Chemotherapy - Day 10

08.12.09: Chemotherapy - Day 10. Getting Back To Normal

It has been a few days since I last posted, and I have had a lot go on since then. So much so that I haven't been able to spend much time online to update everyone. I am not too busy right now, though, so maybe I can cover just about all of it.

Friday night was pretty nice. I was worn out the whole time, but Gary and Kalee Stanton came to Adam's apartment and we all hung out and just watched TV there. I haven't seen them since their wedding, though I've talked to Gary a good bit since then (and no, not all the calls were about help with speeding tickets; just one or two). Later that night Adam and I sat around and did all kinds of nerdy stuff until I went to bed. I got on Xbox Live and downloaded some new games to have at the house (no, Waterford does not have high-speed internet access).

Saturday I stayed at his place a little longer until he left to do some church stuff. I got out and ran some errands for Mom and Dad in Holly Springs, but took it easy again that night. It would have been nice to get out and go somewhere but I really didn't feel like it.

Sunday was great. My grandparents and uncle from Canton came to visit. I haven't seen them in a while and I always love when I get to be around them. We had a good visit and good lunch; the most solid food I had eaten all week. Once they got back on the road, I pretty much did a lot more sitting around at the house until that night.

I had some leftover spaghetti for dinner, which I had been craving. It was awesome at the time, but would turn into a nightmare later on.

I got together all my stuff I needed for work on Monday and filled the truck up with gas. I didn't feel so great when I went to bed Sunday night so I took some nausea medicine. Around 12:30 Monday morning I woke up feeling like I was about to throw up, so I ran straight for the toilet. I ended up losing all of the good food from the day over the course of the next four or five hours. I would go back to bed, then feel like I was burning up, and have to go back to the bathroom. Then I'd start freezing and have to cover up again, which would make it all start up again a little while later.

The worst part about it was I was too tired and disoriented to go to the kitchen and get some water, so after hours of being sick like that I ended up getting dehydrated. I had heard that dehydration is one of the worst things for a chemo patient, and I believe it. Around 6 I went to the kitchen and got some water and Sprite. I took some Pepto and ibuprofen, but neither of them did much good. I obviously couldn't make it to work like I'd planned, so I spent the rest of the day trying to drink a lot of water and sleep off the worst headache I've ever had in my life. It hurt to walk, to watch TV, to take a drink, and to do just about anything else. I tried to force down some soup but I couldn't eat more than a few spoonfuls. Later I ended up driving myself to Sonic to get a milkshake, which I got about halfway down. I finally ended up eating a banana for dinner, but that was it for the day.

My brother and Adam Hale came to the house later to hang out, but I still wasn't very fun. My headache was lingering but it was still good to have some company. When I went to bed I still didn't feel great, but by the next morning I felt mostly better.

Tuesday I went in for my "short day" of chemo. It ended up taking a lot longer than I had planned, partly because the nurse was taking her sweet time doing everything. The medicine I got was bleomicin, and since I have only had it once before, we had to do a "test sample" and wait twenty minutes before going through with the rest. I won't have to do that again next week, though, since I responded well to it last week and this week. Later, I talked to Dr. Walsh about getting my portacath put in. I meet a surgeon about that this Friday, and the operation will be next Friday. I guess that means I get to fill out more paperwork this week!

I was no longer dehydrated after the chemo, but I still couldn't handle much in my stomach. I had a couple bites of a Clif bar on the way there, but couldn't eat the rest. When I got home I made a turkey sandwich but didn't even eat half of it. It didn't taste good at all to me.

I left the house around 11:30 to go to work. I got there about an hour later and a guy I work with, Nathan Murff, caught me before I went in. I rode to Danver's with him, thinking I could get a salad or something. I ended up going with the vegetable soup, and it didn't taste good to me either. By this time I was wondering when I'd be able to eat again. Somehow I didn't feel too tired though. Finally when I got in to work, a lady that sits near me brought me some watermelon and it was awesome! I ate that and a plum and felt pretty good. By the time I got home I ate some mashed potatoes, so by the end of the day yesterday I had slowly started getting an appetite again.

Last night I started to notice another really annoying side effect of this chemo: acne, or something similar. I look like a 14 year old boy. I thought maybe my breakout was because I hadn't shaved in a few days, but it's not just on my face. I have bumps on my back and chest, too. They aren't painful, but irritating. It sucks. I almost looked like I had the chicken pox last night. Also, I have these dark marks on different parts of my body. The doctor told me I would experience some marks that look like scratches, and he was right. I wonder if those are going to show up on my head after I shave it here in a week or so... I hope not.

Today, I have been at work since 8 AM and haven't felt bad at all, aside from getting a little tired here and there. I've been really busy today, which was a nice change from the last week and a half, and I am glad I'm able to get back into the swing of things. I will try to put another update on here this weekend after I speak to the surgeon. Maybe I will have time to get on here and reply to some of the comments I have been left (can't access Facebook from work or I would have already done that). Thanks for reading and caring.