hole. She looked at me and said "Better", "OK" which in Amber speak means "It's Ok, and will be better soon". Bless her for not freaking out!
So anyway today is Monday, 26th I still have hair clinging on for dear life to my scalp but I have a rather fetching bald spot with Mr Baldy Man length strands trying pathetically to fill my head. Tomorrow night is my first Pampered Chef show since my hair started falling out so I'm going to have to decide if it will be the first outing for the wig or if I'll stick to the scarf. We shall have to wait and see.
This week has been a lot of firsts that I didn't expect to have - the first time of leaving my house wearing a 'cancer scarf', the first shop at Sainsburys wearing a 'cancer scarf', unexpectedly bumping into a friend at the petrol station wearing a 'cancer scarf', going to the zoo wearing...etc.
Surprisingly enough I'm starting to forget I'm wearing it which is a huge relief as I thought I would feel like I was wearing a flashing beacon on my head saying Cancer Patient (and the nice thing is even if people do think that I'm not aware of it so don't have to be consious of it).
For those of you that are wondering why I haven't just shaved it all off, there is a reason...
Apparently the longer your hair is, the larger (and stronger) the hair follicle, this is to enable it to hold onto the hair (in non chemo patients). If you cut your hair too short too close to Chemotherapy your follicle will still think it has long hair in it and will hold onto the root too tightly for it's weight therefore gravity won't be able to pull the hair out.
Once the hair has started falling out this is even more imperitive, because if the hair can't fall out on it's own it will remain in the shaft and could get infected (very bad for Chemo patients with no immunity to fight infection off).
So now you know!
Losing my Hair
Thursday, 15th July 2010, the biggest event of my business calendar - Pampered Chef National Conference - I get out of the shower in the morning, press my hands over my head to squeeze the water out of my hair and my hand comes away with loads of hair attached to it! Bloody Brilliant!
To be fair I actually expected it to start falling out 2 days before (two weeks from the date of my first chemo) as that is the earliest it was likely to start to come out. However as it hadn't happened yet I thought I might be lucky and get through my three day conference without having to deal with my hair loss until I got home.
No such luck.
I had totally prepared for this to happen though, I had already packed my headscarves (I even ordered a black one via special delivery to make sure I had something that would work with my Gala Dinner outfit), my sleep hat and my day to day hats, my roomie for the weekend Sara was totally up to speed with what to expect (a quivering mess) and the girls that I would be spending time with while I was away were all ready for me to arrive with a totally bald head!
Before it happened my mental picture of what to expect (despite this being completely different from what I had been told) was that the hair would all fall out in one great lump, or that I'd be sitting in a workshop and the person behind me would be distracted from the speaker by the clumps of my hair dropping to the floor at her feet. This was not the case however - although it seemed like a fair amount of hair had come out that morning, to look at me my hair looked no different.
I have to admit I'm a 'picker', a 'spot squeezer' and a 'scab flicker' having hair that came away when you give it a little tug is strangly satisfying if not a little disturbing, so for this reason I took to wearing a hat 24/7 while at Conference.
What was great with this was the fact that out of the 700+ delegates there, only about 15 of them knew my situation, the rest of them would have just thought I was a "hat wearer" or thought nothing at all, I was obviously constantly aware of the fact I was wearing a hat indoors but never-the-less thought I carried it off pretty well!
In the evenings I wore my previously titled 'cancer scarves' which actually are pretty cute and I dressed them up with flower clips from Accessorize (only 1 per outfit mind, I didn't want to look like I had a hanging basket from my head).
It may sound scummy but I didn't wash my hair again until Sunday - I was petrified if I did, it would all come out and I wouldn't be able to get away with just being a hat wearer, it wasn't too bad though as my hair seemed to have died and was no longer producing any oils so wasn't greasy (or smelly). Plus the showers at the hotel were super pressured and would have been a challenge for anyone with weak follicles to withstand.
When I got home late on Saturday evening I was totally knackered and couldn't face washing my hair, plus Jay was out and I kind of wanted to do the whole hair loss thing with him there. So I went to bed in my sleep hat (a terry toweling turban in baby pink) and prepared myself for the hair loss shower that I was going to experience in the morning.
To be fair I actually expected it to start falling out 2 days before (two weeks from the date of my first chemo) as that is the earliest it was likely to start to come out. However as it hadn't happened yet I thought I might be lucky and get through my three day conference without having to deal with my hair loss until I got home.
No such luck.
I had totally prepared for this to happen though, I had already packed my headscarves (I even ordered a black one via special delivery to make sure I had something that would work with my Gala Dinner outfit), my sleep hat and my day to day hats, my roomie for the weekend Sara was totally up to speed with what to expect (a quivering mess) and the girls that I would be spending time with while I was away were all ready for me to arrive with a totally bald head!
Before it happened my mental picture of what to expect (despite this being completely different from what I had been told) was that the hair would all fall out in one great lump, or that I'd be sitting in a workshop and the person behind me would be distracted from the speaker by the clumps of my hair dropping to the floor at her feet. This was not the case however - although it seemed like a fair amount of hair had come out that morning, to look at me my hair looked no different.
I have to admit I'm a 'picker', a 'spot squeezer' and a 'scab flicker' having hair that came away when you give it a little tug is strangly satisfying if not a little disturbing, so for this reason I took to wearing a hat 24/7 while at Conference.
What was great with this was the fact that out of the 700+ delegates there, only about 15 of them knew my situation, the rest of them would have just thought I was a "hat wearer" or thought nothing at all, I was obviously constantly aware of the fact I was wearing a hat indoors but never-the-less thought I carried it off pretty well!
In the evenings I wore my previously titled 'cancer scarves' which actually are pretty cute and I dressed them up with flower clips from Accessorize (only 1 per outfit mind, I didn't want to look like I had a hanging basket from my head).
It may sound scummy but I didn't wash my hair again until Sunday - I was petrified if I did, it would all come out and I wouldn't be able to get away with just being a hat wearer, it wasn't too bad though as my hair seemed to have died and was no longer producing any oils so wasn't greasy (or smelly). Plus the showers at the hotel were super pressured and would have been a challenge for anyone with weak follicles to withstand.
When I got home late on Saturday evening I was totally knackered and couldn't face washing my hair, plus Jay was out and I kind of wanted to do the whole hair loss thing with him there. So I went to bed in my sleep hat (a terry toweling turban in baby pink) and prepared myself for the hair loss shower that I was going to experience in the morning.
Friday, 2 July 2010
Chemo # 1
On Tuesday, 29th June I had my first session of Chemotherapy.
Before we left for the hospital, I could sense I was a little snappy, Jay was also quite tense and I just wanted to get it all over with. I was a little teary eyed on the walk over to the hospital from the car, but Jay just reminded me to stay positive and stop dwelling on the unknown (which I don't normally need to be told but I think it was all a bit much to take that morning).
My appointment was at 11am so we arrived a little early to try and speed up the process.
The day before I had been in to see my Oncologist (Mr Shah) - he doesn't come into the hospital on Tuesday - to get his approval for my go ahead.
I waited an hour on Monday before finally getting to see him, only for him to ask "Are you happy with everything you've been told? Are you happy to begin the treatment tomorrow?" The answer to both was "Yes" and that was it - at most a 60 second conversation after which I was told I could go home!
Back to Tuesday, after the waiting around on Monday I was sure I would have a better experience today (ever the optimist!), but no, about 40 minutes after arriving I was approached by one of the nurses who advised me that they only had a set of temporary notes for me and they were trying to locate my full notes before I could begin my treatment.
The problem being from what I gathered that my consent form for the Chemo was not in the temporary set.
Another 20 minutes and they decided it would be quicker and easier to get me to complete a new consent form so we could just get on with it! Phew.
I finally got to go through to the treatment room, which is a quiet, yet bubbly room with six comfy recliner chairs, one hospital bed and lots of natural light.
It should be said that the team of nurses working on that ward are FANTASTIC, all really friendly and attentive. Nothing is too much trouble and they seemed genuinely interested in me as a person not just a patient.
One of them is getting married next year and found out I was a Wedding Planner so is intending on getting my help over the next few months! She's also a Pampered Chef fan so I'll be taking some catalogues in with me next time - There are sales to be made wherever you are!! I might even ask to leave some order forms for her to drum up some more orders!
Once I had had some blood taken they started with the Chemo.
The Regime I'm on is FEC 75
(Fluorouracil + Epirubicin + Cyclophosphamide) the 75 stands for mg/m2
They start with the E which is the nasty toxic one that makes the hair fall out, it's also bright red in colour and makes your wee go pink!
I had a cannula put into my hand from which they took my initial bloods then flushed through some saline.
The first bit is administered via 3 syringes, in total taking about 20 minutes, during this time a nurse has to stay with you as if there is any leakage of the drug outside of the vein there is some very scary plastic surgery repair work to follow.
This is followed by a 5 minute flush, then I think its the F that follows - a clear fluid again taking about 20 minutes, followed by another flush.
The 3rd and final bit (The C) is then attached and takes another 25-30 minutes. Followed yet again by a flush with Saline.
Throughout the whole process I was kind of waiting for something significant to happen, I expected the Pink stuff to hurt for one, they gave such scary information in the pre-chemo chat about how toxic it is, it seems impossible for it not to be more noticeable when it's running through your veins.
The only side effect that did get me was at the very end during the final flush, my face went very tingly all round my sinuses and forehead. Apparently this is the C and only lasts about 5 minutes - and quite right not long after I noticed it, it started to dissipate again. Very weird sensation though.
After the treatment was over they provided me with my anti-sickness medication for the next few days and the instructions, then Jay went off to get my next session dates booked in (bless him he was with me for the whole thing, and was really quite fed up with the delay we had getting started).
We then got to go home, it was strange, I felt no different on the way home than I did on the way to the hospital (if a little less apprehensive) again I felt like I was waiting for something to suddenly happen - if anything I felt a little cheated and was tempted to say I felt crappy just for a bit of attention!
It was 2.30pm when we left the hospital, at 4.30pm the nausea started; just lightly at first (not even enough to alert Jay) but over the next hour it got steadily stronger. The instructions I had with the drugs was to take the next lot just before I went to bed, I could tell this wouldn't be easy.
At the pre-chemo chat they gave me a number to ring at any time of the day or night with any concerns or questions I had no matter how trivial they might seem. At 6pm I decided to ring them to see if there was anything I could do to try and alleviate the awful hungover/morning sickness belly I had.
They were great and told me I could take a couple of my tablets early then again when I go to bed. The drugs are better at keeping the nausea away than getting rid of it once it arrives, so the results weren't amazing but it did help a little.
The next morning (Wednesday) I had 3 lots of tablets to take - 1 lot I took before I got out of bed, another I took when I got downstairs, and the 3rd lot I had to take with food (I forgot to take these!).
Come 11.30am and the nausea was back, I had just put Amber down for her nap and was going to have a bit of shut eye myself when I realised I hadn't taken the other tablets. Time for a second call to the nurses! They told me I had to take them now and then again in 4 hours (this wasn't great as I had already been told not to take them after 2pm as they can affect your sleep at night).
I took one of the tablets as instructed then again at 3.30pm and again it did make me feel a bit better but there was still a low lying sense of nausea hanging around.
The rest of the day went by without anything eventful thankfully, I took the rest of my tablets at the right times and actually had no difficulty going to sleep (perhaps as I didn't ever get that nap in the day?). However one thing I have been struggling with is when I get up to go for a pink wee in the night I am really finding it difficult to get back off to sleep again.
The next morning (Thursday) I was very careful to take my tablets correctly, realising as I did so that I had only taken half the dose of the tablets that I had forgotten to take the day before (1 at each dose instead of 2 tablets). So on this occasion I took the 2 and had no nausea at all - yippee!
One of the difficulties I did have with (typically) the tablets I had to take most frequently is that they tasted awful if they touched my tongue and made me gag quite forcefully, so much so that I was getting myself in a bit of a state every time I had to take them. Eventually I managed to work out a technique where by I would glug and hold a mouthful of liquid in my mouth, drop the tablet into the water and swallow it all like the Whale swallowing Dori and Marlin in Disney's Finding Nemo.
This technique has proven successful from here on in!
Today is Friday, and I'd like to say I've cracked it, but I felt pretty nauseous for most of the morning, had a snack and a little nap and have felt just OK for the rest of the day, it really is like morning sickness as in the only thing that really takes the edge of it is eating, so watch this space for a huge, balding Emma to emerge!!
Tomorrow is my last day of tablets to take (unless I need them on the odd occasion), next week is my low immunity week, where I have to be really careful to to get too close to anyone that is unwell, as if I get an infection that is not treated I may end up in intensive care (Blimey Drama Queen!!).
The 3rd week is when my white blood cells start to increase again and I will start to (hopefully) start to feel a bit more normal. However in this first cycle this is the week where my hair is most likely to start falling out :(
All just in time for the following week where we start all over again.
Subject to my white cells being up to normal levels again my next session will be on Tuesday, 20th July.
Before we left for the hospital, I could sense I was a little snappy, Jay was also quite tense and I just wanted to get it all over with. I was a little teary eyed on the walk over to the hospital from the car, but Jay just reminded me to stay positive and stop dwelling on the unknown (which I don't normally need to be told but I think it was all a bit much to take that morning).
My appointment was at 11am so we arrived a little early to try and speed up the process.
The day before I had been in to see my Oncologist (Mr Shah) - he doesn't come into the hospital on Tuesday - to get his approval for my go ahead.
I waited an hour on Monday before finally getting to see him, only for him to ask "Are you happy with everything you've been told? Are you happy to begin the treatment tomorrow?" The answer to both was "Yes" and that was it - at most a 60 second conversation after which I was told I could go home!
Back to Tuesday, after the waiting around on Monday I was sure I would have a better experience today (ever the optimist!), but no, about 40 minutes after arriving I was approached by one of the nurses who advised me that they only had a set of temporary notes for me and they were trying to locate my full notes before I could begin my treatment.
The problem being from what I gathered that my consent form for the Chemo was not in the temporary set.
Another 20 minutes and they decided it would be quicker and easier to get me to complete a new consent form so we could just get on with it! Phew.
I finally got to go through to the treatment room, which is a quiet, yet bubbly room with six comfy recliner chairs, one hospital bed and lots of natural light.
It should be said that the team of nurses working on that ward are FANTASTIC, all really friendly and attentive. Nothing is too much trouble and they seemed genuinely interested in me as a person not just a patient.
One of them is getting married next year and found out I was a Wedding Planner so is intending on getting my help over the next few months! She's also a Pampered Chef fan so I'll be taking some catalogues in with me next time - There are sales to be made wherever you are!! I might even ask to leave some order forms for her to drum up some more orders!
Once I had had some blood taken they started with the Chemo.
The Regime I'm on is FEC 75
(Fluorouracil + Epirubicin + Cyclophosphamide) the 75 stands for mg/m2
They start with the E which is the nasty toxic one that makes the hair fall out, it's also bright red in colour and makes your wee go pink!
I had a cannula put into my hand from which they took my initial bloods then flushed through some saline.
The first bit is administered via 3 syringes, in total taking about 20 minutes, during this time a nurse has to stay with you as if there is any leakage of the drug outside of the vein there is some very scary plastic surgery repair work to follow.
This is followed by a 5 minute flush, then I think its the F that follows - a clear fluid again taking about 20 minutes, followed by another flush.
The 3rd and final bit (The C) is then attached and takes another 25-30 minutes. Followed yet again by a flush with Saline.
Throughout the whole process I was kind of waiting for something significant to happen, I expected the Pink stuff to hurt for one, they gave such scary information in the pre-chemo chat about how toxic it is, it seems impossible for it not to be more noticeable when it's running through your veins.
The only side effect that did get me was at the very end during the final flush, my face went very tingly all round my sinuses and forehead. Apparently this is the C and only lasts about 5 minutes - and quite right not long after I noticed it, it started to dissipate again. Very weird sensation though.
After the treatment was over they provided me with my anti-sickness medication for the next few days and the instructions, then Jay went off to get my next session dates booked in (bless him he was with me for the whole thing, and was really quite fed up with the delay we had getting started).
We then got to go home, it was strange, I felt no different on the way home than I did on the way to the hospital (if a little less apprehensive) again I felt like I was waiting for something to suddenly happen - if anything I felt a little cheated and was tempted to say I felt crappy just for a bit of attention!
It was 2.30pm when we left the hospital, at 4.30pm the nausea started; just lightly at first (not even enough to alert Jay) but over the next hour it got steadily stronger. The instructions I had with the drugs was to take the next lot just before I went to bed, I could tell this wouldn't be easy.
At the pre-chemo chat they gave me a number to ring at any time of the day or night with any concerns or questions I had no matter how trivial they might seem. At 6pm I decided to ring them to see if there was anything I could do to try and alleviate the awful hungover/morning sickness belly I had.
They were great and told me I could take a couple of my tablets early then again when I go to bed. The drugs are better at keeping the nausea away than getting rid of it once it arrives, so the results weren't amazing but it did help a little.
The next morning (Wednesday) I had 3 lots of tablets to take - 1 lot I took before I got out of bed, another I took when I got downstairs, and the 3rd lot I had to take with food (I forgot to take these!).
Come 11.30am and the nausea was back, I had just put Amber down for her nap and was going to have a bit of shut eye myself when I realised I hadn't taken the other tablets. Time for a second call to the nurses! They told me I had to take them now and then again in 4 hours (this wasn't great as I had already been told not to take them after 2pm as they can affect your sleep at night).
I took one of the tablets as instructed then again at 3.30pm and again it did make me feel a bit better but there was still a low lying sense of nausea hanging around.
The rest of the day went by without anything eventful thankfully, I took the rest of my tablets at the right times and actually had no difficulty going to sleep (perhaps as I didn't ever get that nap in the day?). However one thing I have been struggling with is when I get up to go for a pink wee in the night I am really finding it difficult to get back off to sleep again.
The next morning (Thursday) I was very careful to take my tablets correctly, realising as I did so that I had only taken half the dose of the tablets that I had forgotten to take the day before (1 at each dose instead of 2 tablets). So on this occasion I took the 2 and had no nausea at all - yippee!
One of the difficulties I did have with (typically) the tablets I had to take most frequently is that they tasted awful if they touched my tongue and made me gag quite forcefully, so much so that I was getting myself in a bit of a state every time I had to take them. Eventually I managed to work out a technique where by I would glug and hold a mouthful of liquid in my mouth, drop the tablet into the water and swallow it all like the Whale swallowing Dori and Marlin in Disney's Finding Nemo.
This technique has proven successful from here on in!
Today is Friday, and I'd like to say I've cracked it, but I felt pretty nauseous for most of the morning, had a snack and a little nap and have felt just OK for the rest of the day, it really is like morning sickness as in the only thing that really takes the edge of it is eating, so watch this space for a huge, balding Emma to emerge!!
Tomorrow is my last day of tablets to take (unless I need them on the odd occasion), next week is my low immunity week, where I have to be really careful to to get too close to anyone that is unwell, as if I get an infection that is not treated I may end up in intensive care (Blimey Drama Queen!!).
The 3rd week is when my white blood cells start to increase again and I will start to (hopefully) start to feel a bit more normal. However in this first cycle this is the week where my hair is most likely to start falling out :(
All just in time for the following week where we start all over again.
Subject to my white cells being up to normal levels again my next session will be on Tuesday, 20th July.
Thursday, 1 July 2010
An Aside
Just to let you know I have temporary skipped some entries that I have yet to write as I know the Chemo stuff is something you will probably want to know about as it's happening.
So I have posted an up to date entry with Chemo stuff tonight, and will attempt to fill in the gaps ASAP as well as keep on top of the up to date bits.
Sorry for being so behind, I've been off chillaxing in Greece!
xx
So I have posted an up to date entry with Chemo stuff tonight, and will attempt to fill in the gaps ASAP as well as keep on top of the up to date bits.
Sorry for being so behind, I've been off chillaxing in Greece!
xx
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