Because my first Chemo was done during the week of Thanksgiving, it was done in a more rapid fashion. All three chemo drugs were infused in a few hours. From now on, I will have two drugs infused on the Monday, and the third, shall we say more vicious of the drugs, will be slowly infused over 3 days. I will wear a pump home with the medicine infusing, returning every 24 hours to get it refilled.
I was a bit nervous for number 2. They say it will be worse, but not drastically so. Plus, I wasn't sure how the pump worked. As a dietitian, in my mind, it is like an insulin pump, but it will be hooked up to my port in my chest. I was wrong.
The infusion visit went fine. Two medicines in in a relatively short time. Then they hooked up the pump. It is much larger then I expected. In the carrying bag, it is about 4 inches by 8 inches. I have to carry it around. I can not unhook it to shower or sleep. It can not get wet, and neither can my port--from Monday morning until Thursday afternoon. Not happy. Plus, it makes noises. Every 2 minutes it makes a clicking/whirring sound. It sounds like a camera that uses film after you take a picture, that winding of the film. Not happy.
I was very very worried about Biny. He's two and half, and I have a tube coming out of my chest that connects to a bag. I thought for sure he would want to play with the pump and pull on the tube. We picked him up from the sitter, I hid my port and the tubes under my coat. When we got home, I let my son explore the port/tubes. I tell him my port is my "ouchie" and he is very good about it. He thought it looked funny all taped up. He said it looked like a mouse. Not sure if that's true, but after he checked it out he never really cared about it again. He actually never cared about the bag/pump. Thankfully it was a boring looking black bag and the pump itself, which is visible through the clear front of the bag, has no lights and the buttons are locked when i leave the hospital so if touched they make no beeps.
So--despite my worries wearing the pump with a toddler wasn't an issue. Well, the pump itself was annoying, but only to me. I would forget i had it on and stand up to be QUICKLY reminded with the tug on the tube i needed to pick it up. I kept thinking I was carrying around my bag, and would go to put it down. Obnoxious. Then, there was the need to bath and very carefully at that. Remember, the port can't get wet. I am NOT one of those women who love baths (or hot tubs for that matter). I just feel like a potato when I am sitting in water--gross. But, its 3 days every 3 weeks, so doable.
With the more "harsh" medicine being infused over 3 days the symptoms were different this time. Things settled in much slower. The first round, 24 hours later I felt like I had been hit by the exhaustion freight train. But, this time, it was a slow creep. I have no appetite and had a bit of nausea for 2 weeks. Whereas the first time by week 2 I was on my way out of the symptoms, this time they lingered long into week 2 of my 3 week cycle.
Another key difference with this round was one of the more memorable or visible symptoms finally happened. It started a few days before the cycle, I got what is called "scalp ache." Its when literally your scalp aches, especially when your hair is touched/moved. Then, the Monday of the treatment my hair began to fall out. I would put my fingers in my hair and it they would come out filled with hair. As the days passed, the amount increased rapidly. I think most people believe you go completely bald with chemo, but for most that is not the case. You actually get bald patches and your hair thins out. For men, they can leave their hair that stays--I've seen/known men who have done this. But, for women, having random bald spots surrounded by spurts of hair doesn't look pretty (full body radiation, needed in some types of cancer does cause 100% baldness). I was told by several, i would reach a point when the annoyance of having my hair falling out everywhere would trump my fear of being bald. It was very obnoxious. I think my son hated it the most--he would come running up crying because he had a spider on him, it would be my hair. My husband was very patient and I think would have lived with my hair all over house with me just dripping hair, but I was getting annoyed. Thursday night I asked my husband to shave my head.
It took a lot longer then I expected--but soon enough, I was bald. It was very shocking, very shocking to see myself without hair. But, almost a week later I am getting used to it. Its strange and will take more time before it completely settles in, but not really an issue.
Next Monday is treatment 3. I feel like I not much will change, and I know what I am in for. The one worry is anemia, which would of course make me more tired. My bone marrow might not keep up with the destruction of blood cells. But, it is being tracked closely.
I saw my neonatologist for the first time. This doctor will follow the baby's growth every 2 weeks until I am 28 weeks, then every week until I deliver. At the end, he will end up having more appointments then me!! thus far all looks good and if the amount of time he spends kicking my bladder is any indication of healthy, he is good to go.
Happy 2014!
I was a bit nervous for number 2. They say it will be worse, but not drastically so. Plus, I wasn't sure how the pump worked. As a dietitian, in my mind, it is like an insulin pump, but it will be hooked up to my port in my chest. I was wrong.
The infusion visit went fine. Two medicines in in a relatively short time. Then they hooked up the pump. It is much larger then I expected. In the carrying bag, it is about 4 inches by 8 inches. I have to carry it around. I can not unhook it to shower or sleep. It can not get wet, and neither can my port--from Monday morning until Thursday afternoon. Not happy. Plus, it makes noises. Every 2 minutes it makes a clicking/whirring sound. It sounds like a camera that uses film after you take a picture, that winding of the film. Not happy.
I was very very worried about Biny. He's two and half, and I have a tube coming out of my chest that connects to a bag. I thought for sure he would want to play with the pump and pull on the tube. We picked him up from the sitter, I hid my port and the tubes under my coat. When we got home, I let my son explore the port/tubes. I tell him my port is my "ouchie" and he is very good about it. He thought it looked funny all taped up. He said it looked like a mouse. Not sure if that's true, but after he checked it out he never really cared about it again. He actually never cared about the bag/pump. Thankfully it was a boring looking black bag and the pump itself, which is visible through the clear front of the bag, has no lights and the buttons are locked when i leave the hospital so if touched they make no beeps.
So--despite my worries wearing the pump with a toddler wasn't an issue. Well, the pump itself was annoying, but only to me. I would forget i had it on and stand up to be QUICKLY reminded with the tug on the tube i needed to pick it up. I kept thinking I was carrying around my bag, and would go to put it down. Obnoxious. Then, there was the need to bath and very carefully at that. Remember, the port can't get wet. I am NOT one of those women who love baths (or hot tubs for that matter). I just feel like a potato when I am sitting in water--gross. But, its 3 days every 3 weeks, so doable.
With the more "harsh" medicine being infused over 3 days the symptoms were different this time. Things settled in much slower. The first round, 24 hours later I felt like I had been hit by the exhaustion freight train. But, this time, it was a slow creep. I have no appetite and had a bit of nausea for 2 weeks. Whereas the first time by week 2 I was on my way out of the symptoms, this time they lingered long into week 2 of my 3 week cycle.
Another key difference with this round was one of the more memorable or visible symptoms finally happened. It started a few days before the cycle, I got what is called "scalp ache." Its when literally your scalp aches, especially when your hair is touched/moved. Then, the Monday of the treatment my hair began to fall out. I would put my fingers in my hair and it they would come out filled with hair. As the days passed, the amount increased rapidly. I think most people believe you go completely bald with chemo, but for most that is not the case. You actually get bald patches and your hair thins out. For men, they can leave their hair that stays--I've seen/known men who have done this. But, for women, having random bald spots surrounded by spurts of hair doesn't look pretty (full body radiation, needed in some types of cancer does cause 100% baldness). I was told by several, i would reach a point when the annoyance of having my hair falling out everywhere would trump my fear of being bald. It was very obnoxious. I think my son hated it the most--he would come running up crying because he had a spider on him, it would be my hair. My husband was very patient and I think would have lived with my hair all over house with me just dripping hair, but I was getting annoyed. Thursday night I asked my husband to shave my head.
It took a lot longer then I expected--but soon enough, I was bald. It was very shocking, very shocking to see myself without hair. But, almost a week later I am getting used to it. Its strange and will take more time before it completely settles in, but not really an issue.
Next Monday is treatment 3. I feel like I not much will change, and I know what I am in for. The one worry is anemia, which would of course make me more tired. My bone marrow might not keep up with the destruction of blood cells. But, it is being tracked closely.
I saw my neonatologist for the first time. This doctor will follow the baby's growth every 2 weeks until I am 28 weeks, then every week until I deliver. At the end, he will end up having more appointments then me!! thus far all looks good and if the amount of time he spends kicking my bladder is any indication of healthy, he is good to go.
Happy 2014!
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