Round One - RECOVERY Week One

My spring break was a VERY ROUGH week.  I was in pain the majority of the week.  Bone pain is different than the "aches and pains" you get when you're sick.  It's more of an intense pain, and one that you feel throughout your entire body.  It makes sleeping difficult since the Claritin and Ibuprofen don't always help with the inflammation.  And they tend to ware off in the middle of the night.

Watching my temperature was the most important goal of the week.  I was sent home with an antibiotic and told to call the doctor if my temperature rose above 100.4.  Since life can never be easy for me, Brandon had a fever all week.  That meant he was "quarantined" to the 2nd floor of the house to keep me from getting sick.  According to a home test, he didn't have COVID, so we have no idea why he had a fever.  I suppose it just figures.

Tuesday and Wednesday were pretty good.  I wasn't having any nausea problems, and there hadn't been any fever.  Next to the bone pain, which I was beginning to get used to, I wasn't experiencing any other symptoms, which made me so happy.

Thursday it all fell to pieces.  I noticed in the morning that the water in the big jug I use was tasting weird.  I realized that it was tasting like salt.  EVERYTHING was tasting like salt, my saliva included.  My taste buds were changing, which is a possible side effect of chemotherapy.  I was having bowel issues, and my temperature began to rise and fall so much that I had to call the on-call doctor and ask about whether or not I should take the antibiotic.  Nick bought Panda Express that night, and I couldn't eat it because my taste buds had changed so much, so fast.  Finding food I could eat now became a HUGE problem.  You're told to keep eating so that you can keep your strength up.  It's not easy when EVERYTHING tastes like GARBAGE.  My mouth has a chalky, dry feeling, and it doesn't go away.  I've been researching videos on YouTube to find tips and tricks about the food problem.

Friday I decided to try to run a few errands.  Brandon and I went to Kohl's and to get a few groceries.  It was during this trip that I began to start worrying about how I was going to survive the last 29 days of school.  I found myself moving a lot slower, and becoming winded much easier.

Saturday I almost ended up in the ER.  Around noon I began getting the chills, which meant I had a fever.  It remained steady at 101.5, so I called the on-call doctor.  Needless to say, I was freaking out, and wondering if I'd even make it to work on Monday.  Chemotherapy destroys your immune system.  Being around kids for 8 hours a day isn't the best environment to be in while having a compromised immune system.  The doctor told me to start the antibiotic, and said that if the fever remained into Sunday, I would need to go to the ER.  Needless to say, I was stressing out.  

Sunday morning started off well.  I didn't have any real pain until the afternoon when the bone pain kicked back in.  I was still having bowel issues, and finding food was nearly impossible. I would try many different foods in the house, and more often than not they were just gross. This food issue is really going to be a struggle.  I managed to not have a fever at all, so I was able to avoid the ER!  

Sunday was the day that I decided it was time to get rid of the rest of my hair, even though it hasn't started coming out on it's own.  After the major cut last week, I HATED what my hair looked like, so I was ready to simply have it gone.  Many people asked me if I was going to film it.  I did.  The video is below.  I managed to not fall apart, which made me proud of myself.  

    

You can actually see all the gray hair!!

Here's the final product

Here's what I look like with one of my caps on.  The caps I purchased are all made from really light material, but man, this made me a lot warmer than I thought it would.  I didn't expect that to happen.

Here's my wig.  I'm really happy with it.  I've always had bangs, so trying something a little different is nice.  It is VERY tight on my head, and I was only able to comfortably wear it for about 40 minutes today.  I am hoping that as I wear it more, it will loosen up.  I plan to embrace the bald look, using my caps and hats, and only wear the wig on certain occasions.  I haven't started losing my hair yet, but it won't be long.  

Sunday I slept like CRAP.  I was in so much pain that it was difficult to relax and fall asleep.  Then the pain woke me up half way through the night and I didn't really sleep after that.  Not great since I had to go back to work.  By the time I got home from work today, I was ready to die.  Exhausted and sore, I crashed.  I made it through the day, and that is the most important thing.  

Up to this point, none of my students knew about my cancer diagnosis.  I figured there wasn't any reason to tell them until it was obvious and I had all the information.  After shaving my head, it's obvious.  I now look like I have cancer.  I went to school today with a cap on, since my wig hadn't come in yet, and was instantly asked what was going on with my hair.  I let the kids know about my diagnosis, that I wasn't going to lose my life, and that they could ask me anything they wanted.  It opened up a great conversation where I was able to answer questions about what chemotherapy is, why you lose your hair, how it affects your immune system; it was like a mini science lesson!  I was grateful that they had questions.  I want my kids to know that challenges in life can be worked through and overcome.  

By the end of this week I will be feeling a lot better.  The bone pain will be almost gone, and my taste buds will come back for a week, so I'll make sure to eat everything I can!  Each day is a learning experience.  I'm learning how my body is going to react to the remaining three infusions.  I have my second infusion on May 13th, which will fall during the last 29 days of school.  This sucks, but here's to making it through it!

On a happy note, Brandon had the opportunity to meet Alex Boye at a church fireside yesterday.  To say I'm jealous is an understatement!  Not sure who he is?  Watch the video of him below with the Piano Guys.  I LOVE this song!