Meerkat
10-30-2005, 11:05 PM
Another week has passed. Every day, transportation comes and I'm off to UW Hospital to lay on the table under the "55 gallon drum" head of the linear accellerator. Generally about 15 minutes, start to finish, plus 45 minutes coming and going - mostly waiting for the transportation or waiting for my appointment because the transportation is often at the early edge of their window.
Mondays are "doctor days" - they take vitals, listen to my chest and discuss things vaguely. There will be no difinitive information until at least 2 weeks after the last treatment, of which, there are 9 left. I'll be finished up a week from Thursday. The delay after, before the "perineum to pate" CT scan (to make sure there are no other alien masses lurking, as well as to check the results of the rad treatment), is to allow any swelling to reduce - and there is most definitely swelling!.
Once a week, I also get the joy of blood work. They want to make sure my blood doesn't go alien on them while they're working on the other invaders.
It's been a good week and a tough week: I have had huge relief in breathing dificulty. I'm no longer sucking air through a straw. It's returned to being a normal pipe and I can take a full breath without struggle. It happened pretty dramatically too about Tuesday or Wednesday evening - I think my lips turned 3 shades pinker in a couple of hours!
I'm still very up and down, both mentally and physically. The 75% reduction in steroid dose has helped, but even at 2mg/day, it plays nasty games with my body. It's now at a level where it does some inflamation reduction, but I have more pain. On the other hand, I'm not half out of my mind (no cracks from the peanut gallary!) and coughing up literal buckets of wet slimy soap-tasting mucus for hours at a time (when it's not draining out of my sinuses!). Still having to push hard on insulin to control blood sugar, but I mostly hold it as much under 200 as I can. That's still high, but given the circumstances, it's acceptable for the short term.
One side effect is that I've almost completely lost my voice. I think it's due to swelling, but it could be a side effect of the radiation. Nobody has said one way or another, but there I am: Whisper in fact! One hopes for a recovery, but trading voice for breath is an acceptable balance. Good thing I've got a whistle on my keychain! ;)
Finding out that I only had 9 treatments left scared the fleep out of me for some reason. Here's this huge event in my life that's happening so fast and yet, in a way, so subtly, and then it's going to be over with no clear idea of what's next or whether it's increased my life expectancy, left me feeling very empty for some reason. Some of it could be induced by the steroid's effects - I'm not usually so bleak about things.
I have the sore thoat from hell from time to time, but they've given me this stuff called "Miracle Moouthwash". It's a combo of lidocaine, benedryl and something to help it coat my throat. They may call it mouthwash, but one swallows it. Helps a lot and isn't really needed more than once or twice a day.
Still getting very little sleep - 6 hours over the past 2 nights. Curiously, alhtough I have little energy, I don't have that gritty grungy sleep deprived feeling. Probably due, once again, to the tricks on my metablism from the steroid. I know I'm very cold tolorant. People wonder why I'm wandering around in 55F weather in a t-shirt. It's too hot otherwise! (I do dress warmly when away from the house, but it's just in case...)
My new digs are turning out to be quite ok. The food reaches "good" once in awhile, mediocre often and truly bad at times: the meatloaf got served with a scoop and tasted like sloppy joes and then there was the sweet and sour pork - without the sweet and sour! Boiled pork chunks! LOL. There's a situation in the kitchen due to the chief cook's having somehow fallen and gotten a big chunk out of her leg, so the other kitchen staff have been making do.
My little apartment is much like a stateroom - long and narrow, but with the end wall being big windows with a clestory, looking out over a small walled courtyard filled with ferns, rhododendrons and maple trees. Very nice! The ceiling is quite high - maybe 9-10' and has exposed beams on either side. thanks to the Seattle Crew of forumites who moved me, I've got all the important things here and it's starting to feel like home. In a couple more weeks, once it's a little more settled, I intend to post some pics of the place.
Heh - just nodded off for a 5 minute catnap in front of the keyboard, so I'd better call it a night. The doc suggested I start medicating early tonight (with vikodin and lorazipam) to get me sleepy by 11 instead of 3am as has been usual.
There have been the odd hour here and there over the past week when, in spite of having little energy, I've felt pretty good, both mentally and physically. Those little moments really help me to keep looking forward!
Good night, sleep tight - and remember, you christians, bed bugs are god's creation too! ;)
'night friends, one and all!
Mondays are "doctor days" - they take vitals, listen to my chest and discuss things vaguely. There will be no difinitive information until at least 2 weeks after the last treatment, of which, there are 9 left. I'll be finished up a week from Thursday. The delay after, before the "perineum to pate" CT scan (to make sure there are no other alien masses lurking, as well as to check the results of the rad treatment), is to allow any swelling to reduce - and there is most definitely swelling!.
Once a week, I also get the joy of blood work. They want to make sure my blood doesn't go alien on them while they're working on the other invaders.
It's been a good week and a tough week: I have had huge relief in breathing dificulty. I'm no longer sucking air through a straw. It's returned to being a normal pipe and I can take a full breath without struggle. It happened pretty dramatically too about Tuesday or Wednesday evening - I think my lips turned 3 shades pinker in a couple of hours!
I'm still very up and down, both mentally and physically. The 75% reduction in steroid dose has helped, but even at 2mg/day, it plays nasty games with my body. It's now at a level where it does some inflamation reduction, but I have more pain. On the other hand, I'm not half out of my mind (no cracks from the peanut gallary!) and coughing up literal buckets of wet slimy soap-tasting mucus for hours at a time (when it's not draining out of my sinuses!). Still having to push hard on insulin to control blood sugar, but I mostly hold it as much under 200 as I can. That's still high, but given the circumstances, it's acceptable for the short term.
One side effect is that I've almost completely lost my voice. I think it's due to swelling, but it could be a side effect of the radiation. Nobody has said one way or another, but there I am: Whisper in fact! One hopes for a recovery, but trading voice for breath is an acceptable balance. Good thing I've got a whistle on my keychain! ;)
Finding out that I only had 9 treatments left scared the fleep out of me for some reason. Here's this huge event in my life that's happening so fast and yet, in a way, so subtly, and then it's going to be over with no clear idea of what's next or whether it's increased my life expectancy, left me feeling very empty for some reason. Some of it could be induced by the steroid's effects - I'm not usually so bleak about things.
I have the sore thoat from hell from time to time, but they've given me this stuff called "Miracle Moouthwash". It's a combo of lidocaine, benedryl and something to help it coat my throat. They may call it mouthwash, but one swallows it. Helps a lot and isn't really needed more than once or twice a day.
Still getting very little sleep - 6 hours over the past 2 nights. Curiously, alhtough I have little energy, I don't have that gritty grungy sleep deprived feeling. Probably due, once again, to the tricks on my metablism from the steroid. I know I'm very cold tolorant. People wonder why I'm wandering around in 55F weather in a t-shirt. It's too hot otherwise! (I do dress warmly when away from the house, but it's just in case...)
My new digs are turning out to be quite ok. The food reaches "good" once in awhile, mediocre often and truly bad at times: the meatloaf got served with a scoop and tasted like sloppy joes and then there was the sweet and sour pork - without the sweet and sour! Boiled pork chunks! LOL. There's a situation in the kitchen due to the chief cook's having somehow fallen and gotten a big chunk out of her leg, so the other kitchen staff have been making do.
My little apartment is much like a stateroom - long and narrow, but with the end wall being big windows with a clestory, looking out over a small walled courtyard filled with ferns, rhododendrons and maple trees. Very nice! The ceiling is quite high - maybe 9-10' and has exposed beams on either side. thanks to the Seattle Crew of forumites who moved me, I've got all the important things here and it's starting to feel like home. In a couple more weeks, once it's a little more settled, I intend to post some pics of the place.
Heh - just nodded off for a 5 minute catnap in front of the keyboard, so I'd better call it a night. The doc suggested I start medicating early tonight (with vikodin and lorazipam) to get me sleepy by 11 instead of 3am as has been usual.
There have been the odd hour here and there over the past week when, in spite of having little energy, I've felt pretty good, both mentally and physically. Those little moments really help me to keep looking forward!
Good night, sleep tight - and remember, you christians, bed bugs are god's creation too! ;)
'night friends, one and all!