Cycle 2

I just started Cycle 2 of my current treatment yesterday.  Today I'm home relaxing.  I almost didn't get treated because my white blood cell counts were borderline (and in an un-treatable range, depending on what information the infusion team was looking at), but my doctor decided to go ahead with the treatment and I'm going to get a Neulasta shot on Friday to boost my bone marrow/blood cell production.  That was a relief because I really wanted to get treated today because of a few events I have coming up soon.  Not getting treated this week would have thrown everything out of whack.  It's hard when I know that for 1 out of every 3 weekends it's going to be kind of impossible to do anything.

I have the half marathon coming up in 3 weeks.  I did a long run last week to make sure I was okay.  I told myself ahead of time that I would be happy with anything between 10 and 12 miles.  While my energy level was noticeably down, it was actually my left knee that gave me the most trouble.  Because I haven't been able to do as much activity as I should be doing, my muscles are a little weak and I'm having trouble with my I-T band.  I was able to do 10 miles, though.  I went to physical therapy for this a couple of years ago, so the plan is just to do the exercises the physical therapist recommended, use the dreaded foam roller on it daily, and walk it out during the big day if I really have to.  I've been training for this for about 4 months.  Quitting now would be so disappointing.

So far I'm doing okay.  I have a little bit of mild nausea, but nothing really troubling.  My doctor coached me on a slightly different schedule for my anti-nausea meds this time around, so it's possible that I might even do better than last time.  Only time will tell!

Not much progress on the waiting room sock... I had an interview yesterday for the young adult program at Dana Farber that took about an hour and a half (it was voluntary, but I like to help as much as I can), so I didn't get a whole lot of knitting done in the infusion room.

More later!

Sum Ting Good

Finally, I'm feeling better.  Yesterday for dinner I was ready for my signature "get this nasty chemo feeling out of my stomach and replace it with some greasy Chinese food" meal.  I don't know what it is, but just when I'm starting to turn the corner I have a serious craving for hot and sour soup.  If it's too early, I won't be ready (we tried it a couple of days ago actually, but it wasn't quite the same).  You can't force it.  But when I'm starting to think about food belonging in my stomach again... oh that's the best part.  I'll have a hot and sour soup, some crab rangoons, maybe some chicken lo mein... yum.

So, yesterday was that day.  I had started feeling well enough to pick up the knitting and to watch a movie that required some concentration for a change.  I have been having trouble sleeping because of abdominal/liver pain, so I decided to go for the big guns yesterday to sleep.  I took an oxycodone (it's a pretty small dose actually) so that I could sleep through the night.  I woke up this morning around 5:30, refreshed and ready to start the day.

I was still a little tired and maybe not 100% out of the fog, but I decided to go to work because I just couldn't tolerate another day on the couch.  The drive in was uneventful, but the morning was a little rough as I dug out from several days of e-mail, attempting to think technically once again.

I begged my cohorts to go out for Thai food for lunch with me.  Even though I was feeling better, I knew I couldn't really tolerate just anything for lunch.  If they had chili in the cafe, I would be okay.  But if they had tuna melt or something equally gross, I would not be able to eat.  Rather than chance it, I really wanted to go for another meal of Asian deliciousness at Thai Chilli.  Oh, it was great.  I had the ginger lemongrass soup that they always serve, a Thai roll, and an order of spicy Pad Thai.  I really think that was the difference for me today, because when I walked out of work I was pretty much back to normal.

I realize this entire post is basically about food, but I can't help it.  I love food, which is why feeling sick sucks so bad!  The funny thing is when they're telling you what to eat during chemo they always tell you to avoid bold flavors or really sweet and salty foods because it might make you feel worse.  Psssh.  Not me.  I guess I am the poster child for what not to eat during chemo, but if it works I'm going to keep doing it!

Now if only I felt like I could tolerate a beer...

Blech

I know it's been a few days since I've posted. I think I was unprepared for just how crappy I would feel at the moment. I was okay for a day or two, then I just crashed with a mix of sensations...

There's the nausea, of course. The feeling like I need to put something in my stomach, but not feeling like eating anything.

Then there's the fog. Oh, the fog. I can't think very clearly. It's described as chemo brain. Whatever it is, it makes me feel dumb.

Then I get so tired because of the anti-nausea meds.

I'm also feeling a fair amount of pain in the liver area, which is disturbing my sleep.

Well, that's how I've been doing. Each day is getting better, thankfully. I think I've settled into a decent rhythm of meds and symptoms, and I expect tomorrow to be even better.

Anyway, I apologize if this post is a bit of a downer, but I wanted to give a quick update. Let's hope the next one is better :-)