Surviving the Crash

I got out early to see Mom and Dad, and was glad I did.  As I sat on their couch, I could feel it coming.  It made me glad that we live fewer than two miles away from them.  I got home in time for "the crash."  The crash comes after the oral steroids are gone, and seems to leave me comatose for most of a day.  I asked Kevin to take the girls to get some lunch or something and I headed to bed.

Just like last time, I alternated between the bed and the recliner.  My limbs are like spaghetti and my lower back and legs hurt.  My head is full of oatmeal and my conversational skills are that of a carrot.  I'm so glad this only happens once per chemo cycle.  I gave in and went to bed around 6:30 last night, but even with Ambien I was awake at midnight.

I forced myself to stay in bed, and even dozed a bit, until 2:00.  At that point, I gave up.  I may as well get ready for work, if I'm going to be awake.  I'm also losing hair by the hands-full.  You can't tell to look at my head, but it's time to wear a hat, simply for shed control.  Every day is an adventure for me right now.   I should feel a bit better each day this week, so that is something to look forward to.

I'm also thankful that I've found more that sounds good to eat this time around.  Fruit is good, as is chicken and potatoes.  At least I can get some protein, if chicken tastes good to me.  Kevin grilled a bunch up for me, so I'll take that for lunches this week.  I hear the protein will make me feel better.  

Finally, the headaches are still here, but very mild compared to before.  My sleep patterns aren't improving, but the steroids being cut must have helped some.  Days seven and eight of the last cycle are the days when my headache hit the hardest, and I'm day six of this cycle.  I'm determined it's not going to happen this time.  

Oh, and we get Wednesday off!  Another plus!  I can't be in the sun and I wear out pretty easily, but Mom has a/c, so we'll go out there and let the girls blow some stuff up.  Yup, just another week, surviving chemo.

I Have to be More Careful

The change in dose that my oncologist did for the steroids seems to be a good thing.  I'm not hyped up and jittery for a couple hours after each dose, and for that, my coworkers are likely quite thankful.  Yesterday, I wore out earlier than I liked, and only got six hours in.  Still, not bad for day two of this cycle.  I got plenty of sleep last night, so I felt pretty darn good this morning.  I still had no appetite, so I ate six saltines, took my meds and hit the door.

Work went fine.  I felt much better today, and managed to get nine hours in.  I ate a few more crackers around noon, since I know it's not good to let my stomach be completely empty.  Even with the extra hour, I felt pretty darned good when I left work.  I needed to stop at Walmart for some medication and diet Coke, but I hoped that wouldn't take long.

Monica called me to say that she needed a prescription refilled, too.  I was too close for calling it in to be of any value, so I went in and headed to the pharmacy to tell them about it.  They told me it would be 15 minutes.  No problem.  I grabbed the other things I needed and started to circle back toward the pharmacy. I was halfway back when I realized how light-headed I was.  Uh oh.  This was suddenly turning out to be a very bad idea.

I walked slowly and deliberately back toward the pharmacy, hanging on to the cart.  Thank goodness they have a bench for waiting.  By the time they called me over, I felt a little bit better.  By the time I got checked out and to the car, though, it was back.  I knew I had to get home, so I blasted the a/c for a minute or two and headed this way.

I made it home just fine, got in the house, and fell into bed.  Thank goodness, Kevin was only about five minutes behind me and realized what shape I was in.  He heated up some soup for me, fixed a cold drink and brought it to me.  I ate, which instantly started to make me feel better, and took my meds.  I am exhausted, but no longer shaky or light headed.

Lesson learned.  I am going to HAVE  to force food at work.  I just can't find anything bland enough, other than chicken noodle soup.  And that, my friends, is getting quite old.  I'm thinking maybe I'll try a baked potato tomorrow.  That sounds bland.  Oh, and now I remember the nurse saying I would be short of breath because of a shortage of red blood cells, and to get plenty of protein.  Yeah, right.

I'm just glad to know that I should be hungry again Sunday or Monday.  Mom has some tomatoes with my name on them.