Not a bad Friday; a lot like yesterday but no cramps today and no indication of fever so far. Worked a full day and walked home via Central Park. Hopefully it will be an uneventful, albiet boring, evening.
--Dr. D
Friday, October 20, 2006
Thursday, October 19, 2006
Not a Bad Thursday
Today went pretty well, all things considered. Woke up feeling pretty good, just a little nauseas, and was good throughout the morning. After lunch, I got some bad cramps and started feeling pretty tired but, just as I was planning to leave work early, they let up and I felt a lot better so I finished the day out (wonder if is was that burrito I ate). Still feel tired tho - it seems Monday's and Tuesday's I don't sleep very well; feels a lot like having too much caffeine before bed, sleep a bit, wake up for a while, sleep a bit again, etc, ad nauseum. Wednesday's seem better, as the chemo meds work their way out I reckon, but even w/a good night's sleep I'm still in a deficit. Hopefully tonight I'll sleep well again and will feel good overall tomorrow.
I am a little nervous about tomorrow - it being the Friday of session 2 which was when I had trouble last time. I believe I'll get through it alright but I do plan to take it easy and stay close to home tomorrow night just in case. Figure it's the sensible thing to do. As long as all goes well, I'm looking forward to a nice weekend.
Enuf for tonite - enjoy the pictures!
--Dr. D
I am a little nervous about tomorrow - it being the Friday of session 2 which was when I had trouble last time. I believe I'll get through it alright but I do plan to take it easy and stay close to home tomorrow night just in case. Figure it's the sensible thing to do. As long as all goes well, I'm looking forward to a nice weekend.
Enuf for tonite - enjoy the pictures!
--Dr. D
My Bald Head - In Color!
I like it shaved, cold head not withstanding. Went shopping for hats tonight for a while but didn't find anything I particularly liked - have to stick w/baseball caps for the moment.
New poll: short hair or no hair?
New poll: short hair or no hair?
Tuesday, October 17, 2006
I Am Bald
Master barber Jeff used hot-foam and a straight-edge razor and it didn't take long for the massacre to be complete - no prisoners. At the end, I got the hot towel and it was everything it was cracked up to be :)
Looks good, much improved over the christmas-tree like, quickly thinning, short hair and I won't have to deal w/hair all over the apartment any longer (particularly on my pillows & sheets). My head is pretty white tho - the woman who cut my hair last time was really pushing for the tanning salon option and said she'd go with me. May actually consider tanning but, as T said, I'll have talk to Dr. I first. But I think I'll try a bit of natural tanning first - we do have a few sunny days coming up.
More later
--Dr. D
Looks good, much improved over the christmas-tree like, quickly thinning, short hair and I won't have to deal w/hair all over the apartment any longer (particularly on my pillows & sheets). My head is pretty white tho - the woman who cut my hair last time was really pushing for the tanning salon option and said she'd go with me. May actually consider tanning but, as T said, I'll have talk to Dr. I first. But I think I'll try a bit of natural tanning first - we do have a few sunny days coming up.
More later
--Dr. D
Monday, October 16, 2006
Round 2, Session 2 Done
Quite a while ago actually - everything went pretty quickly today and I got back home around 2:30, which was cool.
Dr. I and I talked for some time in our usual session before chemo. All of my bloodwork looks good and I'm definitely tolerating the adjusted treatment much better. This week, I'll be keeping an eye on my temperature just to make sure I don't have a negative reaction again like I did in Round 1 Session 2 but we're both pretty confident that things will go well this week.
I also asked him about why I only take the anti-nausea meds on Tues and Wed and then move on to Zofran for the rest of the week (which is good but doesn't seems as effective overall). There are 2 anti-nausea meds involved and the answer is different for each. The first one I take is Dexamethasone - this is a steroid; it helps in the short-term but the long term side-effects, which includes supressing the immune system, make it unusable for more than a couple of days. The second drug is Aprepitant - I need to learn a bit more about this drug but, according to Dr. I, it works for three days and that's it - you can keep taking it but it won't help any longer (my guess is that it is a kind of seratonin blocker and there some kind of receptor multiplicity/adaptation at work, but that's just a guess based on some things Dr. I said).
I have set up an appt w/the master barber for tomorrow @ 9 to get my head shaved. As I mentioned, my hair has continued to fall out faster than republican scandals and my hair is starting to look fairly uneven so I decided to clean it up before starting up work this week. I think it will look good but I definitely need some more hats (and sunscreen). Will post picts when I get the chance. Maybe :).
--Dr. D.
Dr. I and I talked for some time in our usual session before chemo. All of my bloodwork looks good and I'm definitely tolerating the adjusted treatment much better. This week, I'll be keeping an eye on my temperature just to make sure I don't have a negative reaction again like I did in Round 1 Session 2 but we're both pretty confident that things will go well this week.
I also asked him about why I only take the anti-nausea meds on Tues and Wed and then move on to Zofran for the rest of the week (which is good but doesn't seems as effective overall). There are 2 anti-nausea meds involved and the answer is different for each. The first one I take is Dexamethasone - this is a steroid; it helps in the short-term but the long term side-effects, which includes supressing the immune system, make it unusable for more than a couple of days. The second drug is Aprepitant - I need to learn a bit more about this drug but, according to Dr. I, it works for three days and that's it - you can keep taking it but it won't help any longer (my guess is that it is a kind of seratonin blocker and there some kind of receptor multiplicity/adaptation at work, but that's just a guess based on some things Dr. I said).
I have set up an appt w/the master barber for tomorrow @ 9 to get my head shaved. As I mentioned, my hair has continued to fall out faster than republican scandals and my hair is starting to look fairly uneven so I decided to clean it up before starting up work this week. I think it will look good but I definitely need some more hats (and sunscreen). Will post picts when I get the chance. Maybe :).
--Dr. D.
Sunday, October 15, 2006
Another Nice Weekend
Friday was a decent day; still had some nausea but worked a full day. That evening I had dinner w/my roommate, which was really cool, and went to bed fairly early. On Saturday, I felt about the same as Friday but I pushed through it - kinda hung out for the day then went to Maplewood in the evening for the Stroller's Gala, as suggested by Peter. It was awesome, great to see so many friends and nice to know that so many of them are following my blog. I got there a bit late but Gene and Betty found me a seat (thanks for ur seat Leon) and got me hooked up w/some food - I ate like a fiend too. After dinner, the entertainment was a bunch of scenes/songs/skits from various plays performed by the membership. I enjoyed *every* minute of it; everyone was fantastic but, I have to say, the scene created by Peter and Bob completely killed me - Bob has offerred to come out to the city in drag to reprise his role if it will help. Afterwards, I talked with everyone until I finally had to leave to catch the train back to the city. After such a long evening, I slept kinda late today and then went down to SOHO for a late brunch w/Min where I ate like a fiend again. Good stuff - anyone interested in brunch in SOHO sometime, drop me a line.
So Round 2, Session 2 is tomorrow. As you can see, last week went pretty well and I am hopeful that this week will go equally well. My hair is still falling out pretty fast - kinda reminds me of a christmas tree 2 weeks after christmas - shake it too hard and thar she blows :p. I figure in a week or two I'll just have to shave it all but that doesn't bother me. The only thing is that my scalp is quite white which will probably blind my coworkers - been thinking about tanning salons but if anyone has any suggestions, I'm listening.
Final thought - most people seem to prefer the short hair to the long, went over particulalry well last night at the Gala. You are all very kind. Or a bunch of Philistines.
Regards,
--Dr. D
So Round 2, Session 2 is tomorrow. As you can see, last week went pretty well and I am hopeful that this week will go equally well. My hair is still falling out pretty fast - kinda reminds me of a christmas tree 2 weeks after christmas - shake it too hard and thar she blows :p. I figure in a week or two I'll just have to shave it all but that doesn't bother me. The only thing is that my scalp is quite white which will probably blind my coworkers - been thinking about tanning salons but if anyone has any suggestions, I'm listening.
Final thought - most people seem to prefer the short hair to the long, went over particulalry well last night at the Gala. You are all very kind. Or a bunch of Philistines.
Regards,
--Dr. D
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
