halfway there!

I'm now officially halfway through the chemo -- not counting the radiation. I asked for some details on the radiation, and was told they usually wait 3-4 weeks after chemo to start it. As mentioned before, radiation therapy is Monday-Friday for three weeks, and after the first session it's a quick process each time. For those keeping track in their little pocket calendars, my last chemo should be June 1st*, then I'll probably start radiation June 27th, ending July 18th (they have to add an extra day since they're closed July 4th... that's fine, I'd rather have my holiday). Unfortunately, that plops me right in the middle of the weekend I'm spending at the cottage with my college friends... but then, I'm also going to Toronto on a chemo recovery weekend, so whatever.

*"should be" because sometimes they need to do more than 6 months of chemo

The fatigue is coming sooner and staying longer now. The first few times, I was fine on Thursday but tired on Friday; this time, I slept in and worked a half day on Thursday, then worked most of Friday and came home early to take a 2-hour nap. Even today I'm still kinda out of it. In retrospect, I'm SO glad I didn't get chosen for the Stanford V trial -- yeah, I'd be done with the chemo by now, but I'd also have felt like this every week with little time to recover between sessions.

Oh yeah, and that nurse? She doesn't work there anymore; Wednesday was her last day, and they made sure I didn't have her. As far as I know, it had nothing to do with me. :) She wasn't new, or a temp, or anything. It was just her demeanor and permadeer look (i.e. she always looks like a deer in the headlights, as some of the nurses described her... and that's pretty accurate).

Unfortunately, when it came to the drug that was being administered during my anxiety attack last time, I couldn't keep my mind off it and I felt nauseous again. This nurse was smart -- she turned on the TV, and we started talking about my job, which shifted my mental focus and the nausea magically went away. (And it's not that easy to just not think about it, because I have to eat ice chips during this drug, so it's a constant reminder of what I'm doing. Nonetheless, making conversation did the trick.)

Speaking of anxiety, I'm glad I have this blog for people to read, as it reduces the number of times I have to repeat stories like that, which tend to be a little unsettling even weeks later. I do like keeping people informed of what's going on, but it's also nice to be able to say "just read the blog" now and then too.