Welcome!

My last short fiction instructor told us not to write about cancer. "It's been done," she said. Well, the hell with that. I learned in the last three weeks that I have stage III breast cancer. Writing, painting, and assorted other arts are how I process stuff, in addition, of course, to long conversations with friends. These conversations have begun in earnest these recent days, but I realized my Facebook page in particular was in danger of becoming a medical-update site. I do not want that. My life is still going to be about more than cancer, as much as that may not seem possible right now. Also, I don't want to alienate friends who are not ready to walk this particular valley with me at this time. For example, one elderly friend who called to cheer me up this week can't even handle the "c-word," and there is no way she will be up for any truly frank discussion of what's about to happen here. So she is advised to keep in touch with me via Facebook. People who are comfortable with the c-word, honest discussion and occasional cursing are welcome to join me here.

Saturday, April 2, 2011

First chemo went fine

Hi!  Just wanted to give a quick update that the first chemo seems to have gone as well as it possibly could have gone.  I had my chemo on Thursday, a shot of Neulasta on Friday, and now it's Saturday evening.  I am feeling very sleepy, but that's about it.

I had been dreading the nausea and vomiting I had heard so much about.  But on Thursday, my oncology nurse told me that while everyone gets queasy at some point, if I end up vomiting they have failed in their medication plan.  Thus far, we have not failed!  The anti-nausea meds make me very sleepy, and I suspect possibly wacky, but otherwise not much to report.  I went to Matthew's soccer game this morning.  I walked a couple miles yesterday and a couple miles today.  Last night I went out for BBQ with my friends--that is amazing to me--and we had a great time.  I just wanted you to know I'm getting on well.   I am sure this gets worse over time, with cumulative effects setting in, but for now, so far, so good.  Thanks for all the love and prayers!
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2 comments:

  1. BrookeApril 2, 2011 at 6:56 PM

    SO glad to hear you're feeling good so far, walking miles, and having fun with friends. {{{HUGS}}}

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  2. melApril 4, 2011 at 5:19 PM

    Katie, Herman only threw up once in any of his four different chemos; I am sure his drugs were different from yours (he had 5FU, oxylaplatin, carboplatin, and taxol), but while queasiness is still very real, violent vomiting is apparently a thing of the past. Hurray! And he only lost his hair with one—that's no longer a sure thing either...

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