Saturday 4/28/2007

Short Story: Feeling pretty good. A little dry mouth, and some queasiness, but other than that OK. Took a 3 hour nap this afternoon, mainly because I went to a lecture on Chinese Embroidery and then to lunch with my chapter members so I got a little tired, but it was worth it!

Long Story

How I'm feeling: Have a slight dry mouth, and I'm "aware" of my stomach, but the nausea drugs are working well. Took a three hour nap today, so I'm not tired.

Hair: Tom shaved my head last night. I was so tired of having hair down my neck! He left a "fringe" around my face and my sideburns. He thinks it looks funny - and it does - when I'm around the house "naked", but when I wear a hat or a scarf, I don't look totally bald. In beard speak, it's a "chin strap", so I guess I have a "head strap"! For those of you are familiar with Gus Weill, a Louisiana political advisor, he sports a "chin strap". Not that I relish the idea of being compared to Gus Weill, but he is the most famous person I know that has a chin strap. An interesting visual, I think. Link to a photo of Gus for those who don't know who he is. http://tinyurl.com/29b3sn

Any-who, not having hair does has it's advantages, it takes much less time in the shower, it also saves on shampoo and conditioner. However, it makes blending makeup at the hairline an interesting exercise.

Shawn with a "head strap".

Embroiderers' Guild: Our Region Director, Linda Ferguson, came to today's meeting. She gave us a lecture about Chinese Embroidery. Everything from two sided embroidery to chain stitch, to techniques involving horse tail hair! She went to China in 2006 and brought many samples of her work. It was very interesting.

First Row (left to right): Jann, Dawn, Pat, South Central Region Director EGA Linda Ferguson, Mary, and Judy.
Back Row: Jeanne, Ann (partially hidden), Jane, Dee, and Shawn

On Table: Samples of Traditional Chinese Embroidery.

Friday, 4/27/07

Executive Summary: Got my second round of chemo this afternoon. I finished around 4:15. Still feeling pretty good, at 8:45 pm.

The Nitty Gritty Details: Chemo went fine. Still peed red. Actually more of an apricot color. They gave me a prescription for a shot of Neulasta it is to be administered 24 hours after chemo. It is supposed to stimulate the growth of white blood cells. So the "second week slump" that I experienced last time should be prevented. My friend Dawn is going to give me the shot as she frequently gives herself allergy shots. Tom volunteered, but since he's never given anyone a shot before, I declined. Besides, I'd rather be angry at Dawn for a botched job than at Tom! I can send Dawn home, Tom I have to live with!! :-) Our normal pharmacy, the Sav-On in Albertsons, did not have the drug, so they called around to find it for us. Fortunately, it was found nearby at the Walgreen's at Coursey and Sherwood. Sav-On told us that since it costs $3,500 PER SHOT, they don't stock it on a regular basis. But they can order it for me for next time. Oh? My cost??? $0.00. Sweet huh???

Thoughts on Hair: My hair is shedding worse than a hairy dog or cat. It is EVERYWHERE! When I finish this post, I'm going to get Tom to shave it for me. I had to wear a turban so I could cook dinner and eat! I was afraid little hairs would be falling in.

The Bathroom Remodel: The shower has been framed in and the holes in the sheetrock have been fixed. We are now ready for the tile man to come. He is supposed to show up Monday morning.

The ceiling of the shower has been created.

The hole where the old medicine cabinet was has been fixed.

Wednesday, 4/25/07

Short Story: Still feeling pretty good. A little tired however. My hair is falling out all over the place. I'd estimate it's about half gone. I went for my physical therapy evaluation Tuesday and more blood work today.

More details for those of you who have to know everything!

Hair: You know how when you get a hair cut there are these little hairs all over you? That's what's happening to me. I can't wait for it to finish falling out. This is a real pain!

Cancer Fit and Physical Therapy: Yesterday, I went to my second Cancer Fit session. The topic was Exercising for Life, then we did 45 minutes of yoga. That same day, I went for my evaluation for physical therapy. They measured my arms for lymphoedema, and had me do a bunch of baseline exercises. One of the exercises was to see how many times I could stand and sit in a chair in 30 seconds. I probably could have done more if my knees weren't creaking so much! I'll go twice a week for therapy.

Dreams: My friend Ann L. sent me the following email. It's a hoot!

"I dreamed about us last night. We were at a party and you had on a hat! Someone said something about your hat and you said "Well, if you don't likethis, how about this?" and with that you pulled off your hat and there was long blond shiny hair. Then you said "Well, if you don't like this, how about this?"and you pulled off the blond hair and there was red hair. Then you said "Well, if you don't like this, how about this?" and you pulled off the red hair and there was brown hair slightly askew on your head! I woke myself up laughing, but went right back to sleep."

Tom: Tom is feeling alot better. He was able to bowl last night.

Next treatment: My next treatment is this Friday afternoon. Hopefully, I'll feel like I did last time - not too bad.

The bathroom remodel: Things are progressing. The plumbing is in on the shower and the electric lines have been run. The contractor is supposed to come tomorrow to put up the sheetrock in the shower in preparation for the tile guy to come next week.

Friday, 4/20/07

Short Story: Got my hair cut today. See pictures below. A little tired, but other than that, fine. My white blood counts are low, so they've prescribed an antibiotic and I'll need a shot after my next treatment. Tom got his staples out yesterday.

The TMI section
Hair: As you can see, I got my hair cut today. It was starting to fall out. When I put gel on this morning there was several strands of hair wrapped around my fingers. Also, there was quit a bit in the shower drain. Which I'm glad about. I wouldn't want to get it shaved if it would stay for a longer period of time! The cut is more of a Sinead O'Connor than a Britney. Wendy used a "1" on the clippers. Tom played the part of paparazzi.


This is me and Wendy, my stylist, before the cut.
Wendy in action. It's almost done.
Me with my hat. It has a scarf tied around it, but you can't see it from this angle....

It feels funny when I'm outside and the wind blows. Like my hair is moving, but there is no hair to move!

Blood work: My white count is low. Maybe that is why I'm tired... It also means I am more susceptible to infections. I need to wash my hands before eating, etc. Which I do anyway, I'll just be more vigilant. Because of this, they have prescribed an antibiotic and I'll need to get a shot to stimulate the production of white blood cells the day after my treatment. I am scheduled to have my treatment on Friday 4/27. They say I can have the shot at home. Any volunteers???

Tom: Tom got his staples out yesterday. His incision is about 3 inches long. We were both surprised at how long it was. He continues to use the ace bandage as a "reminder" that he has had the surgery. The doctor said he can do anything he wants to do (bowling and golf is Tom's main concern) as long as it doesn't hurt.

The Bathroom remodel: Things are going well. The shower is framed out, the electrician has run all of the wiring and the plumber is supposed to finish on Monday. The tile guy is on vacation next week, so he will come the week after. The cabinetry has been put in. Like many remodels, they did exactly what we asked for, but it's not what we wanted. We filled in the knee hole in the cabinet with drawers. I wanted two more, but they added three more. Thus, they were not deep enough for what I wanted. So it's our first, and I'm sure not last, do-over.

Tuesday, April 17, 2007

Short Story: Still feeling good. I've had enough energy to take my morning walks. Tom is also doing well. His wrist itches, which is a sign of healing, so that is good. He is having problems writing with his left hand, but is making do.

The Details:

Blood Work: My blood work came back "fine". I'm not sure what the numbers are however. Go back for more blood Thursday.

Hair: I made an appointment to get my hair shaved Friday 4/20. Wendy has been my stylist for about 15 years. She always asks me what style I want. I just tell her to keep it out of my eyes. She gets frustrated with me because I never give her any direction. Well, I made my appointment, I told her I had seen a style in a magazine that I wanted.... A Britney Spears! She was very excited to FINALLY get some direction!!

Cancer Fit: Baton Rouge Physical Therapy and Our Lady of the Lake Hospital here in Baton Rouge sponsors a program called Cancer Fit. It is an eight week series of lectures on cancer/fitness and yoga. I went today. The topic was Boosting Bones & Muscling Metabolism. We then did about 45 minutes of yoga. This was the first time I did yoga. It was an interesting experience.

Bathroom Remodel: We decided to remodel our master bathroom. We figured it was a good time since I'm stuck at home for so long I could be here for the contractors. We have moved to the upstairs guest room. It took us two days to move especially since Tom was one handed! This experience has made me realize two things (1) our closet holds A LOT of stuff and (2) it was full! Demolition on the bathroom started yesterday. The contractors came at 7 am and were done by noon. Where can I get a job like that??? No wonder it takes them so long to get things done!

Here are the before pics of the bath:

Here are the "after" pictures of the bath:

Thursday, 4/12/07

Short Story: Had a good day today. Had enough energy to take my morning walk, no nap and for the first time, no nausea meds! Things are going well.

Tom: Tom is recovering nicely from his surgery. He went in around 12:30 and we were home by 3:00. He is taking his pain meds, but he did not need a nap this afternoon! Wish I could do the same after surgery!

Wednesday, 4/12/07

Short Story: Feeling MUCHO better. Finally got my strength back. Went all day without having to lie down. What a relief! Only took one nausea pill today - more insurance than need. My mom and I went to Total Woman Boutique today. It's a shop in town that caters to cancer patients. I got fixed up with headbands, turbans and hats. God knows I have plenty of scarves! So I'll be ready in the next week or so when my hair falls out.

More on hair: Many of you are asking how I feel about my hair falling out. Not sure what I'll feel when it happens, but as of now, I'm OK with it. As you know, I'm very pragmatic, so it's going to happen whether I want it to or not. Nothing I can do about it. So may as well slap a blonde wig on and get on with life! Besides, I spend about 3 minutes a day on my hair. I'll probably spend more time on a head covering than my "real" hair! Trey says that "Ms. Wendy {our hairstylist} is getting the shaft over this." That's because he gets a haircut about twice a year, and I won't need one for quite some time!

Vietnamese Nail Salons: The one thing that is bothering me is that I can't wear acrylic nails because of the risk of infection. I've been wearing false nails for years now and I feel naked without them! So I've been buying up OPI nail polish on eBay for those home manicures since I can't get salon manicures either .

For those of you, who have never had the pleasure of going to a Vietnamese Nail Salon, kick it here for a hysterical rendition. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SsWrY77o77o.

When I told my nail stylist, "Tammy" (no lie, that's her name) that I needed to get my nails taken off and not put back on, she asked, "Why?”
I proceeded to tell her that I was starting Chemo.
Blank stare.
Chemotherapy?
Blank stare.
Cancer?
"AHHHH ya! Cancer! Where?"
Breast cancer. Eyes dart to chest.
"Boob? But it still there!"

There was no explaining the difference between a lumpectomy and a mastectomy without disrobing, so I left it to her imagination.

Blood work: Went and had my blood drawn today. Apparently they keep track of your blood counts. Guess that's a good thing, but I hate having blood drawn. Should get the results tomorrow.

Tom: Tom goes in for surgery on his right wrist tomorrow at noon. He is getting a ganglion cyst removed. Please keep him in your thoughts and prayers. Nothing is ever dull at the Miller household!

Thanks: To all of my friends and family for everything. The notes, phone calls and emails are wonderful. I am very lucky to have each and every one of you as my friend.