Today has been exactly 1 week since my first chemotherapy, and boy do I feel great. The first four days were quite miserable but I survived!
Day of Chemotherapy: I came home and lasted almost 2 hours without feeling sick. I was able to eat lunch with my sister and parents, but soon afterward headed for my mom’s KING size bed, where I would retire for the next few hours. I did not feel as sick as I thought I would, just drained. I had quite an eventful day….. I was skyping with Natalie for the next few hours before we both fell asleep. Nikita came over around 8pm.
Official day 1: I was able to fall asleep the night before without any complaints, since I was heavily drugged up. During the day I felt the nausea. My GI was feeling so strange. Fortunately, I still had my appetite 🙂
DAY 2: This was a little rough. I had trouble at night time, felt a ball in my throat. My insides felt like they were shedding with every move that I made. This is when I popped my first Lorazepam 🙂 it has a sedative effect since its also used as an anti-anxiety drug. Today I had to go back to Roswell Park to get my Neulesta shot, the blood cell booster, that would increase my white blood cell count. The shot was administered into my stomach (OUCH). I’ve never had a needle injected into my belly so like everything else, this was a new experience. It burned.
My mom and I stayed at the center for about an hour. The first time the shot is given, patients need to stay in the office for one hour to make sure no allergic reaction develops. In the mean time, I was busy trying on wigs at the Breast Resource Center at Roswell.
The next 3 days the nausea would linger, but as long as I kept taking my anti-nausea meds in time I was fine 🙂 Two out of the three medicines I was given for my nausea would make me drowsy and sleepy.
Nik left to go back to Brooklyn on Sunday. On Monday (yesterday) I went back to studying. I am a medical student still!!!