Kickin' It Pink With Kristyn: I'm taking a break!

I had an appointment with Dr Barnhill yesterday to see if I’d be doing another chemo and she said she’s still thinking I’m done but… I also got an MRI yesterday because of pain I’ve been having, probably associated with the swelling in my arm and breast. When I go back to Dr Barnhill in 2 weeks we’ll know for sure if I’m done with chemo. For now, I’m taking a break from Chemo.

I requested something, anything, to be done a few weeks ago when I was having serious pain from the swelling and lymphedema. Dr Barnhill ordered an MRI but for whatever reason it was never scheduled so yesterday the nurse made sure to get it scheduled. The MRI was scheduled for 5:30pm last night at a different hospital. No big deal – I’ve been to this hospital before for other people and I’m not afraid of hospitals. However, the experience could have been better. The people were nice, the facility is fine but my arm was beat up! They needed to find a vein for the contrast IV. Person One could not see a vein but tried to get one, unsuccessfully. Person Two could not see a vein but tried to get one, unsuccessfully. Person Three was from the IV team and found one with no problem. She’s had 30 years of experience with IV’s. But during the MRI (which was very uncomfortable) I started to feel a cold sensation in my arm and just figured it was the dye going into my arm. If you’ve had any type of contrast MRI or CT scan you know the feeling, although it’s usually warm. When the MRI was done I looked at my arm and the contrast dye was dripping from my arm along with blood. Oops I guess Person Three didn’t do as good as we thought. Luckily, apparently, the dye is not harmful and I don’t have any bruising from any of the needle sticks. But I’m ok and we’ll get the results soon.

I think I’ve determined the pain I was having in my arm, chest, ribs and abdomen is from lymphedema in my breast, not my arm. Ok, maybe both my breast and arm and maybe my new therapist determined it but whatever! I think we’ve found some treatment that will work. When I took 3 pain pills within 4 hours (don’t scold me!!) that did NOTHING for the pain my mom suggested maybe I was taking the wrong medication. So I tried an extra strength Ibuprofen and almost immediately felt relief. My new therapist, Mary, also did a lymphatic drainage massage (very, very light massage to get the lymphatic fluid moving) which seemed to help. I have 5 appointments with Mary in the next few weeks and I’m about to call her and ask her to call me if she has cancellations. Her office is 3-4 blocks away and I can be there in 5 minutes and I think her therapy is helping.

Last Thursday was the fundraiser at Bayou Beer Garden. People from work came (thanks for coming, it was great to see you all!), the United Fire Fighters Association made dirty rice; a retired chief from the Jefferson Parish Fire Department made hot dogs, chili and gumbo; my friend Meghan made red beans and rice; Bobby made potato salad; and my mom made her version of Swedish bread. There were lots of raffle and silent auction items, grab bags and door prizes. And I think we all had a good time. I hate that these fundraisers are for me although I’m glad they’re not for any of you because that’d mean you were sick and I don’t want that either! I am forever grateful to all of my friends and family who have supported me in any way through this time in my life. And although this may sound morbid (and selfish?) it’s wonderful to see how loved I am BEFORE my funeral, which I think/hope is a long ways away. I’ll try not to get a big head :)

I’m including some pictures of jazz fest, which I did get to go to but it was soooo different from other years - I missed a few days, I left early one day and went later than normal other days, used SPF 45 instead of SPF 15, wore wide brimmed hats and I took it much easier than in the past. Two friends visited for jazz fest and I spent as much time as I could with them but I didn’t go out with them because I just couldn’t do it :( My friend Erin came to spend time with me and help out with the fundraiser. We had a great time but again, it was much different from other visits. No matter what we did the day before I rested the next day. And the plans we made rarely happened because I was just too tired. When I’m out and about I try really hard to ‘Be There’ but when I’m home I’m taking it easy.

While I might be done with Chemo I’m not going back to work yet. I need to get my lymphedema under control and I have a few more surgeries. I also need to get my stamina back. It’s hard for me to wait but I need to be healthy!