T-Minus: FOUR!!!!!!

Four more Tuesdays is all we have left! It was an interesting morning as I reported about how my week went. Neuropathy has calmed with the addition of two more pills to go along with the one I was taking. There is a great deal of pain in the tips of my fingers but things are better in every other way. I can call in if I think we need to increase. I may be doing that this week, it all depends on the pain and if it gets harder to do the day to day things.

There was a lot more focus on the nosebleeds I have had this week. I felt terrible on Friday, like I had the flu with aches and the feeling of just wanting to climb back into bed. This went on through Saturday and wasn't quite as bad on Sunday. I had at least one nosebleed a day from Thursday-Sunday. My nurse checked my nose and said it looked awful. So, now after a nasal rinse (which I had been doing) she told me I needed to coat both sides with vaseline but preferably neosporine since she thought there could be infection. Fun.

On Friday late afternoon I started having pain in my forearm like I had back toward the beginning of chemo where the surgeon told me I had thrombophlibitis. Since it was Friday I just did what she told me to do last time and use Tylenol or Ibuprofen for the pain and heat/cold which ever was more comfortable. I also massaged upward toward my shoulder as much as I could stand. It never turned red or warm thankfully and my nurse today told me to add baby aspirin so that anything clotting can break up. As an update...tonight as I type I can tell that it has hurt but am surprised that the pain is very minimal. So WOO HOO!

Another red flag came up when the scale showed that I had gone up 5 pounds in weight this week. My nurse said this is definitely fluid as she could tell by looking at me. (So I really DO look like a sick cancer patient like the one I have seen in the mirror too!) On the up side, you have heard people all the time say "it is just water weight". I got to hear the confirmation from my nurse! They put an extra med in my protocol today that will help. So, more water for me this week and I had to get up a few times during treatment to go to the bathroom.

Then, on the way to my appointment, I mentioned to Mom that I haven't been hearing well for awhile and think I will talk to my ENT in the spring when I go back for the thyroid stuff. She thought we should mention it to the nurse so we did. She told us that some of the meds I take can effect hearing so she looked in my ears. Seems that I could hear better in my right ear without the nasty wax that she found. She couldn't see anything. So...Debrox for me!

Here is the 3 point shot my niece Bri made
during the JV game!

So now it is like a super fun party in my bathroom before bed! Neosporin up my nose, debrox and suctioning wax out of my ears, dutifully checking all scars for any lumps, washing off all of the drawn on facial features so I can draw again tomorrow, and admiring the 1/8 inch hair growing out of my scalp! (WOO HOO!) Treatment went well, nothing much to report about. There were a lot of people there today in various stages of their protocol.

Stacey is third from the left.

I got to have lunch with Mom and actually got excited about doing some shopping. (I love the steroid infusion!) Then, while Matthew's wrestling, the JV girls basketball game was going on in the gym so Stacey and I watched. Marion's girls have worked hard and they are fun to watch. When Matthew was done we all stayed for the varsity game which was a blow out. We started cheering for the other team too during the second half. They left with 5 points total. Matthew had fun with math through the game as he told me with every few baskets how much we were leading. At the end we lead by 66 points. Crazy game.

During the half time of the varsity game the middle school teams were recognized and these teams have been having a great year too. So again this week, what started with chemo has ended up to be a fun day. I am very blessed with a lot of things in life to distract me. It has been a big day. There were a couple of times when it hit me today that there are only four of these left. Only four more posts where I update you on my week and how chemo went. From then on we will see...

We will be conferencing with the Mayo Clinic to determine whether we will be moving on to radiation or not. I am not quite a textbook case so I am thankful that my doctors are seeking more input and that more eyes are seeing my chart. When it comes our turn to make some of the decisions coming up we feel confident that we have the information we will need.

I am thankful that the peace that I have been given still fills my days and that God has blessed me with very few missed scheduled activities and many opportunities to cling to Him when life is out of sorts and uncertain. That is what has really been the difficult part of these last eight treatments and the four that still remain. No week has been the same as far as how I feel and so I don't really know what to expect day to day.

What I have found is that I am much more thankful for the good days and much more thankful for the people who come around me on those not so good days and encourage, send a note or stop by for a face to face visit. For those who have told me that they are keeping up with my blog and appreciate knowing how things are going. I am humbled by all of it and thankful.

Psalm 136:26 "Oh give thanks unto the God of heaven: for His mercy endures forever"