5 down.....7 to go......almost half way through Taxotere.......

You know you’re a cancer patient when…… you no longer have to budget in haircuts..colors..eyebrow waxing…

My mission in life is not merely to survive, but to thrive; and to do so with some passion, some compassion, some humor, and some style."   Maya Angelou

I’m happy to report that I’m feeling good today – just a little tired – but that’s it.  And that’s partially from steroid-deprived sleep, I’m sure, and getting up at 0500 to work.  I can handle ‘tired,’ though.  It’s the other SEs (side effects) that are tough to handle sometimes.

I had a good appointment with Dr. Sprawls yesterday.  He was running an hour behind, but it didn’t even bother me.  I had a few questions for him, all of which he answered.  The first thing I asked him was if the dexamethasone (steroid) could be causing the severe abdominal pain instead of the Taxotere (chemo).  He said it was possible and asked what the dexa dosage was.  I couldn’t remember, so I called Ken who looked at the bottle – 4 mg.  Dr. Sprawls said I could try cutting them in half – incredibly small pills (hard to cut) – or he could give me an Rx for 2 mg, which is what he did.  So today I have been taking 2 mg instead of 4 mg.  Tomorrow I will start the Bentyl (antispasmodic) and hope for the best.  Turning into quite the “junkie” lately.  For someone who NEVER took prescription meds, I’ve got pill bottles all over the place now.  Can’t say as I like the looks of it, but “ya gotta do what ya gotta do.”  I’m still taking the “healthier drugs,” too – vitamins and supplements, which I feel much better about taking. 

My next question for Dr. Sprawls was what to do about the burning, watery eyes I’ve been experiencing lately.  They’ve been watering so much, especially in the morning, that it has really been driving me crazy.  It’s hard to do serious transcription when everything is so blurry or when I’m constantly having to wipe my eyes so I can see straight.  He asked me if I had ever seen the movie “Flubber.”  I don’t really remember it, but he said my eyeballs have been flubberized and boinged all over the place because of the chemo.  So he suggested I get some eye drops called “Refresh” for DRY eyes!  I said, “Dry eyes??  That’s not my problem.  It’s watery eyes!”  So then he explained in great detail – very little of which I remember – something about it being very dry behind the eyes, which is causing the tears to flow.  Okay, it actually made sense when he was telling me.  I just wish I could remember the explanation.  At any rate, I obediently bought some Refresh and after ONE treatment my eyes were feeling so much better and were hardly watering at all!  With drops for dry eyes!  Go figure.  I’ve been using them today, and they’re really helping.

And the BEST part of yesterday’s appointment was that Dr. Sprawls said to me, “You are really an inspiration…..handling all the ups and downs with such dignity.”  That really made my day – such a kind, genuine thing to say.  Maybe he says that to everybody, but I kind of doubt it…..at least I’m going to let myself believe that he doesn’t.

We forgot to discuss my “numbers” during the visit, but I knew the nurses upstairs in the chemo suite would be on top of that.  Sure enough, Ashley told me the numbers looked good.  I asked her what the white count was, and she said 9.23!  Holy cow!!  I thought she must have been looking at somebody else’s results!  But she gave me a copy of it, and that’s exactly what it said!  Woo hoo!  Of course, I didn’t have chemo last week, so I’m sure that helped with the boost.

The chemo drip went smoothly yesterday, and I was feeling good afterwards and have continued to feel good all day today.  Finished my work around 1400 and then went “shopping” at omahasteaks.com!  Thank you so much, Mom and Free, for the wonderful gift certificate!  That was so thoughtful of you, and we are making room in the freezer right now for the delicious goodies that will soon arrive on our doorstep.  They have such a nice variety of things – not just steaks.  Can’t wait! 

Please keep your fingers crossed and all those positive thoughts flowing that I glide through the weekend with NO side effects.  Maybe we’ll even make it to the beach!  Still not sure what’s happening with the boat, but I’ll keep you posted on that when I know more.  LOVE YOU ALL!