Friday, July 30, 2010

The Day After

Today was the first day after my first round of chemo. They told me, "However you are after your first round, that is what you can expect for the rest of the treatments." Well, I think i did great.
Mike woke me up early this morning to let me know he was taking the baby to daycare and our 4 year old to work with him for a few hours. I was a little confused because I thought it was Saturday. After a short disagreement, I realized I'm off a day and went back to sleep. I slept awesome. I rolled out of bed a little after 10, and got ready for the day.
I took a pill for nausea, and that helped me through the day. I was worried about the throwing up thing, but the medicine is pretty strong stuff. I have 3 others on top of what I had for the surgery, so it is hard to keep track. We have a put together a sheet to help us out on what medicine needs to be taken at what time. It works out pretty well.
This afternoon I went back to the doctor to get a shot. It helps with the white blood cells that I loose during chemo. It makes it possible for me to be out in public and all that. We ran a few other errands and even went to the Firewheel Mall to check out Old Navy ($2 cami's if you say Cami For Me).
We just got home a little bit ago and I am still a little sleepy. Maybe tomorrow will be a lazy day for everyone. For me anyway. We may make our weekly trip to Costco and Sam's, but besides that, I think we will be home... that is until the evening. We are going to the circus! I am excited. a friend of mine won 8 tickets, and was nice enough to offer us a few. It should be loads of fun, especially since I haven't seen my friend Liz since college.
So, all in all, the day after was not at all what I expected it to be. I am tired, but it's a great excuse to be lazy!

Thursday, July 29, 2010

First Round of Chemo

This morning I went in for my first round of chemo. I first had a quick ECHO and an office visit discussing the results of the scans I had a few days ago. No issues to report! Cancer, from what they could see from the bone scan and the CT scan, did not spread anywhere else in the body!
I think the only thing was that I did get a finger shaken at me was because I am not doing my exercises. I thought they were optional... not really, I'm just scared it is going to hurt stretching my arms out. The PA showed me the different excesses/stretches I am to be doing, so I guess I better start. No more using my surgery as a crutch. I know I still have to take things easy, but I can kick it up a notch.
Well, chemo was a breeze. They discussed everything with me again, and asked for questions, again. This is greatly appreciated, so I am not complaining, so please don't thing I am. Anyway, they sat me in a nice cushy recliner, gave me a remote, and fixed me up with a nice IV.
They first put in an anti nausea medicine, then a relaxant, and then two different chemo meds. I think we were there for a little over 2 hours. They kept me warm with blankets and I had a never ending supply of beverage.
Mike stayed with me, but I think he was bored out of his mind. I was watching Divorce Court and the Martha Stewart Show. I think all Mike did the whole time was play on his iPhone. I had some books I wanted to get started on, but because the IV was in my arm, when i moved it, well... there was a bit of a mess. Luckily, I get a port inserted in a few weeks, so I can move more and read without issue. I do have to go back tomorrow to get a shot to bring up my white blood count. That's one of the biggest fears, along with infection. So we are following the doctor's instructions to a tee.
I feel fine, with the exception of being very sleepy. I think I took a nice long nap. Mike took my 4 year old to get the breaks on his truck fixed, so the house was nice and quiet, but apparently I missed them coming home with the baby and eating dinner. I ate a little, but my tummy is not so happy, also, for some reason my surgery sites are a lot more tender than normal. Good thing I still have all that pain medicine! Oh, and I have the worst headache ever! The nurse said they game me a steroid, and that comes with it.
On two other notes... I am going to go check out the wig again tomorrow. They ordered it in a more red than blond, and I need to see which I love more! I am kinda excited about this.
And.... Disney is on! We were supposed to be leaving next Thursday. We go around the same time every year to celebrate our anniversary, and now the kids' birthdays. This trip has been paid for since April, so we were going. No questions. However, with chemo, heat, and dehydration it is not a good thing, so we were told not to go in August unless I was okay going to an out of state hospital... nope!
Well, the Disney folks were, after my travel agent working her butt off for weeks, got our vacation moved to November. The Oncologist said it would be great for me to get out and be "normal". So, it looks like we will be going the week before Thanksgiving. Chemo will almost be over and as long as I keep hand sanitizer and wipies with me, I will be good. I may even be okay riding most of the rides (as long as motion sickness doesn't bother me at that time). I am super excited! They will already have most of their Christmas stuff up and it will be nice and the weather cool. So happy! Well, that is if American Airlines will cooperate with us. So far, they are our issue. We just don't want to be out extra money by cancelling because we did not pay for that wonderful insurance they ask you to purchase. It's going to cost $500 per ticket (on top of the tickets we already purchased) to cancel. To move the dates, I don't think they charge much, but again, we are still dealing with them... Oh, and the airlines don't seem to be phased by doctor's notes, just FYI.
Oh... and in case you were wondering about Disney.. it was paid for long ago. I got a super awesome deal on this (40% off) and there were only specific dates that I could choose for. Since summer was out of the question. I had to choose dates that fell under the dates they had set aside. We could have canceled... again, the airline was going to charge us $1,500 (for all three tickets) to cancel. Now we can use our miles and actually get money back!
With doctor bills and a good chance I will be taking time off school, we will not be able to afford to be out any more money. The great thing about being a teacher is that insurance starts over in September... so deductibles and out of pocket expenses will be starting over as well :( I just hate thinking about it. Good thing there are 0% credit cards out there, right?

Wednesday, July 28, 2010

Chemo class

This morning, way too early for me, I went to a chemo class. This was basically an hour long video about what to expect. It was actually pretty informative. i had a few questions, and they were all answered, so I think I'm ready. I go in around 10 tomorrow morning. Trying to keep all the scary thoughts out of my head.
So, from what I understand is that I will be going in and i will be pampered. They have some cubicles with nice recliners, plasma TVs, and all the drinks you can handle. They have warm blankets galore and there will be a nurse by my side the entire time watching how I handle the drugs.
This is for sure something I didn't think I would have to deal with at this point in my life, but God wouldn't give me I couldn't handle. So.... until tomorrow...

Tuesday, July 27, 2010

Most frustrating day ever....

I am the type of person who has a ton of patience. I normally let things roll off my back, no matter how frustrated I am. I don't like confrontation and I don't want people to feel bad. I think I get this from my dad, because if I was anything like my mom, heads would have been rolling on the floor today and I probably would have yelled at them for making a mess because of it.
The "them" I am speaking of are the folks at a particular hospital I went to this afternoon for my bone scan. I had never been there before, so I wasn't sure what quite to expect. I am a huge fan of one hospital in Plano...in fact, I love them! They are the absolute best. Well, today I wasn't sent there. I was sent to another hospital. I pretty much knew from the second I walked in, this was not going to be a fun trip.
Besides the fact that it took 15 minutes for the ladies at the registration desk to just acknowledge the fact that I was there, they informed me that I was going to have my port (the thing they use to insert the chemo without having to use an IV) inserted there on Friday. What? When was I going to be told that? When I explained there was no way I could have a surgery the day after chemo, she just gave me a smart little laugh and said, "Well, I guess you won't be having your chemo". Who the heck is she to be making that decision? Mike then called the oncologist who basically said the same thing I was thinking and had the surgery postponed a few weeks. This surgery was supposed to be happening tomorrow, but doing the first round of chemo via IV shouldn't be too bad... I hope.
So, on to radiology. My appointment was at 10:30, but I was told to be there 30 minutes early, I see why after the 15 minute wait to register. I went back to the room after a little bit to get injected with some radioactive IV stuff, and was sent on my way. I was told specifically to drink a lot of fluid and be back by 1:45. And we were off!
We made a stop at the mall where I ate a quick lunch. I had a water bottle with me. The water bottle holds 700 ml or 1 PT.,7.7 FL OZ. I drank the bottle of water, then filled it up twice with tea. Completely to the top! Plus I drank 1/2 a cup of tea that wouldn't fit in the bottle. I am no Math major, but I know that is a ton of fluid. I had to go to the bathroom twice before we left the mall.
Finally, it was time to get back to radiology. It was about 1:30, better to be early right? (By the way, I went to the bathroom 3 more times while waiting.) When 2:30 came around the ladies at the desk had to go remind them that we were there waiting. Finally.... I got my scan! Yeah! Time to leave, right... nope. The scan was fuzzy. I had to sit back in the waiting room for just a minute and they would be back to get me for a second scan. The lady questioned me 3 times if I drank enough fluid. I should have asked her if she took too long to get to me and the, whatever it was, wore off. I know it wasn't my fault.
So, my "just a minute" turned into 45 minutes!!!! I had a CT scan I had to do at the Oncologist's office and I had to pick my baby up from daycare. There was no way I could wait around much longer.
I was irritated and frustrated and started saying all kinds of stuff that the head radiologist overheard. Because Mike and I discussed writing a letter or putting bad remarks online, he tried to make us happy by giving us a few McDonald's gift certificates, Subway gift cards, and my 4 year old (who was with us the entire time) a smoothie and a cookie. Finally, I was sent back for a "quick" scan, then I was sent on my way.
I got to the Oncologist's office right before closing. They were waiting for me with my "cocktail" as they called it (just more radioactive stuff that tasted like sugar free Kool Aid). I had to apologize 100 times, but apparently they were used to it and assured me that it was no big deal. I had my CT scan with no issue. Quick and painless. On my way out, the place was closed, but I talked to the person who sets up appointments for surgeries. I let him know that I was not interested in ever going to that one particular hospital ever again. He had no problem with that and changed my surgery to the other, more friendly and organized hospital :)
So, after that whole ordeal, we made it to the daycare just in time to pick up the baby. We brought home a yummy dinner from one of the teachers which I was not hungry for because.... my belly was so full from all the fluid and toxins I gulped all day long. The one thing that made my day was coming home and seeing some gifts on my front porch. I received so many goodies and I love them all. Carrie, if you are reading this, you have absolutely no idea how you turned my day around!
I went all day with no muscle relaxer and no pain pills. I am sore, and now that my husband and kids ate all the food that we brought home, I am starving. I guess I need to go dig through the fridge...
What a day, what a day....

Monday, July 26, 2010

Lazy Day

This has been the laziest day yet, without a doubt. My husband took my 4 year old to work with him again this morning, and I stayed in bed until almost 10 when they returned. I almost went straight to the couch to be even more lazy, but then, after trying to pull my hair back in a pony tail, I realized I hadn't taken a shower in days. I quickly took my shower, ever so carefully, and it was off to the couch... again. I slept and I slept, waking up just to change the channel on the TV and to take more medicine.
The past few days I have needed more pain medicine than usual and just today I have gone back to using an ice pack on my right arm. They took quite a few lymph nodes during surgery and I think it's starting to catch up with me.
The lymph nodes are these things that live in your arm pits. I hear the word over and over, but when explained, it's just a lot of foreign stuff I just don't understand. The only thing that I did understand was that they took out more than they wanted to, 17 to be exact, and 11 were positive for cancerous cells. That apparently is not good. The doctor said they like to see a smaller number, and frankly, I would have liked to have heard a smaller number. Oh... and I didn't tell you before... not only did I have one tumor, but two. One was a small round one and the other a long funny looking thing. Hmmm.... They did get everything, but again my right side hurts like no one's business.
Anyway, back to this being a lazy day.... I did get out again. Back to the wig store to make my decision, and we decided on one. They are ordering the one I like in a different color so I can look a little younger, so I am super excited about that. And we came home just so I could get back on the couch.... and fall asleep again.
I woke up, I ate, and now I'm waiting for bed time :)
I have a very busy day tomorrow. I have to go get a blood test, a bone scan, and a CT scan. This will take pretty much 8 hours out of my day. Yipppeee! From how I understand this, it's to make sure nothing spread to other parts of the body. They are pretty sure that did not happen, but they have to do it on everyone.
I don't want people to think I am ignorant on any of this cancer stuff. I ask 100's of questions at each visit, but these doctors tell you so much in terms you may not understand, and it's hard to remember EVERYTHING. I'm trying. I have books that I've been reading and the lovely Internet, but let's face it... when you have a disease, the Internet will do nothing but scare the hell out of you. I recommend going to Barns and Noble and read a book or two.
(sigh) Okay, time to lay back down!

Sunday, July 25, 2010

First Blog...

Welp... this is my first blog... EVER! Not sure how it really works, but I am sure I can figure it out. I'm getting started doing this because I was recently diagnosed with breast cancer and decided I needed a way to get all my thoughts and feelings out. You know, sometimes there are just things you can't say to people when you are speaking to them because, let's face it, it does get a little emotional.
So let's see... I can get into when and how I found out I have cancer, but that was like a month ago. Long story short, I was putting on lotion after a shower, felt a lump, and called the doctor a good two weeks later because it wasn't going away. Why two weeks? I'm 30! Who the heck is thinking to themselves they they are going to be getting cancer at 30?! Not me. Anyway, gyno thought it was a good idea to get it checked, so I had my first breast sonogram and mammogram in one day, followed by a biopsy the next... and within 2 weeks I had a bilateral mastectomy. Fun stuff. Good thing I am a teacher and this is summer, right?
Well, this is where I am now. I, from what my breast surgeon said, hold the record for getting my drainage tubes out the quickest (less than 1 week, thank you!), and now I'm just taking it easy. This is hard being that I do have a 4 year old and 1 one year old, but my husband has been great, and... we are so taken care of. Our wonderful daycare has brought us a feast every day for the past week and are helping with the baby. Our friends are great too. Company is always welcome! Everyone is so supportive, it really touches my heart.
This past Friday we made a trip to a wig store for the first time to get an idea of what I need to be looking into. I start chemo on Thursday, and once the hair starts falling out, I want to be ready. I found 2 I loved, so I am going back in tomorrow (Monday) to make final decisions. Pretty excited about that. Well, more excited about getting out of the house than anything else. I mean, I did the Costco thing yesterday, and was ready to get out of there within minutes. I don't know if it's all the medicine I am on from the surgery or just plain weakness, but it was awful. The wig place is better because I am sitting and being pampered. Who could ask for anything better?
Well, That is pretty much where I am at this moment. taking it easy and getting ready for what many consider the fight of my life. Am I ready? No, but we will just roll with it. I will stay as positive as positive can be, and I know I am not only fighting for myself, but for my boys. Hmmmm.... I guess that is about it for now. I could get into how this whole ordeal has made me postpone, or maybe even cancel my annual Disney World trip that we go on every summer, but we will not open that can of worms just yet :)