Well, today
was the day!
My
sister-in-law brought me. And she had a
wonderful gift for me. Not only am I
being covered in prayer by so many, now I am being literally covered with God’s
Word. She had asked earlier in the week
for some of my favorite Bible verses.
And this is what I got!
It was very
nice to have it to cover up during chemo and it will also be a great
conversation starter. (Sorry, but she is
not selling them. I’m the one she tried
it out on and she found out it took A LOT
more time and stitches than she was expecting!)
Everything went
better than I expected. The worst part
was waiting. Waiting for the lab to read
my blood. Once in the chemo area and the
port was checked, waiting for meds to be mixed. Waiting, waiting, waiting. And I guess I was anxious to have it over
with so that made waiting hard.
Before the
chemo, I was given 2 medicines to combat nausea and a steroid to give me energy
and counteract any allergic reaction.
Then I was given the “red devil.” That’s the A of the AC-T treatment
regime I am on. It’s also the one that will
make me lose my hair : ( It was pushed
slowly into the IV while I ate ice. The
ice is supposed to decrease my risk for mouth sores. She mentioned several things I might feel as
it was being given. Symptoms similar to
CT scan with contrast. I did not feel
any of them. Then the C part of the
chemo.
After that
was complete, she put the Neulasta patch on my stomach. Once applied, a needle imbeds a plastic
cannula that will later be the route for the medicine. The nurse said people say it feels like a bee
sting or being popped by a rubber band.
The timer on the patch determines when the needle will stick you. So it’s almost without warning. When it stuck me, it surprised me and I
started laughing. It really doesn’t
hurt, just surprises you. I’d say it’s
closer to being popped with a rubber band by me…not by one of my boys or even
my girl.
The Neulasta
patch is to stimulate my body to make more white blood cells. It injects the medicine over a 45 minute time
frame, 27 hours after application. So
sometime around 8 tomorrow night I will get the injection. Side effects of it are bone and muscle pain,
sometimes severe.
When I got
home, I stir fried some veggies I had already washed and prepped and added some
chicken that I had already cooked. That made
a quick and easy meal with protein. They
said to eat lots of protein. When asked
how much, they didn’t know. Just eat it
with every meal and snack. I had put
meat in the crockpot before I left this morning, so Pat and the boys would have
supper.
I
guess the nausea meds and steroids are doing their jobs. Praise Jesus!!! I feel
like I’ll even be able to wash the dishes before bed. Yay!
One
of my good friends sent me a prayer that she asked quite a few ladies to pray
for me. In it was Psalm 27:1 “The LORD
is my light and my salvation --- whom shall I fear? The LORD is the stronghold of
my life --- of whom shall I be afraid?”
On the day that I found out I would require chemo, my pastor sent me Psalm
27 as an encouragement. Then after my
blood work this morning, my sister-in-law said she wanted to show me her verse
for the day. It was Psalm 27:1! So I
guess I don’t need to fear chemo or it’s side effects. God has got me AND this situation. I just need to be careful to keep my eyes
focused on Jesus and God’s Word and to pray.
As Pat’s new mantra says: “Everything’s gonna be alright.”
Please
pray that the chemo does the job of killing ALL cancer cells and that God would
protect my vital organs and as many healthy cells as possible. Pray for minimal side effects and that I can
drink plenty of water and eat plenty of protein.
Thank
you for your prayers! They are making a difference!!!
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