Chemo # 1 done.
I hopped on the liquid gold train about about 3pm starting with a series of injected preventatives: Benadryl and two others to try to prevent or minimize reactions.
Then about 3:30/4 we started with the tough one, Paclitaxel and we waited through the first tense 15 minutes to see if I had any reaction. If I did we would shut it down, treat the reaction and then doc would decide whether to try again. I went in with back pain from having to wash and dry my dog yesterday and I was very uncomfortable. Between being hopped up on two courses of steroids and the back pain we were trying to discern if I was reacting or not. We decided my back pain wasn’t worse so we continued. Yeah! Big step.
Two hours later we started the second drug Carboplatin which took only 30 minutes. Back pain. Not getting worse but just consistent. Trying to get comfortable.
Through both courses there was an urgency to pee, which is normal and a good thing because the infusions contain a lot of fluid support. There were also tingling sensations through my body, my pelvis, my pleural cavity. They felt like little fairies 🧚♂️ 🧚♂️🧚♂️ waving their little wands 🪄and sending zaps of light ⚡️at different areas inside of me. These sensations are normal and very positive. The nurse told us they had a patient with a huge lymphoma on their neck and literally watched the entire lump sink away during their first Taxel course. These are truly miracle drugs.
I have to write about my sister Karen. She battled crappy weather ⛈️ during a long ride to be with me yesterday. Being anxious and totally hopped up on two pre-treatment courses of steroids I was a cranky 😫 and bossy 😤 sister. Sitting with ice packs on my feet and hands I couldn’t get comfortable. Things kept falling off me, off the chair. My back was hurting. Without ever losing her cool, Karen only supported me and continually kept making me comfortable rolling blankets to prop me up and then repositioning them over and over again. She’d fill my water and take the same photos over and over letting me direct her on just the right angles. A sisters love runs deep and is unlike any other kind of love. 🙏 Karen! I love ❤️ so much!
