Things are moving

 So much can happen in just a couple hours.   It feels as if everyone got back from the holidays and jumped back into work.  It's a relief to see things starting.


We have his first chemo session, the day after the port is placed.  That feels a bit scary.  We've heard that ABVD can be a bit uncomfortable going in.  For his first chemo session the area and incision won't have time to have healed -- that's small potatoes.

He has five at home prescriptions to offset side effects:

  • 1 antiviral
  • 1 steriod
  • 2 anti-nausea/vomiting (one has the added bonus of treating anxiety
  • 1 numbing cream for his port site
And we have a list to get through to make sure the house is ready, he's done all the necessary tests, blood draws, and more.

I feel both relief that things are finally moving and a heart squeeze at the thought of his actually going through this.


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Sleeping or not

I’ve struggled with sleep for a while, even before Alex’s cancer diagnosis. It started during the pandemic and worsened with stress from my parents’ health issues and my mom’s passing. In 2021, I began taking anxiety medication, which helps me manage stress and overthinking. Though I still think a lot, I can now shift my focus away from stressors. Six weeks ago, I started hormone replacement therapy and noticed an improvement in my stress response and sleep within the first week. However, as Alex’s diagnosis approached, my stress levels spiked again, and my sleep suffered. Since the diagnosis, I’ve been in a constant state of high alert. I usually read before bed. Before the lumps were discovered, I read fiction. Now, it’s mostly about cancer treatments and resources. My sister gave me books on alternative cancer treatments, but they made me angry with their unscientific claims - full of fallacies, untruths, and lacking in compassion and common sense.  It doesn't help that the auth...
Read more

Staging and Mental Health

We've learned Alex is at stage 2A Unfavorable.  Not the worst news.  Stage 2A Unfavorable: 3+ locations - in his case most of his neck, surrounding his chest cavity, and centrally located near his lungs/heart.  The PET imaging was startling.  Everything in his neck light up and so much of his chest.  We know the images will get duller and are focusing on that. Unfavorable - lower cure rate, higher likelihood of a recurrence, more aggressive chemo and overall treatment wise. Work stresses haven't helped my mental health. Additionally, there's a lot happening a work: deliverables as well as mid year performance reviews.  I always find those tiring.  We're not perfect people and the focus on where I need to do better can be tiring.  I also use the time with my team to interview them on where I fall short as a manager, what I can do to improve the team dynamic, and uncover what they need from me.   From a reflective perspective, this was poo...
Read more

Yard scape

Our front and back yards are nearly there.  Next weekend I should be ready to share some snaps!  The boys built the new gazebo and furniture - we're waiting on a couple chairs to be replaced and then we'll get rid of the things no longer serving us.   Exited to start using it! 
Read more