CHEMO #3 DAY BY DAY - 2
Friday -- Day 2
3:30am
I awoke to find that my eyes wouldn't open. Chemo drys up mucus in your eyes, nose, and mouth. This is the first time I really felt it in my eyes. My eye lids were stuck to my eyeballs. I thought I would have to wet my face but managed to open them. Then I just kept blinking them a lot to get some moisture. I told Jeff in the morning and he cranked up the bedroom humidifier.
10:00am
Mom came over so I moved from the bedroom to the couch. She stayed until 12:30 and made lunch.
1:00
I went back upstairs and took a 5 hour nap until Jeff came home with dinner and some artificial tears to help with my eye dryness.
6:00
I took a shower and gave in on shaving my legs. I swore after my hair started falling out I wouldn't shave again. There had to be an upside to this, right? Well apparently leg hair and head hair are not in sync.
8:00pm
I remembered we didn't give my Neulasta shot and it is due 24 hours after chemo. This shot boots my white blood cell counts and prevents infection. You can learn more about it here:
http://www.neulasta.com/patient/howcanhelp/chemotherapy-treatment-neulasta.html
When Jeff couldn't find it in the refrigerator I panicked. The shot if very very expensive. In fact, I had to get permission from the insurance company to have it given at home so I didn't have to drive back into the office for it. We eventually found it it the freezer and the package clearly said to not freeze. What was I thinking! When I have chemo I feel so alert, but I'm learning that I make a lot of dumb mistakes. At the time I would argue that I could drive myself home, but I'm glad they don't allow it. I chalk it up to Chemo Brain.
To explain Chemo Brain I found this on cancer.org and it is dead on.
For years cancer survivors have worried about, joked about, and been frustrated with the mental cloudiness they sometimes notice before, during, and after chemotherapy. Even though its exact cause isn’t always known, this mental fog is commonly called “chemo brain.” Patients have been aware of chemo brain for some time, but only recently have studies been done that could start to explain it. Here are just a few examples of what patients call chemo brain:
I called the doctor and he said it would be okay to put it in the refrigerator and wait an extra day. I sure hope it doesn't prolong my weekend recovery.
10:00pm
I headed back to bed and slept until 12:00pm. Yep, 14 more hours! It's a wonder why chemo weekends seem long. I sleep so much you would think they would go by faster.
Friday -- Day 2
3:30am
I awoke to find that my eyes wouldn't open. Chemo drys up mucus in your eyes, nose, and mouth. This is the first time I really felt it in my eyes. My eye lids were stuck to my eyeballs. I thought I would have to wet my face but managed to open them. Then I just kept blinking them a lot to get some moisture. I told Jeff in the morning and he cranked up the bedroom humidifier.
10:00am
Mom came over so I moved from the bedroom to the couch. She stayed until 12:30 and made lunch.
1:00
I went back upstairs and took a 5 hour nap until Jeff came home with dinner and some artificial tears to help with my eye dryness.
6:00
I took a shower and gave in on shaving my legs. I swore after my hair started falling out I wouldn't shave again. There had to be an upside to this, right? Well apparently leg hair and head hair are not in sync.
8:00pm
I remembered we didn't give my Neulasta shot and it is due 24 hours after chemo. This shot boots my white blood cell counts and prevents infection. You can learn more about it here:
http://www.neulasta.com/patient/howcanhelp/chemotherapy-treatment-neulasta.html
When Jeff couldn't find it in the refrigerator I panicked. The shot if very very expensive. In fact, I had to get permission from the insurance company to have it given at home so I didn't have to drive back into the office for it. We eventually found it it the freezer and the package clearly said to not freeze. What was I thinking! When I have chemo I feel so alert, but I'm learning that I make a lot of dumb mistakes. At the time I would argue that I could drive myself home, but I'm glad they don't allow it. I chalk it up to Chemo Brain.
To explain Chemo Brain I found this on cancer.org and it is dead on.
For years cancer survivors have worried about, joked about, and been frustrated with the mental cloudiness they sometimes notice before, during, and after chemotherapy. Even though its exact cause isn’t always known, this mental fog is commonly called “chemo brain.” Patients have been aware of chemo brain for some time, but only recently have studies been done that could start to explain it. Here are just a few examples of what patients call chemo brain:
- Forgetting things that they usually have no trouble recalling (memory lapses)
- Trouble concentrating (they can’t focus on what they’re doing, have a short attention span, may “space out”)
- Trouble remembering details like names, dates, and sometimes larger events
- Trouble multi-tasking, like answering the phone while cooking, without losing track of one task (they are less able to do more than one thing at a time)
- Taking longer to finish things (disorganized, slower thinking and processing)
- Trouble remembering common words (unable to find the right words to finish a sentence)
I called the doctor and he said it would be okay to put it in the refrigerator and wait an extra day. I sure hope it doesn't prolong my weekend recovery.
10:00pm
I headed back to bed and slept until 12:00pm. Yep, 14 more hours! It's a wonder why chemo weekends seem long. I sleep so much you would think they would go by faster.
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