A Week in the Life Of...

Been insane busy this week, so I haven't had too much time to post. I think I've been pushing myself a little too hard, as I've been feeling sick most every morning, and having a helluva time getting out of bed. But overall I'm doing okay. I went to Tim's birthday party on Sunday, and had a work-related dinner on Monday. On Tuesday, I got my first ever professional massage. It was absolutely fantastic! Wednesday night, I took in a Dustdevils game (for those who don't know, the Tri-City Dustdevils are the minor league baseball team in town - Class A affiliate of the Rockies). It was a good time, and they won. And on Thursday, I decided to get out and get some exercise, so I went over to the driving range to show off my horrible golf swing. I really need lessons!

Anyway, I am doing okay. I just need to find a way to get some more sleep. With the Fourth of July being on Wednesday, my next session has been moved to Thursday. They gave me the option for Tuesday or Thursday, and I went for Thursday so I would be able to enjoy the holiday without being sick. Easy choice.

BTW, I'd love to give props to the "anonymous" poster making the hillbilly comments. Everybody is getting a kick out of them, but nobody knows who it is. I think it is Adam, but I am honestly not sure. Either way, I laugh my tail off every time I read them...

Birthday Cake

At my mom's request, I actually spent most of the day lying on her couch rather than my own today. She is certainly concerned about me, and I know it made her feel better to have me close by. And who am I kidding? I loved having someone there to take care of me too!

Today was Tim's birthday, and of course the crew at the office had cake and ice cream (I love it how the office makes such a big deal of everyone's birthday). Rikki actually swung by my parents' house to bring me a couple of slices of cake. It is very nice knowing that I'm still in the thoughts of everyone at the office when I'm out.

I got a little nap in on the couch while watching the White Sox/Cubs game. My mom, certainly wanting to be close by me, actually watched some of the 2006 US Poker Championships with me, and then watched the first inning of the Reds/Mariners game with me. Of course, she had absolutely no idea what was going on, but it was still a nice gesture, and my mom has been so good to me throughout the whole ordeal. I love you mom!

The nausea still had me pretty beat down. I had to concentrate whenever I ate or drank anything to make sure I didn't "refund", and the car ride to and from my parents house was an ordeal. But I powered through, and actually started feeling better the last couple hours of the day. I have plans to get out tomorrow and get a couple of things done, so we'll see what happens.

Same Thing Every Time, Huh?

As could be expected, I spent most of the day prone on the couch. I find it kind of strange that as fatigued and tired as I was, I don't think I napped at all the entire day. Just spent the afternoon vegging, watching TV with my laptop close by to work a little, email a little, websurf a little... Still didn't quite have the mental stamina to fire up some poker tables, though.

The nausea was much worse today than it has been in previous sessions. It's funny - before every session, I talk with Suzie the chemotherapy nurse about the previous session, and (as I've posted) each session has been pretty different - more nausea in some sessions, less in others, more headaches in some sessions, less in others, etc. She says that is kind of strange - while everyone reacts to the treatments differently, typically each person reacts to each session the same way every time. Well, I've had very different reactions each time. For example, I haven't had too much nausea the previous sessions, but this time I've been beat down pretty good by it. Then again, today I didn't really have any issues with headaches, whereas that has been my biggest side effect the past few times around.

Anyway, I'm still plugging along. I appreciate the wellwishes everyone is sending, and I can't imagine doing this without all you guys.

Shrimp Creole

So I had my next treatment in the morning. In an effort to not feel as bad immediately afterward as last session, I paid more attention to breakfast. My mom cooked me some scrambled eggs, toast, grits, kielbasa, and fruit salad. It was quite delectable, and though I of course wasn't feeling great after the session, I certainly felt better than last time.

I spent most of the day curled up on the couch, watching random crap: Around the Horn and Pardon the Interruption on ESPN, an episode of 24, the movie "Hitch", part of the Red Sox/Braves game, an episode of The Simpsons, an episode of The Sopranos, and of course SportsCenter. I felt pretty crappy most of the day - I was nauseous, and had a pounding headache. I had a ham sandwich for lunch, and despite feeling nauseous, I kept it down. For dinner, my mom brought me some Shrimp Creole (you haven't lived until you've tasted my mom's Shrimp Creole). It tasted sooooo good, but unfortunately the nausea got the better of me and I couldn't keep it down (sorry for the visual). That "process" did make me feel a little better, though I didn't want to risk trying to eat some more. I just decided to save the rest for tomorrow.

I talked to Drew via Google Chat for a bit. We covered the usual (read: Fantasy Baseball). Ironically enough, Drew is going through his Hematology and Oncology Pediatrics rotation. So he actually probably knows more about my treatments than I do! Anyway, he was telling me about some of the kids he's treating, dealing with leukemia, and tumors in scary places (like the spinal cord), and though I certainly am not enjoying this summer, I do certainly remember that it could be worse. I can't imagine being 10 or 11 and going through this.

Finally pooped out around 10:00. Climbed into bed, planning to take it easy tomorrow. I hope to get a little work done, and maybe play a little poker in the evening.

Long Time No Post

Been a while since I posted anything, so I figured I should give an update on the eve of my next treatment. I've been doing okay - just ridiculously tired all the time. I feel like I can take a nap constantly, and I've got bags under my eyes all the time. What's strange is that even though I am so tired, I am having trouble sleeping (which I know is compounding the problem). I seem to fall asleep just fine, but I wake up like an hour later and can't go back to sleep. Very frustrating.

Overall, I'm doing okay, though. Been working full days, and I went to the movies this evening. Saw Ocean's Thirteen with a bunch of the crew from work. It was pretty good - way better than Ocean's Twelve, but not nearly as good as Ocean's Eleven.

Even though at this point in time I know what to expect from the chemotherapy sessions, I am still quite nervous leading into treatment number 4. But, I guess that's to be expected, and once I get through this, I can say I'm Halfway Done!

Back to the Grind

Returned to work today. Felt okay, and was able to put in a full day. It was nice to put my mind on something else. I certainly have had lots of time to think about absolutely nothing, so it was good to be able to concentrate on UPS Freight and Central Transport Tariff Changes... My stomach still felt a bit queasy, and I felt warm the entire day, but I powered through it. I appreciate all the support from my co-workers. Almondy and Kristina bought me beer and goldfish crackers to cheer me up, and Tim, Amy, Rikki, and Michell sent me Get Well Wishes via email while I was down last week. Thanks for your support!

Swinging the Bat

I felt much better today. Was able to get out and get some things done, and was able to get some exercise. Got a workout on Brandon's new Wii, playing Boxing and Bowling and Tennis. I also went out and played some softball at the park around the corner. It was the first time I'd swung a bat since playing IMs at Stanford, but I still held my own, including a ringing double to left field in my third at bat. It was good to get some exercise, and though I expect to be quite sore tomorrow, it certainly made me feel good. Emotionally, I'm still dragging a bit, and I'm certainly not in the happiest place right now, but getting out and doing stuff like that helps, and I know that this is purely temporary.

Groundhog Day

Today was very similar to yesterday. I felt fairly good the first part of the day, then kind of felt worse and worse as the day went on. By 7:00 PM I was lying in the fetal position on the couch wishing for the days of yore - drinking beer, playing poker, watching hockey... The fatigue had me just too tired to do anything, and I had a little bit of nausea that had me munching on Saltines most of the evening. Overall, though, I guess I shouldn't complain, as I am doing much much better than last session.

I have plans to get up and out tomorrow and do something productive. My car is at my parents' house, so at the very least I am going to go over there and pick it up. I'll probably fire up some poker tables on Stars and see if I can mentally grind through a few hundred hands. I'll also get out and maybe go for a walk or something to get a little exercise, even just a couple of laps around my neighborhood.

No-Show From LeBron

I felt okay for the first part of today. My parents came over, and my mom made breakfast, and I was feeling pretty good. Nowhere near 100%, but better than yesterday, and certainly much much better than two Thursdays ago. I was able to get a little bit of work done, and caught up on some Tivoed programs.

About 2:00 PM I started feeling a little bit worse, though. I seemed to run out of gas, and my nausea returned. I refused to take the Phenergen this time, as I felt like I could deal with the nausea better than the side effects from the pills. I tried to nap, but couldn't really fall asleep. Finally about 3:30, I forced myself up to take a shower and clean up, which made me feel a little bit better.

My dad came over to watch Game 1 of the Spurs/Cavs series. I'm very disappointed in LeBron James' performance. I was amazed at how many possessions there were for Cleveland where LeBron didn't even touch the ball, especially in the first half. LeBron needs to carry his team - they will be swept if LeBron scores 14 every game.

Round Three

Though they classify it the start of "Cycle 2" (each cycle consists of two treatments), I'd feel better calling this "Round 3", as it is my third treatment. I met with Dr. Sierra, who informed me that he is retiring effective June 29. I was very surprised to hear that. I would think that he would taper off on patients before retiring, rather than just cutting them all off, but whatever - it is his call, and I respect him. He has referred me over to Dr. Kevin Weeks within the same practice, who is the oncologist I tried to see in the first place! Everything should work out fine.

I discussed with Suzie, the chemotherapy nurse, how crappy I felt in the days after my last treatment. She told me that most of that was normal, and I would just need to power through it. However, she surmised that the lightheadedness was actually caused by a lack of fluids, so I should be sure to drink more Gatorade and more water in the days after the session, especially with the hot summer here. Duly noted.

I felt worse immediately after than I had in the past sessions. I was feeling very nauseous before we ever even hit the car to drive home. I'm not sure if it was the breakfast I ate (a bowl of Cinnamon Life and some Watermelon) or what, but I'll try and eat something better next time.

Anyway, I got home and took a Phenergen for the nausea, though I don't like those pills at all. The side effects really knock me down - tiredness, lightheadedness, severe headaches, dry mouth. I slept on and off on my new couch (courtesy of Tina!) for a few hours, then forced myself up to watch Game 5 of the Anaheim/Ottawa series. I was stunned that Anaheim mowed down Ottawa so easily, and it brought back a little pain to me, because my Red Wings outplayed Anaheim in the Conference Finals, and had one or two bounces gone our way, we would have been hoisting the Cup instead of that dirty mofo Chris Pronger...

After the game, I watched the highlights on SportsCenter, then went straight to bed. I was asleep by 8:15 PM, hoping that I will feel better tomorrow than I did the day after my last treatment.