Well, I think I "wrote" too soon on Sunday -- the after effects of Chemo #5 hadn't quite hit me head on yet when I last posted. I did have a very good morning on Sunday, including Jessie and my walk in the park. But by later in the afternoon, I wasn't feeling very well at all. One problem was constipation. (Geez, I really hate having to bring up intestinal issues yet again, but my bowls just can't get their act together.) I took my "normal" Senna plant-based laxative in the evening with the other B vitamins and magnesium that I'm supposed to take every day. I also just felt exhausted.
Even so I decided to go in to work on Monday because there was a big meeting scheduled for 3:00 pm (who schedules a meeting at 3:00 pm???) which sort of represented the culmination of a long-term project I've been involved actively in. I thought I should be there to answer questions, and I also sort of wanted to see the final results of this 18 month effort (by me but also by many many other people). So anyway, I dragged myself in to the office ... and I felt really terrible. The Big C turned into the Big D by mid day. I was tired, but also weak (I have discovered the crucial difference between been "tired" or "fatigued," on the one hand, and being "weak" on the other hand). I made it through the day and to the afternoon meeting, but barely. Thankfully, K offered to give me a ride home - she was at the meeting also and leaving from there - and that was a big help. I basically collapsed when I got home, slept another 11 - 12 hours. No Tai Chi that night (which makes me sad - that's 4 weeks I've missed, 2 times after Chemo #4 when I was so sick with the chemo effects and the cold, 1 time because of being in Nashville, and again this past Monday. Hopefully next week I'll get back.)
Tuesday I felt better, not quite "right" but better. I managed to get through the day at work much better. Diarrhea was better. Food still tasting "off" but not quite as weird as Sunday night and Monday. Still tired, but less "weak." (One side effect I haven't written too much about, which apparently can be quite serious, is neuropathy in the extremities. One of the chemo drugs - I forget which one, can cause your fingers and toes and feet to tingle or become numb. For me it has gotten progressively worse in my left foot in particular after every chemo. I did have some numbness in 3 finger tips on my left hand after the first few chemos, but that has stopped. After this last chemo, my left foot now feels as if 1/4" of the bottom of the ball of my left foot and 3 of the toes are all "asleep". It's a really odd feeling walking around that way. In the past it has always gone away - or gone away 90-95% by the next chemo - and over the "break" when I had radiation, all the numbness went away. Hopefully this too will pass.)
And today I felt significantly better.
It's weird how there is a very specific and concrete cycle to the chemo side effects. I've been saying that "Monday is the worst day" and by god, it sure is/was. Well, there should only be one more bad Monday to go.
Thanks to all who checked on me. I survived. Blood counts on Friday this week.
It finally stopped raining, although it was March wind chilly today. But the sun was out. And the days are perceptibly lengthening. Daffodils are lifting up yellow heads through the damp ground in neighbors' yards. I saw a cherry tree's blossoms opening on the way home from the bus stop today. Spring is springing. Hurray.
Peace.
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