Not such a good start
Barely making it to the end of my first infusion of chemotherapy thanks to a severe reaction to one of the drugs in the chemo cocktail, I spent that night and much of the following day in hospital. In fact, for the entire fortnight I was barely able to function, with a second trip to hospital, constant and debilitating nausea and the worst brain fog ever. Then on day 13, just in time for Jas’s birthday last Tuesday, I found both my feet and enough energy to join him for a glorious afternoon in a spa having pampering treatments and a blissful hot rocks massage (me) and deep tissue massage (Jas) to help us both relax, and for me specifically to prepare for the cycle of chemo due the following day.
My revised chemo regime is one down on the scale. Still specific for pancreatic cancer, but not as ‘toxic’, and while the nausea/sickness is still very much in evidence, it's more manageable. That’s the good bit. The bad bit is I'm feeling the cold - even when it's warm outside - and worse, my hair has finally given up and I’m seeing more and more strands in the shower and on my clothes. It’s all pretty miserable. I’ll be sorting out a wig next week, (thanks to a govt. grant) and meanwhile I’m going to get a little creative at scarf tying. Hmm. Could be interesting!
I wish I had something more uplifting to report. I have blood tests every week, with the next one including the protein marker showing the activity of the cancerous cells. We need the ‘number’ to reduce, meaning the cells are no longer as productive. I’m sure I’ve oversimplified it, but with everything else so very unknown it’s the one little hope I can grab a hold of in this world of uncertainty. That is until the CAT scan in June. Then all will be revealed, and we'll know whether I'm in a good place for an operation.
Meanwhile, and with all the advice on using ginger as a natural remedy for nausea I’m thinking of taking out shares in Bundaberg Ginger Beer, my go-to drink! Then there’s the dark chocolate coated glacè ginger Jas has been buying me from the supermarket and the ginger biscotti he’s making me – and for a plumber he does make the very best biscotti!
Starting to rattle from all the drugs I'm being give to combat side effects, if anyone has any other natural remedies to share it would be very much appreciated.
My revised chemo regime is one down on the scale. Still specific for pancreatic cancer, but not as ‘toxic’, and while the nausea/sickness is still very much in evidence, it's more manageable. That’s the good bit. The bad bit is I'm feeling the cold - even when it's warm outside - and worse, my hair has finally given up and I’m seeing more and more strands in the shower and on my clothes. It’s all pretty miserable. I’ll be sorting out a wig next week, (thanks to a govt. grant) and meanwhile I’m going to get a little creative at scarf tying. Hmm. Could be interesting!
I wish I had something more uplifting to report. I have blood tests every week, with the next one including the protein marker showing the activity of the cancerous cells. We need the ‘number’ to reduce, meaning the cells are no longer as productive. I’m sure I’ve oversimplified it, but with everything else so very unknown it’s the one little hope I can grab a hold of in this world of uncertainty. That is until the CAT scan in June. Then all will be revealed, and we'll know whether I'm in a good place for an operation.
Meanwhile, and with all the advice on using ginger as a natural remedy for nausea I’m thinking of taking out shares in Bundaberg Ginger Beer, my go-to drink! Then there’s the dark chocolate coated glacè ginger Jas has been buying me from the supermarket and the ginger biscotti he’s making me – and for a plumber he does make the very best biscotti!
Starting to rattle from all the drugs I'm being give to combat side effects, if anyone has any other natural remedies to share it would be very much appreciated.
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