Almost Halfway....

Well this past week or so has been an lovely blur of cottages and summer fun. I didn’t have too much trouble with the sun, this time around I wore enough sunscreen that had I actually become a vampire, I would have survived.  A very large hat is really the thing. So even though I looked like a pasty redneck (the large hat is a Canada day special, straw cowboy hat replete with red trim ), I won. I even went for a swim in the lake and it was glorious. Until I jumped in the water, I hadn’t realized how precious I was treating myself, I unfurled in the waves like a long lost mermaid and instantly my body felt good. I swam and dove and splashed and most of all laughed in joy. I’m still me. Th only draw back to all of this lovely distraction, is now I only have 10 days until my next treatment. I get nauseous  just thinking about going back into the hospital and sitting in that chair. I now have an adverse reaction to the smell of alcohol wipes from giving myself all the injections of neupogen, but I’m becoming a pro at it! I have had some of the bone aching this time around as well, but not until the last three injections and Aleve + heating pad seems to do the trick. My hair continues to disappear, I still have my eyebrows and eyelashes, but my armpits are smooth, and, *cough*, down there is thinning out as well.

When we get home I’m going to shave my head right down to the skin as it is patchy stubble and, I am thinking of getting a Henna Crown!. This salon in Toronto that does hair and henna parties, does a special treatment for ladies who suffer from alopecia or are in treatment for cancer and have lost their hair, it’s beautiful. The young woman will come to your house or visit you in the hospital and spend an hour and a half with you decorating your bald scalp with beautiful Lotus designs or Peonies or Buddhist symbols, whatever you choose. It lasts about 10 days...
     Ok time for the mental check in. I’ve been much better since my last blog post and that few dark days I had. I feel optimistic again, and I recognize, now that I’ve done this twice, that that is how it goes. You go for your treatment, you feel like shit, you wonder how the fuck your going to get through however many more you have, you go dark, you feel better, you eat some really yummy food, you feel better, you have hope.

It's funny, I've recently had this this thought that pregnancy really prepared me for chemo. Weird right? I had a really easy pregnancy, besides some heartburn and some hip tendon aches at night, I really sailed right through. But I did not like being pregnant. It felt really strange to have something inside of me that was alive. I had nausea most days until about 1pm, in my first trimester, so I learned how to assuage it and how to function. dealing with the unknown on a daily basis in regards to my body became the norm, and that's how I feel right now. I don't like what's happening to me, but I have no choice. I feel calm about it. I've had to gather strength from this part of me before, the deep part of me, the primal protective part. It's strong, it's not going to let me fail. I've got this....
Thank you to everyone for reading, thank you for sending cards and treats, they really help. One week to go until I AM HALFWAY!!! Monday July 24th 1:30. Wish me luck. Love you guys. J