Radiation round up- almost done!

*Some reader discretion advised. Not all images may be suitable for all audiences*

But this one is:

Before I get into any of the cancer stuff, Dada and I got to go see Thunderbolts* in an IMAX theater with less than 10 other people. Seriously. Fun times! It's a good one to see BIG! And, holy cow, loud. He's such a cute date. 😍

Above and below were the same day, May 14. For context, I think I started April 21 and have had radiation every week day since, except today for the holiday. 

The red arrow shows the top half of my scar from last fall when the tumor was removed and the lymph nodes were extracted and lymph vessels were rerouted into veins. The yellow arrow points to my mastectomy scar, the blue one points to a surgical drain scar, the purple arrow highlights not a scar but the indentation of where my compression sleeve is digging in, and the green line shows where the radiation field stops along my side. 

And further down we have love handles which don't need any more attention drawn to them. Moving on! 

I took the photo below this Tuesday and have had 3 sessions since then. Only three more to go and then I'm done! If you search Lady of the Lotions in this blog,  December of 2018 will get you there eventually, you'll see a photo of what I looked like from the previous round of radiation. I was peeling in circles and the burn was more intense. Granted, I still have three to go, but I feel that between the proactive recommendation (and use) of steroid cream and the more precise nature of the proton therapy, my skin has held up better overall.

Side effects of radiation are fatigue- I guess you get tuckered out from your cells ferrying out all the other dead and damaged cells but I continue to forget that and wonder why I'm exhausted after yard work- and I'm finally experiencing some itching, like a sunburn can when it's not really complaining but kind of reminding you that it's there. I'm a bit tight as well, but I haven't done yoga for the last 4 days as I've been weeding and doing more housework related movements instead. 

What is surprising (but perhaps isn't really when one considers it) is the side effect of a sore throat. You know how when you have a sore throat it feels swollen and also scratchy or scrapey or sting-ish? Just keep the swollen. It's caused in this case by inflammation from the radiation, but it doesn't sting or feel scratchy. It does make swallowing less instintive and more intentional. 

Thankfully, my doc is on the ball and had given me the heads up weeks ago about that possibility and has asked every week if I'm experiencing it. It didn't really start until last week and even then it was less with swallowing and more ... burps felt like they were thicker. I've noticed that when drinking, instead of just chugging water, I have to slow down and sometimes stop for a reset. I don't want to drown! The doc asked if I was still doing pills okay and I thought about it before saying, "well, the calcium pills are a little scary but they regularly try to kill me so....." 

So the simple solution is MILKSHAKES, muahahaaha!

All in all, doc thinks I'm doing fantastic. I have these last 3 to go and then hellooooooo summertime! This therapy will coincide nicely with the end of the school year. 

Thanks for all your prayers- you can see how well they've worked- and be safe this Memorial Day weekend and wrapping up the school year!

 

Red Devil

 

In case you haven't figured it out already, my superpower is finding silver linings. I don't just lean towards positivity, I'm pretty much rooted there. If there is good in a situation, I'm likely to trip over it. 

So I added googly eyes to my "Red Devil" chemo. My doc asked me why. I told her it was to remind me that it was a friend, not a foe, and that it is to help me and not hurt me. She said she'd never seen anyone do that before. 

I'd heard stories of other patients who have had it and how it wipes you out. Zero energy. But it's also, from what I've read, excellent at killing cancer cells at every stage of growth. Sounds like an excellent weapon to employ. 

Am I tired? You bet. Do I still plan to take my 3 mile walk today? Also yes- not gonna squander that sunshine while it lasts! Do I have laundry on the line? Also yes. Am I drinking my water- the goal is 64 ounces daily- yes. I'm at about 32 done right now, so not too shabby. 

(Here is where I fell asleep the first time attempting this post.)

So to back up, my first AC chemo (Adriamycin and Cyclophosphamide) was on Monday. They started me with about 4 anti-nausea meds, at least one of which that lasts 72 hours. I just looked up some more stuff about those and, holy cow, I should just stay off the Internet. Adriamycin also goes by Red Devil, hence the googly eyes to remind me it's a friend; it kills cancer in every stage of its life cycle and prevents replication. Also some serious side effects in addition to less serious ones like hair loss. (Been there, done that, Jeep hair, don't care.)

But effects on the heart is nothing to sneeze at, so they'll be keeping a close eye on me just as they did with my year of Herceptin. As far as I know, this is only 4 cycles AND I have the benefit of some wiggle room: since it used to be given every three weeks, I can do that so I don't have a treatment right before Thanksgiving, wahoo! They've discovered when they add a Neulasta patch to bump up your cell production that they can shorten the cycle to two weeks between each treatment, but also can give the grace week for scheduling purposes. Whilst I don't mind being a lightning bug (the patch attaches to your arm and blinks for 27 hours until it does your 45 minute injection and then the light clicks to red and it turns off. Then you remove it.) it is on my left side because of the risk of lymphedema being elevated on my right side. Well, guess who generally sleeps on her left side? Haha. Them's the breaks. 

Round One is done. 

I started this post yesterday afternoon, then had to pause to take a nap. Did my 3 mile walk later, had a good sleep, all that jazz, and had a two hour nap today before I got back to the blog! Then whilst reading the "how to get through chemo" parts of the literature it said take naps if you need to but try to keep them to about 30 minutes. Whoops.

I'm to drink tons of water and am doing well in that regard. Might just float away. People are asking how to help and our fridge and freezer are FULL, so remind me to drink water. Not rum*, not Fireball, no Mike's Hard Lemonade. 

Water.

And ginger ale and Gatorade and schedule IV fluids if I feel I need them. Thankfully ice cream is not forbidden, though I don't think that counts as liquids. Shucks. And I know half of you just shouted, "MILKSHAKES!" I hear you. =)

So far, so good. I am a bit alarmed that I already feel more... chemically... than I feel like I should- this is cumulative and that was only my first and yikes- but maybe cells in my body are now on full alert running around hollering, "enemies foreign and domestic! Move, move, move!"

The election coverage isn't helping, haha. Dada hears my hugs sighs of exasperation and doesn't even look up from what he's doing to remark, "why do you even READ about it?" *Grumble, grumble, grumble* 

Go vote. You have a voice. Go use it. 

Anybody needs a napping buddy, come on over! 

Apologies in advance for future continuity issues and/or lack of proofreading. I dunno how people hold down jobs during this unless it's love for and support from their coworkers (which I can absolutely see). Hang on to your brain cells, friends, cuz I'm gonna need 'em!

* Also, and yes, Mom, it took me this long to figure it out, but I think I now know why stereotypical sailors head straight for alcohol upon landing. After months at sea, becoming used to the six different motions of a ship on a sea, then landing to discover only gravity is working against you has gotta feel WEIRD. I think they use alcohol to recalibrate their fluid looseness that is their "usual/normal" state when at sea! Self medication. Makes sense to me!