In Between Days

Ive now had my third course of Chemo and, at a rough estimate, taken over 600 tablets and injected myself over 50 times.

Its been a while now since my last blog (not that you've probably noticed).

Ive started to divide time up into chemo weeks (feeling abit rubbish) and non-chemo weeks (not feeling too bad).  Most of the time Ive been able to get out of the house and take the dog out and in the non-chemo weeks have even gone to the gym.  I don't think there is any right way to approach illness but this is just my way.  So far the week-on, week-off system had allowed me to plan my 2 weeks in between hospital appointments and chemo infusions.

I'd expected to feel a lot worse physically than I did and am lucky that that has been the case.  I guess that I have been a little bit complacent about the whole process, despite being told on a number of occasions that I need to think of myself as a patient a bit more (doctors always think they know best ha ha!!).  Im not trying to be big or clever or 'brave' (I might be stupid!!) Im just reacting to how I feel, and, fortunately that hasn't been too bad so far.

Prior to each course of chemo you have an appointment in clinic and have your bloods checked to make sure the chemo doesn't kill you off.  The clinic appointment definitely comes as a reality-check for me.  Whilst Im under no illusions as to what Ive got and its potential implications, hearing terms such as 'life-threatening illness' does tend to get my attention.  As I say, this isn't because I don't know that, its just something that I don't think about.

I also get told that the symptoms from the chemotherapy are going to get worse as the course goes on.  
That has been evident this week.  The start of this week was the start of a non-chemo week so the effect of the steroids (mainly restlessness and insomnia) and chemo (bit tired, strange taste) start to wear off  and I should start to feel more normal.  Come Monday though I was absolutely shattered and this meant I spent most of my birthday sleeping.  Ive also felt very nauseous and achy.  So for the first time since Ive started treatment Ive essentially been house-bound for 3 days and mainly been asleep!!

Using the word 'nauseous' always makes me think about the story of the medical student and the senior consultant (not too sure if its true but why let truth get in the way of a good story).
The Medical student has examined a patient and the Consultant peers down his half-rim glasses and asks the student what the patient is complaining of.  "The patient is nauseous" comes the answer from the student.  The consultant looks at the student with utter contempt and says "you, boy, are nauseous.  The patient is nauseated".
Ive just googled it and grammatically the consultant is correct.  I should change the word 'nauseous' in the paragraph above to 'nauseated', though both may be true and I may make people want to throw up!!

I have a CT scan this afternoon.  This is routine after 3 courses of chemo to check the effect on the tumour.  Im also having an injection of contrast to look at the vein to my left arm.  Maybe I get to stop my daily blood-thinning injection?