cycle one...complete!

so chemo 'cycles' are split into two sessions, 1a and 1b. so now that i have completed 1a and 1b i am officially done with one cycle of chemo! yay! two more cycles to go (4 more visits) before the doctors re-evaluate.

so this time around there were positives and negatives to having already been through it. on the one hand i was prepared, i kind of knew what to expect. on the other hand, i knew what to expect and that was a few days of feeling really crappy and miserable. but on the positive side, my doctors adjusted my meds and i was much more coherent for the entire weekend after the chemo.

it was the same deal as the first time around, go into dana farber around 1015am on thursday, get my vital signs taken, talk to the doctor, get an IV started, and sit around and wait for a bit for the pharmacy to send up my chemo drugs. this week, in addition to chris, my mom and stepdad david were in attendance. they got to meet my nurse Kerry and my mom got to get more of a lay of the land which i think helps her in dealing with all of this. so once again they had an issue with my veins and had to switch the IV before starting the chemo, and nurse kerry and the phlebotomist danny decided that they are not going to have such an issue that i will need a port, they are going to make it work. which was great news to me because i'm not really interested in having another surgery type situation anytime soon. once everything with my IV was settled i buckled up and got ready for my second experience with chemo.

this time around we had some interesting neighbors in the infusion room. next to us was a couple in their late 60s, early 70s, the wife was being treated and the husband was sitting uncomfortably close to chris, like their arms were touching. and it must have been the lady's first time there because she was filling out her questionnaire and there is a question asking if you are sexually active, at which point the lady asked the nurse for clarification, and the husband turned to chris and said "i dont know about her, but i am" these are the moments people, these are the kind of shenanigans you can expect in an infusion room.

also during this visit i was informed of my low white blood cell count. unfortunately, after chemo your white blood cell counts are at their lowest 10-14 days after treatment, and for me that is exactly when i go back to get more, so through out this whole process i will have a low count. the normal is 2.0-6.4 and i was at a .04. so what does this mean for me? well i have to be extra cautious around sick people, use normal or a little above normal hand washing routines, try to stay away from school aged children since they are just a breading ground for germs, and take extra care with my diet. make sure things are well washed and well cooked, it's pretty much a similar diet to a pregnant person, no sushi, cheeses have to pasteurized, etc. and if i do feel sick and spike a fever, i have to go to the hospital, so this has urged chris and i to purchase a thermometer, something i never really thought about having on hand, but now is a necessity.

but all in all this round was a little easier to deal with than the last one. friday i was more alert and actually incredibly hungry the entire day. i think this is because on thursday they give me a steroid to boost the effects of the anti-nausea meds and it left me ravenous. and then saturday and sunday were my normal sleepy lazy days that i didnt really feel like leaving the house or doing much of anything, and needed frequent naps to get through the day.

now today is a beautiful 85 degree day and i think i might go sit outside and read my newest toy, my kindle courtesy of my aunts, uncle, and cousins!