Post first chemo session update
I had my first chemo therapy session yesterday morning and... I almost hate to jinx it, by so far so good.
After the infusion, I've been feeling sleepy, and my head was hurting. But while I felt tired, I didn't feel weak. I could stand, walk and lift things just fine. And was able to eat, quite a bit.
To be honest, I slept a lot through most of yesterday. And, after the not quite lunch, not quite dinner I had with my mom, I didn't really feel like eating much. I basically snacked on some cookies, fruits and cherries. And drank plenty of teas, because of course.
Toward the event, I felt a bit of nausea... but just a bit. Not enough to actually make me throw up, and it passed after a while. I'm fairly sure that the anti-nausia meds I've been taking (courtesy of the hospital pharmacy) probably helped.
Right now, even after sleeping until 9:00 AM (US Central Time), I still feel sleepy. But I feel awake enough to function. And to write, obviously.
If this is what chemo after-effects are going to be, I can't say I would mind too much. But I had a couple of people tell me that they can actually get worse over time, so...
Oh, and here's an important update. You know how, in my last entry on the subject, I mentioned that I got six four-week cycles of treatment ahead of me, getting chemo every Friday during the first three weeks and getting one "rest" week for the fourth? Well, I still got six four-week cycles, but the doctor who's in charge of my treatment decided to do a "chemo-rest, chemo-rest" pattern for each cycle, bring my overall number of treatments from 18 down to 12. Apparently, she thinks the less intense schedule wouldn't hurt my recovery, and it wouldn't be so taxing, either - which is always a good thing.
So... 1 chemo treatment down, 11 treatments to go.
After the infusion, I've been feeling sleepy, and my head was hurting. But while I felt tired, I didn't feel weak. I could stand, walk and lift things just fine. And was able to eat, quite a bit.
To be honest, I slept a lot through most of yesterday. And, after the not quite lunch, not quite dinner I had with my mom, I didn't really feel like eating much. I basically snacked on some cookies, fruits and cherries. And drank plenty of teas, because of course.
Toward the event, I felt a bit of nausea... but just a bit. Not enough to actually make me throw up, and it passed after a while. I'm fairly sure that the anti-nausia meds I've been taking (courtesy of the hospital pharmacy) probably helped.
Right now, even after sleeping until 9:00 AM (US Central Time), I still feel sleepy. But I feel awake enough to function. And to write, obviously.
If this is what chemo after-effects are going to be, I can't say I would mind too much. But I had a couple of people tell me that they can actually get worse over time, so...
Oh, and here's an important update. You know how, in my last entry on the subject, I mentioned that I got six four-week cycles of treatment ahead of me, getting chemo every Friday during the first three weeks and getting one "rest" week for the fourth? Well, I still got six four-week cycles, but the doctor who's in charge of my treatment decided to do a "chemo-rest, chemo-rest" pattern for each cycle, bring my overall number of treatments from 18 down to 12. Apparently, she thinks the less intense schedule wouldn't hurt my recovery, and it wouldn't be so taxing, either - which is always a good thing.
So... 1 chemo treatment down, 11 treatments to go.