Peritoneal Cancer Journey Phase XIXII
Each week I have blood work on Monday for treatment on
Wednesday. If I get it done 1st
thing in the morning then my treatment is at 8am on Wednesday. If I get it late in the day or on
Tuesday, then my treatment is at 9-10am on Wednesday. We are not sure when I will see the doctor as we didn’t
discuss that my last doctor visit.
I assumed at my 4th treatment, we shall see.
Over Labor Day weekend we trip off to New Jersey to spend
time with Lynn’s niece, her husband and their adorable twin baby boys. They are turning one later in
September. I can’t believe they
are going to be one, that year went quick… I am sure it doesn’t feel so short to them… We got up with the boys each morning we
were there. The first morning Jess
and Kyle got up with us and we told them to go to bed, that we can take care of
the boys. That we would love to
spend that time with them… Not
sharing them with anyone… It was
such fun, they are a handful and so much fun, they have great
personalities. They play nice
together for 1 year olds…
<laughing>. During
our visit what we believe is a side effect of Avastin reared it head… I’m getting nose bleeds way to regular
and they are becoming more difficult to control. I had one on Sunday that scared me, it lasted about an
hour. I will be calling my Ear,
Nose, Throat Doctor when I get back to see what is going on.
After we got home Lynn started to make plans to go back in a
few weeks to make their 1st birthday party over September 21st
weekend. That was a trip I didn’t
plan, but what the hell, they only turn 1 once and I think I will be okay as
the weekly treatments don’t seem to take as much out of me as the 21 or 28 day
treatment cycles do.
When I had my Sept 5th treatment my labs were not
there. We had to call the New
Jersey Quest office that I had my blood work done. I had it done before we left to come home on Tuesday. They said they would fax my results so
that would not be problem, but alas, they didn’t fax the results. I had their phone number in my bag, so
Barb (my sister took me to my chemo) and started trying to call them on our cell
phones so the nurses could get my blood counts. That was a bit frustrating as it took a ½ an hour to get
them. They were supposed to call
and get the fax number from my Doctors office, apparently they did not. I thought that was one of the benefits
of using quest labs that they are all over the country… Well I guess I will put my doctor’s fax
number in my contracts so the next time I am in New Jersey I can make sure they
have the fax number so not to delay my treatments and put them behind… I also updated the Laurie and Jackie
(my Chemotherapy Nurses) about my nosebleeds. Jackie said if I can’t get in to my ENT Doctor to call them
and they would see what they could do.
Before I left the infusion clinic I had to ask for another 6-month lab
script because I used it at the New Jersey lab. The nurses made a point of asking why I needed it, I think
they sometimes do that to get me talking with the other patients there
encouraging them or maybe inspire some to try and do what they want or love to
do. That they can see someone
going through what they are doing things that maybe they can during their weeks
that you feel not so bad… I was
talking to a woman that was just starting chemo, and we were just talking about
what I do. Going to work, because
I was asked you look nice are you going out to lunch after your treatment? I said, no I am going to work for part
of the day today… The woman looked
at me and said oh, “you are that strong woman that we are all supposed to
emulate”. That made me chuckle and
say yeah, no that’s not me. What I
wish I said is that the night after I was diagnosed I promised myself lying in
my hospital bed that I would not let this define me. I will do what I want when I can. I think I have been able to do that. There are things of course that I can’t
do things I need help with. I can
do more than I can’t do. Sometimes
I push a bit, I do rest when I need to and I am not afraid to say I can’t do
that, though I don’t like to admit that…
I do get frustrated sometimes, then I try and take a step back and
appreciate what I have and that I am alive and doing well, then it is easier to
let it go… The other thing that
helps is go do something else, then I am not focusing on what I can’t do
because I am dong something else, <laughing> just like dealing with a
toddler... I have learned to be
more appreciative and that is a good thing… We all can learn that <smile>
Lynn and I scheduled our sailing lesson to do the man
overboard test and pass so we get certified to sail... It was a beautiful sunny day… yeah not much wind… We get the sail boat out in the water
chasing what breeze there was.
Lynn starts 1st to do man overboard, well actually it was a
life preserve… The current in the
lake was moving the life preserver faster than we were sailing
<laughing>, so Lynn had to chase the preserver… She did it and
passed… We were sitting in the
lake looking for a breeze, and finally there was one, so I decide I would try
it. I swear the minute I took the
tiller the wind died and we actually were going backwards because of the
current… We waited a bit longer
then decided to motor back into the dock as there was NO wind… Guess my man overboard test will have
to wait… Our instructor Mark
completed Lynn’s certificate… We
all applauded and yelled that Lynn did it… Me well maybe next time. I was so ready to try, oh well… We stopped at one of our new favorite restaurants on the
lake, Dugs Dive. The food is good
and it over looks the lake, it’s really enjoyable… We have been going there for a bite to eat after each
sailing lesson. It’s become
a ritual or reward that we look forward to after sailing…
No comments:
Post a Comment