Last chemotherapy treatment day! Hoooraaaayyyy!

Hello again friends!

Today I'm having my last chemo treatment, and I am so looking forward to so many of the normal things in life! Well I have a month off before I start my radiation, and should be feeling much better in a couple weeks. At least the fuzz on my head will be starting to turn into short hairs, and I will be excited to see just how much glitter will adorn my head with this new growth! I have acquired a huge assortment of scarves for turbans and even have a couple wigs to carry me through till the fall. I imagine the short cut will be easy to manage and I aspire to the look of Carol, I the walking dead by Christmas , but whatever I get will be good, and the Sinead O'Connor look will do for a celebration vacation to warm weather!

Today I'm having my last chemo treatment, and I am so looking forward to so many of the normal things in life! Well I have a month off before I start my radiation, and should be feeling much better in a couple weeks. At least the fuzz on my head will be starting to turn into short hairs, and I will be excited to see just how much glitter will adorn my head with this new growth! I have acquired a huge assortment of scarves for turbans and even have a couple wigs to carry me through till the fall. I imagine the short cut will be easy to manage and I aspire to the look of Carol, I the walking dead by Christmas , but whatever I get will be good, and the Sinead O'Connor look will do for a celebration vacation to warm weather!

The challenging part of having no hair is trying to feel somewhat normal in appearance. No matter how cleverly I tie my scarf it always feels like, ugh, is someone going to ask me if I have cancer, Again?!

What I find is that when I go out to do my grocery shopping, I don't really want people to talk to me about my illness, and I would be happy if they conversed on apple variety, price of tomatoes, or Anything but my diagnosis. I hope that when I see a fellow survivor, I remember what it was like and talk to them about something that they might enjoy talking about, giving them some privacy  and maybe even respect or space they need for their time away from home. If they seem like they need support, I will mention I too am a survivor, and that may ease their mind. I usually direct them to cancer.org as a super resource, because I have had good luck with their connections of a free wig, the look goog, feel better program and they can even pair you with a fellow survivor that has had your same diagnosis, for talking through the unknowns. 

Since I was diagnosed, I find there are lots of us, we are strong people, and fighters, all! Makes me feel great to be among such a great group of individuals, and I hope I can help someone often. Only God know why we are in this, but we all grow in this together, which makes us even stronger. 

Prayers are always welcome wih chemo!

I will say that I am fortunate to be an outgoing personality, which helps me to initiate conversations with people I may meet while we are out and about. I encourage all of you to take a leap and say hi to someone you don't know, strike up a short conversation and get to know what makes the other unique- you may find a new friend, or you may just help someone through a challenging day! My thanks go out to all of you readers. I enjoy "talking" to you often, and will do my best to keep up our conversations- I'm sure I will be waiting for personality, which helps me to initiate conversations with people I may meet while we are out and about. I encourage all of you to take a leap and say hi to someone you don't know, strike up a short conversation and get to know what makes the other unique- you may find a new friend, or you may just help someone through a challenging day! My thanks go out to all of you readers. I enjoy "talking" to you often, and will do my best to keep up our conversations- I'm sure I will be waiting for something!

Fridays!

Do you look forward to Friday? I have always looked to the weekend for grounding, getting together with friends, and even catching up on housework! For some reason it always seems like those things are hard to squeeze in during the week, and all are good reasons not to stay in bed too late on Saturday or Sunday.
I find that early mornings are some if the most precious of the day, and I really hate to miss the birds singing, or even watching the sprinklers do their thing. I find I so relaxing to have no immediate time requirements.

As I shut the computer down when I finished working today, it dawned on me that today is Friday! And on my way to my next to last treatment, That dawned on me too, Double Yippee! And to top that off, my garden is looking good! Fabulous blueberries and vegetables are growing, weeds are almost under control, and it is summertime! What a great time to be alive! I truly feel blessed and very thankful to have the support of family and friends and great nurses and doctors for all the not so fun things going on right now.
For the most part, the little things are the best part of life, and we should celebrate every day- especially Friday!

Waiting for the weekend to begin

Waiting for the weekend to begin

I woke up today to the sun shining through my window, and had 2 whole minutes before the alarm was to go off. As I re-shut my eyes to enjoy every second of rejuvenation, I had a chance to be thankful for another beautiful day! As my mind began to focus I started planning my day, and my 3 day weekend!
Do you wake up with your mind racing through all that needs to be done for the day? Mine always has I think, and it makes me revv up from the time I open my eyes. Shower, coffee, dog, work- that is my morning routine. As I savor my first cup, I lay out the day in my head and sometimes make my lists, if there are just too many things to think about swirling around in there at once. I make lists to be able to prioritize all the things I want to either start or finish, and grocery lists, of course. What a great feeling to be able to mark something off and feel that burst of accomplishment to fuel me towards the next item on the list.
Along that line of crossing things off is that today is the 10th of the12 treatments in this round of chemo! I am hoping my visit with the Dr in a few minutes provides good results and I am able to continue without a break. I mean I am So Close to moving on to a recovery break, then the final step, radiation. I feel confident that I will Win this race. Not that the next part is something to really look forward to, but the forward progress is!
The nurses, as always, are cheery and very welcoming when I arrive, and fit me in almost immediately to get my labs drawn. And now I wait for my appointment with the Dr.
This waiting room could use a little festive feel right about now, but I hesitate to intrude on one couple as she does not appear to feel well, or maybe she is just opting for a quiet moment with her eyes closed. Her husband is by her side and though the support is admirable, some woman act differently around their spouse- maybe we all mirror the company we keep? I always hope others will mirror my optimism, or if I appear in need of a little boost, they can  offer some energy to me! After all, we are all on this earth together, so why not do whatever we can to make our days bright and our outlook sunny!
I hope I have given you a ray of sunshine and some interesting topics to ponder- make it a fabulous day!

Whoopsie-Last weeks impression

Interesting people we meet

How fun it is to initiate a conversation and find a friend. As I waited to be called back to treatment I noticed a woman reading a hardcover book. I merely asked her if it was good and our time started to pass very quickly. Have you ever noticed how much more pleasant waiting can be when you have an interesting topic and someone to share it with? I can tell you that I rarely mind waiting if I am in good company!
My new friend was also a member of a book club, and to my delight, lives near to me, too. We were aw to be "seated" together for our respective treatments after kidding the nurse about how we wanted to visit longer . My infusion routine was much different than hers, so we talked about our diagnoses and also about nutrition , gardening, spouses, local places we like to frequent, touched on grandchildren and generally lifted each other up with our time together.
So we never know how waiting for something may provide a hidden benefit, or in my case a new friend!

Look Good, Feel Great!

I signed up for a class today through the ACS, called Look Good Feel Better, and it got me thinking about other ways that we refer to this scenario. Dress for success, plan to succeed, and especially the feeling we get when someone says "You look great today!" I know this can make Me feel good, even if I'm not having such a good day.  Somehow if someone else believes in us with encouragement and a kind word, we really do get some warm feeling and a little boost! Some people have a hard time accepting a compliment, and I'll admit I had to practice saying Thank you, rather than denying their words or otherwise negating that feeling they gave me. I have found that when I intentionally look my best it is easier to be ok with the compliments, or even acknowledge my own feeling that Yes, I do look good today- on purpose! How uplifting it is, and I believe we really can feel better, or even Great!

These days we can all use a little help in the feeling good area. With many of us bogged down and/or stressed out with juggling work, families and our own activities, it sure helps to receive a compliment or a kind word from anyone!

With that, I would like to ask all of you who read my blog to give lots of compliments, to anyone you see.  It takes practice to notice some small detail about each person around us, and even more practice to voice those kind words to people we don't know. We all have an opportunity to brighten someone's day and by doing so We also feel better!
Thanks for stopping by to visit while I waited for my treatment!

Moving On

Today's treatment included a visit with my oncologist. We talked about my latest side effects, and then she let me know she was leaving Washington. Wah waH wah..... Our next visit would be our last. She is moving her family to Florida as the weather is more like her native, India.

 We then chatted a bit about warm weather areas around the country and our sometimes differing perspectives of each area. She spoke of her parents, and how they visit her family for extendedperiods which  moved us into some generational differences. As a late "boomer" I guessed her age in the 30s. She agreed and we talked about how my age people stay more often in the same place, job, etc. my observation was that people of her generation want to be moving at least every 5 years and get restless. She had not realized that it was noticeable, yet agreed, adding that she and especially her husband are always wanting more. She explained that in Washington they felt they "have it all", but wait, they didn't have sunshine year round! Hence the move to Florida, where it may feel more like home for her parents when they come to visit. Well, our time was up, of course I invited myself to a future visit ;-)  I mean why wouldn't she want a former patient to visit her and become a part of her circle of wealthy doctor folks, right? We all enjoy making connections and hope that she just might think of that one patient who she helped through cancer treatments, and someday remember that she made a difference by taking a few minutes to chat.

I hope you have an opportunity to chat with somebody soon. We all can make a difference with a funny story, or share some knowledge, or just to listen to a fellow human being. We are on this earth together so let's make all if our lives richer before one of us moves on.

Cute Summer Attitudes

What a beautiful day today!
I had lots of work to do for my job, so the day went quickly before my treatment. I logged of the computer, took my antihistamine and applied my lidocaine cream and rushed to my appt. I found a close parking spot nearby- Score! It was a short walk to the center and I felt wonderful in the sun, wearing sandals and a cute summery outfit to make my day fun!
Seems like the summer season has begun as the "check in" lady was out- back to the front desk I went,  but I was not the only one- there was a kind woman ahead of me, too, so as we went to the alternate location, I again encouraged her to go ahead of me to check in. I mean she was So Sweet! And I was able to have exactly the right amount of time to process a forgotten payment fill out some forms and answer when they called me back- whew!

I was able to get started almost right away today, and it did not seem as busy as usual. Funny how it still takes time between punching the port and actually administering the drug- so I am blogging as I wait! I'll have to find a nice way to inquire about if there is a waiting protocol toake it less stressful on the body.  Oh I just heard my gal say she can hang me- Very exciting!
The nurses are in a visiting kind of mood today, or maybe my super cute outfit is making everyone want to be around me, and sharing stories? The thing I like is that they do a great job of making all the patients feel comfortable, and relaxed while we are being infused. I know it must sound weird, but I Do sort if look forward to my treatments so I can catch up in the shared information/stories.

I see that when I and the nurses are chattering away the other patients may just feel a bit better too. I remember my dad having the gift of mood lightening where ever he went and I can only hope to attain his expertise as I have more experiences in my life. If I can brighten a few outlooks on my way through my days, I feel fulfilled, too. I have found that battling cancer is something that most of us will have a connection to through a friend or family member, or our own diagnosis,  and with positive experiences shared it may just make someone else feel better too. Hooking up now, so I'll talk to you again next week!