DONE WITH CHEMO!!!!

Sorry, it's been an entire month since I posted. I will use the holidays as my excuse and I'm sticking with that. It's been an eventful month though!
After my last pitiful post things got much better. I had a couple of weeks of feeling quite good. During those two weeks I spent a wonderful, relaxing weekend at Harbin Hot Springs with a large group of good friends, had a great time with my dear sister and awesome nieces who were visiting from Michigan, and celebrated Christmas.

Then on Dec. 28th I went in for my LAST chemo treatment! Hooray! (Thank you, Jen Gebbie, for hanging with me :) Interestingly, during that last treatment, I had an allergic reaction to one of my chemo drugs. A few minutes after they hooked up my last bag of fluids for the day, my palms and soles of my feet started to get really itchy. When I mentioned it to my nurse he immediately turned off my IV and then quickly switched out my chemo drug for a bag of liquid bendryl. I guess some people can have pretty serious, even anaphylactic, allergic reactions so they are real quick to respond. Mine cleared up with the benadryl and didn't pose any more problem other than the need for a serious nap. I assumed that any kind of reaction would happen the first time you received a new drug but apparently you can develop a hypersensitivity to some drugs over time. Fortunately this was my last treatment so they don't have to worry about finding a different chemo drug to replace that one.

New Years Eve was a few days after my last treatment and I didn't have high expectations for my ability to stay up late and party. But I rallied and dressed up fancy for a great party hosted by my friend Nicole. I had a blast and basically just ignored the parts of me that weren't feeling good. I didn't get to bed until almost 4am!

Last week Jet and I spent a few days in Bakersfield with our dear friends, the Hawkers. It was great to just hang out and be mellow and let the kids play together. The other fun thing about Bakersfield is I get to visit with my old friend Bill. He and I dated 25 years ago and just reconnected last year. (thank you Facebook)

I also got a wonderful present! A big group of friends pitched in and got me a beautiful Spirit Hood, which is one of those big furry hats with the long scarf and pockets. But this is not one of those cheap knock offs you find at Target, this is one of the fancy, original ones.
It is super warm and super cute and I love it! (and I had fun taking silly pictures in it!)

So tomorrow will be 2 weeks since my last treatment and I'm feeling pretty good. Just a couple of lingering side effects. One is tingly fingertips and sore nail beds. Sometimes walking is painful on my toes and I think I might lose one fingernail. I still have the weepy eyes which is mostly just annoying. My energy level is so-so but I have managed to be pretty productive the last couple of days. And then there's the hot flashes, which started during the last round.
I get them pretty frequently and they sometimes keep me up at night but they actually make me thankful that I'm bald. Taking off my hat helps cool me off very effectively. I wish I could say I'll be done with the hot flashes when all the chemo wears off but they are also a side effect of the Tamoxifen that I'll be taking for the next 5 years.

The next phase of this battle of mine will be another surgery and then radiation. I don't know about the timing of those but I should in a few days. I meet with my surgeon on Thursday and my oncologist on Friday. But for now I'm focusing on getting back into some regular exercise, eating more reasonably and creating a more regular schedule for myself. I'm thinking of looking into some volunteer work and maybe an education class to earn some units.

Even though I still have a ways to go, I feel like the worst is past me. I can't even say that any of it has been truly horrible. Distinctly unpleasant for sure, but not horrible. And I'm surrounded and supported by such wonderful, loving people from every facet of my life; family, friends, coworkers, neighbors, medical staff, just everyone. Even in the midst of all this cancer bullshit, I still feel totally blessed.