Time flies...

It must be true, what my parents have been telling me for years: the older you get, the faster time passes.  I've also come to realize that you don't necessarily have to be having fun for time to fly!  I can't believe I am coming onto the end of my third week of radiation!!!  At this rate, it'll be summer before I know it and I'll be complaining about how hot it is under my wigs.  I have no clue when or how long it will be before I see any of my own hair again.  It has been over one month since my last chemotherapy and I have yet to see a single hair return anywhere on my body!  In fact I think I may still be loosing hair as I now have only 3 eyelashes left on the left and a whopping 5 on my right!  I guess it's a good thing time is flying, maybe I'll have some hair before I know it.

So far so good

I am over 1/3 through radiation and I am very glad to report that I have had minimal skin changes, I have once again been able to impress the docs; usually by the second week, most patients supposedly are requiring creams to treat the skin changes--thankfully I am not requiring any yet.  I am still having some issues with swelling on the right side and with my arm but I am hoping this is the worst it is going to get.

I have officially started exercising again and am trying to stick to somewhat of a diet--we'll see how long this lasts.  I'm hoping to be able to fit back into my clothes!!  I'm so tired of trying to stuff myself into my fat pants only to end up with a muffin top.  I have about 4 weeks before my cousin's wedding and I'd like to loose at least half the weight that I've gained.  I shall keep you updated, hopefully I will succeed!

Finally!

I think I am finally over my cold, I still have a bit of a cough but definitely much better than one week ago. I can now sleep through the night without waking to hacking up half a lung!

I've also made it through week 2 of radiation, it really feels like time is flying.  I'm excited to think that I'll be done with treatment before I realize it.  I am having a bit of discomfort in the radiation site but it hasn't gotten to the point that I should worry yet.  I'm afraid the edema may become problematic but I'm following recommendations for scheduled therapy and a night sleeve to help keep it from getting out of hand.

I know that I've only made it through 2 of the 7 weeks of radiation and I may be jumping the gun but I really feel like I'm ready to get back to doing all the things I was before my diagnosis.  I've decided to start slowly; I may not start training for a half marathon yet but I think I'm ready to be much more active than the couch potato I have been over the past several months.  My biggest dilemma is trying to decide which wig to wear when I do work out or if I should try the scarf and cap look for my trips to the gym.  My life is pretty good if that's my biggest dilemma, wouldn't you say?!

Cold be gone, already!

I had my weekly evaluation by my Radiation Oncologist and she feels that I am showing signs of skin changes although I haven't really noticed anything myself and luckily haven't felt anything.  There is definitely more edema which she seemed a little concerned about but to me it is my new normal, but I guess if it gets any worse I'll have to reach out to Maureen, the miracle worker when it comes to treating lymphedema.  I'm hoping it doesn't get to that point because I feel like I just don't have enough time in the day to go for treatment or I may be feeling that way because I'm sleep deprived, which I think may be causing some impatience.

I know there are many people who have been battling the same bad cold I have for several weeks now and even though I'm on antibiotics and feel better I can't get rid of this annoying cough which is waking me up in the middle of the night and keeping me up.  It is a horrible hacking cough that makes me feel like I can't catch my breath at times and it has kept me up for the past 3 nights!  I'm ready for a peaceful and restful night of sleep!!

Monday blues!

Woke up to a cold and rainy Monday morning.  Definitely feeling like my chest cold is getting worse and have now started on a short course of antibiotics.  Went for my daily radiation treatment and met yet another young hospital employee going through radiation for breast cancer, difference is she didn't have to go through chemo.  As she continued to tell me about her experience, she mentioned that she was currently out on medical leave because she was having bad side effects to radiation--she had lost about 7 lbs in a weeks time and was too tired to get through a half a day at work.  I began to think, I can stand to loose some weight but I don't think I like the whole idea of not being able to get through work.  Started to feel a little down and began to worry...Then it dawned on me, I was not the typical chemo patient and I refuse to be another typical radiation patient.  I was able to impress the surgeons I work for and all the doctors treating me when I went through all 6 cycles of chemo with very little time off and still active as a surgical PA; I even earned the title of the only woman known to Mercy Outpatient Chemo who wore heals through chemotherapy!  I shouldn't let anyone else's experiences influence me or my attitude, I know I can get through this without a hitch--if I could only get over this cold!! :-/

1 down 6 more weeks to go!

I am happy to say that the first week of radiation has gone by quickly and relatively smoothly, considering I  almost forgot to go for my treatments a couple of times!  I only hope that the next 6 weeks go by as quickly and as smoothly.

This past week was a bit miserable because I've been battling a bad cold on top of trying to keep up with a busy schedule at work.  I did get some time to chill and relax this weekend but Sunday night has come too fast and I have a feeling Monday morning will be here way too soon.  The cold that started out in my head has made it's way down into my chest and I hope that it will make it's way out any day now!  I cannot believe that I made it through chemo without catching a thing, even when my counts were down and I was most susceptible, and it's now when I finally thought I was getting close to being normal that I catch a cold!!!  Oh, the frustration...I guess I shouldn't complain, I should be grateful that nothing bad ever happened and that this is only a cold!

Patience grasshopper!

Um...so today was only day 3 of radiation and I'm already feeling like these daily treatments are crampin' my style!  I hate having to put aside 10-15 minutes to get zapped.  I feel like I have to drop everything for the short treatments and it seems very inconvenient especially lately when my schedule at work has been uber crazy.  I have a feeling I am going to be constantly annoyed for the next 6 1/2 weeks!

Daily reminder

I guess it's because it's only the beginning of my radiation treatments but I found myself forgetting about my daily appointment.  It's really not painful and to be honest it's a mere 10-15 minutes of my day (not even long enough to get settled and catch a cat nap!) but today I almost forgot to make my appointment; I'm afraid at this rate I may truly forget to go one day!

I have to admit, I am a very spoiled patient.  The radiation therapists have made provisions to get me in and out whenever I can make it.  They've even made sure that my treatments remain confidential and have upheld my privacy by letting me enter and wait in the conference room away from other patients in case I were to run into any of the patients I may have treated.  I even get my own changing room away from the general patient changing room area and at the end of my treatment I get to slip out through the back.  At this rate, my treatments should pass by quickly--as long as I remember to make them!

The countdown begins

I have placed the first of 34 "X's" on my calendar to countdown the next 7 weeks of daily radiation treatments.  It was truly a simple chore, I lay in my mold for less than 10 minutes and was done; painless and easy!  I'm not sure if I'll feel the same way in a few weeks when I begin having skin changes but for now I'll take it one day at a time.

Another reason to celebrate

It feels somehow official that I've completed chemotherapy now that I've gotten my port-a-cath out; yes, yesterday under local anesthesia, I got my port out--YAY!!!  The interventional radiology nurses were kinda disapproving the fact that I didn't want to be sedated but I was able to talk the radiologist into performing the procedure with just some local.  Surprising, I haven't even had a lot of pain, a little discomfort last night but I didn't even have to take any Tylenol or Advil for it.

Got my port out just in time as I will be starting radiation on Monday.  Next Monday will start my countdown to 7 weeks of daily weekday visits to the basement of the building that I work in to lay in a mold made of my upper body for 10 minutes while I get zapped with 2 different beams--how exciting does that sound?!

This past week has been a crazy one at work.  I've come home late and gone straight to bed most of the days neglecting this blog.  I guess I am closer to normal than I thought--no more foreign body in my chest, boring life that lets me work long hours.  Normal is good, especially if I were to compare it to the past several months but I think it may be time to work on a new normal.  Just need to figure out what I want my new normal to be!

Almost normal again

It's amazing what the human body can endure.  To think that just a couple of weeks ago I had wanted to literally die; and it was after a week of feeling miserable that I miraculously and all of a sudden began to feel better.  I remember waking up one morning and being able to get out of bed, actually able to stay awake for a short period of time; the following day I was feeling even better.  Like I mentioned in one of my previous posts, I felt like I was improving by leaps and bounds as each day passed and now I almost feel like I'm close to being back to normal.  This whole experience has made me realize how important and glorious good health truly is.  I can now appreciate the frustration and depression chronically ill patients must feel.  I hope that I will never forget this and always be grateful for what I have.

It has been a crazy week at work and now that I'm feeling better I have found myself getting back into the thick of things.  I feel wiped out once I get home but am just glad that I am able to get up and get to work the next day.  I still don't have an exact date to start radiation but know it won't be too long before I am scheduled for my first treatment.  I have absolutely no anxiety or fear about the treatments, I feel confident that I'll get through my 34 treatments without much difficulty.  I just can't wait until the day that I can announce that I have officially beat The Big C!

A new battle

Now that I'm done with chemo, I am getting ready to start radiation therapy; I'm expected to as soon as next week.  I've met with my radiation oncologist who has expedited my simulation and plans to start the first of 34 treatments next week.  I honestly feel like the next 7 weeks will be a walk in the park compared to the past 4 months. 

As I get to feeling more like my pre-cancer diagnosis self, I look forward to putting ALL of this behind me.