Chemo - Round Two

By the time the third week came around again for my next chemotherapy session, I was well over hospitals! the previous Thursday I had been to Kenepuru Hospital for an ultrasound for the fibroids and then on the Tuesday I had to go and have an ultrasound guided biopsy on some nodules on a goitre in my neck. I seemed to have spent the best part of a week attending medical appointments and was well sick of it all.

I was better organised this time, packing myself a box of goodies to eat whilst I was receiving my treatment. I was actually dreading entering the treatment area and just the thought of it made me feel sick but once I was there I felt ok. Well, at least I was until other women started talking to me and sharing their stories of woe and failed treatments.  The next thing I knew I was in tears, blubbering to the nurse, feeling as if all this was pointless. The lovely nurse pulled the curtain around me and sat and shared some encouraging words until I had stopped crying. Next time I come for treatment I'm not going to talk to anybody because everytime I do I go away with their baggage and sob stories which hammers at my positive attitude that I have so far been able to keep.

So, two down, two to go. Friday afternoon I started to feel the effects and spent Friday afternoon sleeping.
I'd had my anti-nausea meds changed this time, as the first round of meds had made me manic and unable to stay asleep.  This time I felt much better. Saturday was spent in bed all day sleeping but the effects of the chemo were nowhere near as bad as the first lot.  On Sunday I still felt really tired but didn't actually sleep and by Sunday afternoon was able to go down to the beach for a walk. By Sunday evening, I felt well enough to drive my daughter up to the train station. Monday and Tuesday were quite good days but I was still tired and a new side effect had set in.....I felt depressed.  I spoke to my oncology nurse who told me that the steroids that are given for the first 3 days can often affect you in that way and that it would pass. I'm sure also that not being at work and around people for 5 days was also causing me to lose motivation so by the time Wednesday came around I was really looking forward to going back to work. Once I got back into the routine of a normal day again, I started to come right.