Do blonds really have more fun?

Since I’m married with a kid AND  I have cancer, we might not find out the true answer.  But I am blond!  Eight days ago I had brown hair with high lights.  Today I have straight up blond hair.  Bleach blond hair.  There is no brown in my hair.  None.  I decided I wanted to do something a little crazy since I might lose my hair.  And you might ask, what if you don’t lose your hair?  Well then, I will shave it because I’m not keeping this blond-hair-thing up!  I don’t have the time (or money!) to get my hair done every 2 weeks so I’m going to enjoy the bleach blond hair while I can.  I might get a crazy hair cut soon too.  Why not?!

My first round of chemo was last Thursday and I think it went fine.  I’ve had a little nausea and I’ve been extremely tired but I can handle that.  If you don’t know how nausea feels it’s kind of like feeling queezy but not being sick.  It’s annoying but for me it’s not debilitating.  Unfortunately, if I eat it sort of goes away and since the 10 pounds I gained the first time I went through chemo haven’t gone away I really don’t want to add anymore!  But, feeling ok is better than looking ok.  I guess J  I was talking to Missy, my chemo nurse, yesterday and she said the people who lose a lot of weight during chemo are generally the ones who don’t feel good so…  ugh… I’m ok not being skinny.  I guess J

Yesterday was Day 8 of my cycle and my lab results were within the right margins so I was able to get chemo.  My first round is complete!  I’ll go back on day 20 which will be March 12 to get my labs done again to make sure I can get chemo on Day 21, March 13^th. 

It’s hard to explain the cycle - Day 1, Day 8, Day 21 begins the cycle over so it becomes Day 1 again.  I was told that Day 8 often gets pushed back because lab results aren’t good but I suppose Day 21 can get pushed back too since they test my blood then too.  And the count begins on the day I get chemo so if Day 8 gets pushed back to Day 9 then Day 21 would become Day 22.  Whatever…  I am really trying to not plan things which is REALLY hard for me being that I’m a TOTAL planner.  And a side note, if the days get pushed back it isn't necessarily a bad thing.  It doesn't mean I'm sick or anything, it just means my lab results weren't in the right range. 



Brown w/highlights at PDX

Baby hairs!

Brown morning hair

orange

Day 1 of chemo, not quite blond enough

Orange mlorning hair

Strawberry blond/Pink.  But not quite drastic enough for me!

Blond!!!

My 2nd port

My port is in.  Surgery went well and I got home around 5pm yesterday.  I’m pretty sore today but I’m staying in bed and my mom is coming to take care of me so I’ll make it.

As we were headed towards the hospital yesterday I realized I didn’t remember anything about the surgery process.  Luckily the nurses and doctors were there to guide me through everything J  I'm surprised I don't remember though, I've had several surgeries at this hospital and the nurses even remember me! 

This picture is post-op.  The long line going up and down is where the port was inserted. The shorter, horizontal line on my neck is where the catheter goes into my vein.  

 

The catheter is a small, soft tube that is placed inside one of the large central veins that takes blood to my heart.

This is the actual port that is inside me.  (Crazy!!) 

When I go in for chemo, a special kind of needle is inserted into my skin in the middle of the vertical line on my chest.  This is how the port is accessed.  The catheter takes the chemo to my blood and heart. (I didn’t know about the heart part but I guess that makes sense – blood pumps to and from the heart, right?)

Here I am after surgery.  Thumbs up! 

See that bag hanging in the front of the picture?  That’s sodium chloride.  When I told the anesthesiologist I wished I could’ve drank water before surgery because I drank wine the night before she upped the drip and gave me more.  What does this mean?  Have you heard of the Remedy Room in New Orleans?  Or Hangover Heaven in Las Vegas? Or the IV Doctor who makes house calls in New York. Well, my Anesthesiologist hooked me up with a little cure, I mean not that I was hung over but I was thirsty J

I'm Pooped!

I don’t remember ever having such a low energy level.  I know I was tired during chemo and wasn’t sleeping well but this, I think, is different.  I get at least 9 hours of sleep per night.  Most nights I don’t wake up at all, even if I go to bed early.  Last week I went to bed at 7:30, probably fell asleep around 8:30 and did not wake up until 7am.  I feel good and rested when I wake up but by 12:30-1pm I’m tired.  I have trouble keeping my eyes open and even find it hard to talk or at least speak clearly.  It’s not like I’m tired and should be sleeping it’s like I’m exhausted and my body needs to rest.  Apparently the low energy levels stem from radiation and could last 2-3 months.  My body is busy rebuilding my cells that were killed during radiation.  It’s all so weird because I don’t SEE anything happening but when I hit the wall, I hit the wall  hard and it’s time to stop.  My afternoons are generally spent on the couch or lazy boy, which isn’t a bad way to spend an afternoon!

Funny story - I told Micah I was pooped one day and he said "Oh!  Momma's pooping."  He's definitely to the age where he's making us laugh a lot.

Last Saturday we celebrated Micah’s 3^rd birthday party at Chuck E. Cheese.  It was wonderful seeing him play with his friends and having fun at his birthday party. 

Right after the party I dropped everyone off and went for my last radiation treatment which we celebrated with champagne and flowers. 

 

Sunday was Bobby’s 40^th birthday, which we celebrated at home by ourselves J   We do have a trip to Portland and Black Butte coming up as a birthday present.  Bobby is always giving me a hard time for not taking him to the snow (I hate the snow!) so this trip really is for him (I want to make sure this is clear, this trip is for him.  Not me!  But I will enjoy it also!)

 

Bobby and I met with Dr Barnhill last week to discuss my chemo plan.  I will be getting my port put back in on Feb 10^th and starting chemo on Feb 20.  How I handle this chemo is unknown but I could lose my hair, have nausea, be tired and/or have low blood counts.

What are low blood counts?   I have to give blood before every chemo treatment and if my levels aren’t in the right place the treatment will be postponed.  I know they check my white blood cell count but I’m not sure what else they check.  I believe the white blood cell count is the biggest concern and also the one that Dr Barnhill expects me to have problems with.  The white blood cells are what fight infection so if my count is low I’m more susceptible to infection.  Last time I would get my ‘white blood cell shot’ which you might remember me talking about.  I can’t get it this time because there has to be 14 days between the shot and the next chemo, which I will not have.  I guess there is a shot I can get for 3 days that would help.  There’s something to combat all side effects, how well they work is another thing!