Modifications

 I saw my oncologist on the day before I returned to the chemo chair last week.

She took note of my rather extensive digestive system side effects, and prescribed two additional medications to ease the symptoms, as well as ordered a lower dose of the chemo for the second round.

I had the first part of my two-part treatment on Wednesday, and, though I was there for SIX HOURS (for a 3 hour treatment), due to delays in the lab and pharmacy, all went well, and I have felt pretty well since.

Treatment night was mostly sleepless, but I know that's the norm, and is not unexpected.  Cold sweats and insomnia are the rule.

My hair was mostly all gone by the time I saw the doctor, too, and we shaved the rest of it off, because all that was left were whisps here and there, and it was a LOT uglier than a bald head.

I know it was hard for Dave to help me with this, but he was a trooper, and did most of the the job for me.

We got to the gym all three days last week, and plan to do the same this coming week.  I know, now, that my next Friday work out, after I receive the Neulasta injection, will be subdued, but I also know that I can still get some activity and exercise in, despite how the Neulasta makes me feel.

The addition of pepcid and clairtin really made a difference, so I will continue that, for sure.

In other news, there was one surviving baby wren, and it fledged on Friday!  I have named it Hope, and I really HOPE that it is out there somewhere, growing and thriving.

I chased the neighbors' cat away at least a dozen times on Friday, so there's that worry, but there is nothing to be done for it now.

It's been so quiet since the wrens left..... we had gotten used to a lot of bird activity and noise (the parent wrens making "angry bird" sounds to protect the nest), and now it's just.... over. 

The symbolism of it all, though, will never leave me.  The timing was immaculate, and I am SO glad that the extreme heat didn't kill ALL of the chicks.

We went from 5 eggs, to three tiny hatchlings, to two nestlings, to one surviving fledgling.... and it was so cool to be part of it all!

After a very brief respite from the heat a few days ago, we are back to over 100F every day for the foreseeable future.....this has been one of the worst summers on record for days over 100.  I really, sincerely, hate it. 

They are saying we will see 100F every day at least until the third week of September.

BUT, going to the gym really helps with my cabin fever.  To be around people, even if we don't really interact, and to get my walks in, even if it's on an indoor track, is MUCH better than just endlessly sitting at home, out of the sun and heat.

An added bonus to both the Wellness study that I did back in the spring, and now going to the gym consistently, is that I have lost ten pounds.  I needed to lose that weight, so it's not anything to be concerned about, and is not related to my treatment.

I feel a lot more comfortable in my skin than I did six months ago.  I still do a lot of the exercises I learned during the study, and have the added advantage now of access to the equipment of the gym.

I also know that I am a lot stronger, and can see and feel great muscle tone in areas where I had lost it from being too sedentary.

It also benefits my mental health, both as I mentioned above, AND by seeing the progress I have made.

Anyway, that's about all I have for you today.  I will be back in the chemo chair on Wednesday, then go in for my Neulasta on Thursday, then I get the week after next "off."

Have a lovely week! 

...sigh....

 Well, the chemo side effects really kicked in shortly after I posted last week.  

What had been a bit of mild digestive upset turned into painful cramping, and diarrhea multiple times per day and night.  It was not what I would call severe, like I had with the chemo pill during the winter, but definitely NOT NORMAL, and very uncomfortable/discomforting.

I was able to bring it under control, for the most part, using imodium and metamucil, but the cramping was still an issue.

SO--it has not been a fun week, to say the least.

My hair also started falling out heavily, so I got it cut short, and now can see my scalp through what's left of it.  My guess is that it will all be gone by the time I see my doctor on Tuesday.

I had not anticipated being bald again, but here we are.  None of the other treatments I have had for the past ten years have caused this level of hair loss.  Sigh.

It hurts my heart, and having to throw away expensive shampoo and conditioner for curly hair sucked, too...but I won't need it again for several years, so it had to go.

I go outside a few times a day and remove the loose hair, so it's not all over the house.  

Seeing the longer hair still in piles on the patio is a bit distressing, but it will eventually blow away.  That was why I got it cut short....I remember that it was easier to deal with falling out when it's short.

A dear friend in Michigan is sending me a box of scarves and what not, as I donated most of my scarves years ago.  I also got some bandannas. 

Thankfully, I don't have to go back to the chemo chair until Wednesday, and my guts seem to be better today.  So far.

Despite my tummy issues, we were able to go to the gym all three of our usual days, and, on Thursday, we finally got to the special exhibit at the art museum!  It was lovely.

The weather has continued to be extremely hot and dry, with daily highs over 100F.  Today will not be any different, in the long run, but this morning, it was 74, so the windows were open for a little while.

I have been putting out water for birds and bugs, and the wrens seem to be finding ample food for their two surviving nestlings!  

The babies are getting bigger, and louder!  At first, their tiny voices were just barely audible, but now, I can hear them even with the windows closed and music playing in the house.  It's so exciting, and fun, and heartening, to have them here!

I will be making a new-to-me recipe today for "Cafeteria noodles" with broccoli.  I don't remember cafeteria noodles from my school days, but apparently, they were a thing in the 90s.  It looks really comforting, and I need that however I can get it.

Have the best week you can, and I pledge to try to do the same! 

No prisoners!

 My dear, long time friend, Cathy, who passed away last year, said this when herself, or any of her tribe of friends, were facing health challenges.

I completed round one of Trodelvy chemo last week.  The treatment went well, and I have had only slight side effects from the chemo itself, so far.  That could change any minute, though.

The day after, I received my first Neulasta injection.  My chemo nurse counseled me in a method to fight the side effects of this injection, which, you may recall, was the ONE THING that made me call in sick during my first year of chemo.

He suggested taking over the counter pepcid, and clairtin, every day, for five days, to combat the intense flu like symptoms caused by the immune boosting injection.

So far, it has been helping!  It also seemed to reduce my steroid reaction, so that's a plus.

I have been very tired, and headachy, but I have been able to function.  Even went to the gym on Friday, though I did scale things back a bit, and took it easier than usual.

I have been trying to focus on hydration, have been avoiding my nightly glasses of wine, and have been resting when I need to.

Let's hope things stay at about this level, rather than getting worse, as we go along.

I am VERY grateful that I have no more appointments until the 25th, when I see my doctor ahead of starting round two.  During this break, I can focus on recovering from round one.

I am ALSO EXTREMELY GRATEFUL that I am no longer working full time during this process.  This is a new experience for me, and I love being free to just take care of myself, instead of having to fulfill the attendance obligations of my unreasonable former employer.

In other news, I am curious about the number of views my blog has been getting.   The numbers suddenly spiked last week!

Usually, I see an average of maybe 7 to 10 views per post, but now, looking back down the list of posts, there are 20, 30, or even more views.

Do any of my readers know why this might be?  YOU CAN LEAVE COMMENTS, you know!  *wink*

Maybe Blogger updated their tracking, or maybe, for whatever reason, people are suddenly interested in the journey of one cancer patient who lives far away from friends and family, and who keeps a blog to help them all stay informed, and to stay connected when things are good.

Writing one post a week for everyone is easier than updating people one at a time, HAHA!

The weather here has been insufferable, and there is no end in sight.

Every morning, I go out and fill watering dishes, and the bird bath, and we put out bird food.

Our wren babies have started to hatch, which is SUCH a miracle in this horrible weather.  I am enlivened, and cheered, by this magical event taking place right here.

This coming week, Dave has his follow up dentist appointment to get his permanent crown, and we will get to the gym, as per usual.  

No other pressures threaten our daily functioning, which is such a lovely feeling.

Here's hoping all of you (apparently there are a lot of you) have a wonderful week.

Community

 Our house guests are on the road, and our weekend was comfortable and successful!

I had no adverse reactions to my first part of cycle 1 of the new chemo, so was able to do all of the things I wanted to do, like making food for the guests, making sure of every possible comfort for them, cleaning, and going to the Pagan Pride event yesterday.

I have been to every one of these events since moving here, and it is a great pleasure to me to see the community growing by leaps and bounds....especially in OKLAHOMA.

The group I belong to was one of the sponsors, and though I wasn't able to extend any energy to volunteer, it was a pleasure to show up and support my new friends.

Dave did okay with the noise and crowds, but ultimately, he had enough, and we had to leave.  We DID get to see our friend perform, and I got to see some other friends here and there.

Didn't buy anything this year, though, other than a piece I had commissioned from an artist a few months ago that was pre-planned.

It has been extremely hot and dry here, and the grass is suddenly brown.  Which is good, in a way, because it's too hot to mow.

My treatment day last Wednesday was extremely long.  

We were at the clinic for something like 7 and 1/2 hours all together, because they have to do the first treatment very slowly.  

They do this, and they observe me the whole time, to be sure there isn't an immediate bad reaction.  I'm given a bell to ring, in case anything happens while a nurse isn't actively watching me.  

The first hour was spent waiting for a blood test result that has to be run before each infusion.  (There will be an hour wait at the beginning every time I go.  Whee. )

Anyway, the steroid sweats that night were the worst I have ever had, I think, though I DID make sure to tell my doctor's PA that the dose needed to be what it was previously.  

Even the reduced dose caused me to soak through three sets of pajamas, and my sheets and pillows.

I got very little sleep, so I was VERY grateful that our guests were able to delay their arrival, so I could mostly take it easy on Thursday.

After the steroids wore off, though, I actually have been feeling almost normal.  My mouth feels.... different..... more dry, and sensitive, so we will see how that goes.

Part 2 of cycle 1 is Wednesday, and it it only scheduled to be 3 hours, but we shall see.  The day after, I have to go back for the Neulasta injection, which is just a shot in the arm. 

(Neulasta was the ONE THING that made me feel really bad during my first year of chemo)

I am just as pleased as punch that I did not have any ill effects this weekend.   Things may change going forward, but, for today, I am grateful.

We plan to return to the gym tomorrow, and I don't have to be at the clinic until 1pm on Wednesday, so we can go on Wednesday, too!  

I am off to continue putting things back where they were, HAHA..... (taking stuff out of the closets, where it had to be stashed to make room for guests).

Have a great week! 

Respite

 This weekend, we have had a break from the intense heat.  It's been nice to be able to open the windows in the morning, yesterday and today.  

Our wrens' nest has 4 eggs now, and we have seen momma going into the nest, so it was NOT abandoned as we had thought over the past week! 

There were also two butterflies on the prairie phlox yesterday, which REALLY made me happy.  It's been so hot and dry the past couple of weeks, that we had not seen any pollinators of any kind anywhere in the yard.

The heat met an old record of 108F on Friday, with heat index (how the humidity makes it feel outside) of 113F.

But, then a front came through in the middle of the night (making ALL of my bones hurt), and we woke yesterday to 73F, the coolest morning in a long time!  

Dave got the front yard mowed yesterday, and will do the back today. 

We are both in the process of working through lists of chores to get ready for house guests to arrive next Friday.  Thankfully, they were able to change their plans when we found out that my chemo starts on Wednesday.

I will "attack" the guest room today.  It's become a sort of catch all since I stopped working from home a year ago this past week.  My retirement anniversary was July 31st! 

It's been really nice to not be on any kind of cancer drug for this little stretch of time.  My body needed this break, even if the cancer might be spreading faster at the moment.  
I still feel fine, other than some aches and pains, and we will be hitting the cancer HARD very soon.

Because of the less hot weather this weekend, I've been able to use the grill, so I made burgers last night, and have some new-to-us fish to try tonight.

Neither of us has ever had steelhead trout, and it was on sale, so we are trying it!

We both have multiple appointments this coming week.  Dave sees his cardiologist and the dentist (miracle of miracles), and I have chemo and my own 6 month dental appointment.

The super hot weather returns tomorrow.  Ugh. 

We never made it to the art museum last week, but the exhibit will be there for a while, so we will get there eventually.

Have a good week! 

Back to chemo

 Well, the news wasn't great again.

My doctor had previously said she hoped to go with a different oral chemo to continue treatment, as the cancer has awakened and spread again.

But no.  I have to go back to the chemo chair.  

This protocol is even more frequent than the Enhertu was.  I go one day, then again 8 days later, then the day after that, I go back to get a Neulasta injection.  Then a week off, and do it all again.

She did not say for how many cycles before we scan again.

Ugh.  Neulasta was the ONLY THING that made me sick back in 2015, so I dread it.

Back to steroids and injected benadryl, too..... and back to not knowing which side effects will hit hardest.

Needless to say, I am not happy about it, but I am, as always, resolved.  Chemo works miracles, and I am ready for the next one.

My first treatment is Aug. 5th.

The day after that, house guests arrive, and I have a dentist appointment.  Both of these things have been on the calendar for many months.

I am asking the guests to delay a day, and arrive on Friday instead of Thursday.  I am not sure why they were going to come two days before the event they are coming for, which is not until Saturday.

Hopefully, they can accommodate my  needs, as I will be accommodating theirs for nearly three days right after my first treatment.  

We are in the midst of an extended heat wave.  It's been over 100, and will continue to be that hot every day for another week.

I put water out every day for the birds and bugs, though I have not seen many bugs at all.  We never had any June bugs this year, and I have not seen the usual bees and butterflies on my prairie phlox flowers.

We do, however, have a pair of Carolina Wrens building a nest in one of the hanging baskets on our front porch!  It's an odd time of year for nesting, but there they are! 

I look at it as a good omen.... I love wrens, and to me it is a sign of hope and renewed life.

We had another great week at the gym.  Dave's stamina is slowly increasing, and by Friday, we were doing 6 laps of the walking loop and 10 minutes total on two different cardio machines (rowing  and elliptical).

He is very good about letting me "coach" him, and when he wants to quit, I don't let him, and he says he needs that, so I do it when necessary!

We are hoping to go to the OKC Museum of Art this coming week. They have a special exhibit that includes one of my favorite paintings, Flaming June, by Leighton.

We will also start getting the house ready for guests, so that it's all done by the 5th, and I don't have to worry about anything in that regard after my treatment. 

Have a good week! 

Slow News Week

 ... at our house.

We got to the gym on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.  

Dave is slowly increasing his cardio exercise, and I am coaching him on proper form, breathing, using hand weights, and stretching before and after exercise.

I also think it's good for him to be around people, even if he doesn't interact with them much, if at all. 

This coming week brings Oklahoma-style summer.... 

We will have at least two weeks of temps between 100 and 105, with heat indices in the 110 to 115 range, so having an air conditioned place to go to keep MOVING, and stay ACTIVE, is going to be SUCH a blessing!!

I had a flare up of my hip flexor tendinitis this past week, possibly from using some of the cardio equipment at the gym, but I have been able to calm it down through self-therapy techniques from my lifetime as a massage therapist.

So far today, I am virtually pain free, but will continue to pay close attention to anything at the gym that feels like it might irritate it again.

I will finally see my oncologist on Tuesday.  

Hopefully, by then, the biopsy samples will have been analyzed,  the specific new mutations identified, and presented to the research team, so that we can move on.

I can't help but feel that this chemo isn't doing anything, and that I am taking it for nothing, so I would like to get going on something different.  I'm worried about the tiny new spots in my liver, and want us to get ahead of that with a new med.

I still have zero bone mets symptoms, and the biopsy area is completely pain free now.

There's not much on the agenda for today.  Dave did some mowing and weed whacking yesterday, and plans to do a bit more today.  

I will be doing my usual laundry load of towels, and will work on my next lesson in the course I am taking.

I'm making a chicken and broccoli pasta for dinner, and, in the meantime, there will be a Cubs game to watch.

Have a great week!