Chemotherapy - Day 1

I keep thinking that if I don't write this down, I am going to forget about my experiences with chemotherapy for my testicular cancer. Since this is the biggest health problem I've dealt with thus far, I would probably hate it if I forgot what all it was like, as I am prone to do with many things.

I may write other things about the past 3-4 months of my fight with cancer if I am bored, but not today. I will probably also link this to Facebook since I don't think people blogs are as accessible these days to the few people that may be interested in reading this.

As I was saying before, unless you are just bored this may not be very interesting. But read if you want. I'm not shy so I probably won't hold much back. Though I did write an unpublished blog about my trip to the fertility bank in Memphis. Maybe that well be a bonus chapter when I turn this into a book

08.03.09: Chemotherapy - Day One

Today I started chemotherapy. I honestly had no idea what I would be doing while I was there. I had heard that I would basically be sitting in a recliner all day with an IV in one of my veins. I've also heard I would be nauseous, I would get headaches, and basically I would be all-around uncomfortable.

Well, I got there fairly early, but not too early. The perpetually confused receptionist, with whom I had a pretty hard time last Monday explaining when and where I would be having my treatments treatments done ("this office, one week from today"... it still took around ten minutes, and two or three incorrect appointments that had to be cancelled), greeted me first thing with "Good Morning, Mr. Cook!"

I didn't correct her, I just said "Hi." I am interested to see what she calls me tomorrow since I didn't correct her. I think she just looked at the list of today's patients and guessed which one I was.

After a few minutes of waiting, I sat in a recliner next to the only other man in the office. He was a middle-aged black man that looked like he had been doing his treatments for a while. We talked a little bit, but to be honest, I didn't really care to talk too much today. I just wanted to get hooked up to my IV and get started.

I brought plenty to occupy myself. I actually brought too much I think. The treatment was only 3 hours today, and will more than likely be that same length for the rest of the week. I read my book, "A Lesson Before Dying," more than anything else, because it is a good read and involves less movement of my right hand, which was housing my IV needle.

I didn't have much time for the other things I had, though I did update my Facebook status a few times, wrote some comments, and read some news on my phone. I worked part of a crossword puzzle in a book given to my by a coworker, but didn't have much time for the Nintendo DSi that I bought the other day. Money well spent! Actually, my needle won't be in my hand every day, so I am sure I will get good use out of it.

I had 5 bags attached to my IV at various times throughout the process. One bag had just regular fluid to keep my hydrated. Another had steroids to get me looking buff. The third contained an anti-nausea medicine, and the other two actually contained the chemo medicne. I don't remember the name of the actual medicine, or poison as I like to call it, they were injecting me with today, but I will probably look it up by tomorrow's update.

The fluids were cold and I could feel them most of the time they were going through my arm and right side of my chest before their temperature normalized. The man sitting by me warned me that all that fluid was gonna make me "pee like crazy."

He was right. I peed like crazy. All day.

Soon, an old lady that has obviously been smoking for longer than I'll probably live, came in the office and talked constantly. She was an ignorant old lady that complained almost the entire time she was in the office. It was really interfering with my reading.

After only three hours, the nurse told me I was about ready to call it a day. I'm not sure if it will be that quick every day, but three hours was a lot better than the six and a half I was told expect. During my whole time there, I didn't feel bad at all.

Dad and I went and got lunch at McAlister's after leaving, and drove around Memphis a bit. I got my prescriptions filled later and went back to the house, where my friend Bruce and his girlfriend came and visited.

Around the time they left, I started feeling the effects for the first time. Nausea started kicking in, as did a headache the likes of which I haven't had since college. I've been trying out my medicine and some trusty ibuprofen this afternoon, and they work decently so far.

So now I am watching TV and thinking about how awesome it's going to be to go to bed tonight. Yes, the chemo lifestyle is a boring one, but someone's got to do it. Like cancer patients, for instance; we've got to do it.

I'll be doing another post tomorrow so read on if you want to know about the crazy hospital antics I might get into.