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| Here I am on my 5th round of chemo treatment (1st round of taxol) |
On the upside of being in the hospital for neutropenia, anemia, etc......I was able to have an extra week off from treatment. So I felt pretty good going into this round of Taxol. My blood counts were almost that of a healthy person! I am still thankful for the blood donors out there because they helped save my life. And here I am to finish off the final rounds of chemo to kill this stupid cancer!
My mom went with me for this treatment and I was concerned she may pass out from seeing needles and medical stuff. But she faired ok and I was impressed. My sister is the same way when it comes to blood and needles, not sure how we are all even related because it doesn't bother me! We got to Moffitt at about 11:30AM and didn't check out until 8:30PM! It was a loooong day but they got behind on scheduling due to a horrible accident that had the interstate shut down. I could hear some patients complain about the wait but this happens and there's really nothing you can do about it. I always think "well at least I wasn't the one in the car accident". Some things you just can't control so it is what it is.
This time I got a bed rather than just a recliner and it was so comfy. It was definitely appreciated because they really doped me up good for this round! After meeting with my PA she saw my anxiety and suggested I take an Ativan to relax more. Well, part of the anxiety was due to taking 10 Decadron (steroids) pills the night before. So my eyes were wide open popping out of my head and I was on full alert! I don't care for the Decadron but they help with the possible side effects from Taxol infusion. They also infused me with Benedryl to help with side effects that may occur during infusion. This is when I learned that I am now allergic to Benedryl...go figure! It causes RLS (restless leg syndrome) and so within about 10 minutes of being infused my legs started jumping and that was irritating. I was dopey because of the Ativan and Benedryl but my legs wanted to run a marathon I guess. It was ridiculous but after about 3 hours it went away. I had this happen while I was in the hospital too and now I know it was from taking the Benedryl than as well. Good thing they have an alternative for me to take next time! I was thrilled to get through this my first round of Taxol infusion without any of the awful side effects that sometimes occur.
Now it's day #2 after my Taxol and last night I started feeling the tingling in my hands and feet. I thought it would be a good idea to go shopping at the mall after work and that's when the side effects decided to kick in. But it was worth it because I needed some new clothes! My legs were achy last night and some bone pain started in my legs and hips. Then my feet felt hot as well while I was trying to fall asleep. Today I just feel some tenderness in my hands and feet but I feel much better compared to how I felt on this day after AC treatment.
I still have to do the Neulasta shot to help boost my immune system like I did while on AC. This shot causes bone pain too but I've been able to manage it pretty good by taking 15mg of Mobic everyday. Fingers crossed that my pain doesn't get to be unbearable because I've heard some horror stories of how debilitating it can become.
OK so how do I get though all this? Cancer sucks. It's ALWAYS on my mind. My life has been consumed by cancer at this point and I didn't have time for it to begin with. There are things I want to go do and just can't because of stupid cancer. I'm not as productive with our business as I should be and that weighs on my shoulders. It's just hard to keep up with the daily things we all have to do in life! BUT, I get through it because I have support and people out there that truly care. It's like having your own cheerleading squad pushing you down to the finish line! Everyone going through this deserves to have the support I get and I hope no one ever goes through this alone. There are over 7 billion people on this planet.....NO ONE should ever have to be alone!
I had some bracelets made that inscribed with "Pamela Fights In Pink!". I thought it would be fun to hand out to whoever wanted one. I ordered 100 and then they sent me an extra 200 so now here I am with 300 bracelets!! My sister brought some back up to Tally and the PR team at Zimmerman Agency posted this pic of them showing their support! I saw this scroll on my Facebook feed and immediately teared up and cried, it was so touching. It means a lot that they had to think about finding something pink to wear that day to honor me. Definitely made me feel special!
I have some blogs that I want to work on and just haven't had the time to put together. I tend to be upbeat but there are things I want to share that are not so positive too! If you are reading this and have a question or concern that I can elaborate on please leave a comment and I'll address it the best I can. I have unfinished blogs about ways to combat the side effects, dealing with cancer patients, and benefits to cancer. That last one sounds like a mistake but it is true, there are a few things I've taken away from this that I can consider it to be a benefit of my diagnosis.
One last thing I want to mention is that I signed up to do the Miles for Moffitt 5K run on May 10th. No, you won't see me running but I will get through it somehow! I pasted the link below if anyone is interested in joining the team or if you want to donate to the cause. All the money for this event goes towards cancer research at Moffitt. They have been so good to me and I feel like I need to do something in return!
Pamela Fay Fundraising Page - Pamela Fay's Personal Page for 2014 PNC Bank Miles for Moffitt at the University of South Florida
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