The third treatment has been easier than the first, but more difficult than the second. My mom came to stay with us for a week after treatment and it was so awesome to have her here. However, I think I may have pushed myself a little too fast to get better simply because I wanted to enjoy time with my mom. I've continued to feel headache-y, stomachache-y, and weak longer than I did the last time through. And then yesterday, we had a little bit of a scare. Since my mom had left on Tuesday morning, I had been feeling off again. Nothing I could put my finger on, just not feeling good. I was due to go in for my 8th day blood draw on Wednesday and about 15 minutes before I was going to get in the car, I stretched a little. All of a sudden, the entire left side of my chest and left arm got very tight and my port felt like it was being crushed or something. I couldn't shake or massage the tension out. It was very scary - I've never felt anything like it before. I got in the car and called Danny. He ran out of school and met me at the cancer center. On the trip over, my arm still hurt and my heart would intermittently get very tight and then slowly kind of echo out. The nurses took me right back and did an EKG. Everything in my heart looked fine. After hours of this and that, we ended up at a hospital in Kingsport for an ultrasound of my left side to look for blood clots. Nothing there either. So now I'm back home relaxing, but we don't really know what happened. We are cautious because my type of chemotherapy can easily damage the heart or create blood clots - our ultrasound tech took extra time and shared that she was actually surprised not to find any from hearing my symptoms and treating others on my type of chemo regime. So we are thankful that everything appears ok, but still a little wary. I'm just anxious to feel back to normal, which appears to be still a few days away. To celebrate me not having a heart attack, Danny and I grabbed some dinner on the way home and got a picture. You can see I still have on the hospital bracelet for added sympathy points. ;)
Other than cancer, we do have some fun things going on. I have decided to learn French to prepare for some possible adventures in the future. I completely suck at it thus far. Danny and I have learn to play the game Dominion, which we both love. We are also currently going through How I Met Your Mother on Netflix and enjoying it. My mom bought me the prettiest dress in all of America to wear to Jeff and Laura's wedding - it's like a cool sea foam green and it looks like I am one with the ocean. Danny started his new job at school and so far it's going great. Thank you all for continuing to support us in all of this!
I am so glad that you didn't have anything seriously wrong with your heart, or a clot. Such a sigh of relief. Always better to be safe then sorry, I'm so glad that you took it seriously and got it checked out.
ReplyDeleteSince everything did medically check out, i thought that i would mention that what you described sounds very similar to what my panic attacks feel like. Just thought i'd mention it, because often the discomfort and pain scares me and keeps it going longer. When i acknowledge the panic attack and breathe through it, they are more short lived (usually). I never feel stressed or sad when the attacks come either per say, usually i am relaxing and it's like a physical response that is so intense that i get scared and kind of start to panic that i am dying. Everyones panic attacks are different. Considering everything that you have been put through, it wouldn't surprise me if you had one. Especially if you were acclimating back to life without Gail around.
Anyways, i'm not doctor. But i had physical "heart attacks" from the time i was about 6 years old on (mom died when i was 6)... my Dad would rush me to the hospital and doctors always told my Dad not to worry, that everything seemed fine until one day i had "an attack" in front of my friends, i told them that the pain was so intense that i might pass out and someone said "I think you are having a panic attack." I didn't believe them because i didn't feel panicked or stressed. But as the years have gone on, i have definitely noticed that they occur more often when i am going through something heavy. But drugs, even the anti-cancer kind can effect how you deal with stress, especially physically.
I'll stop typing about it now because i'm not sure you want to even read all of this, lol.
But you are going to look GORGEOUS at the wedding. I love your dress and i can't wait to see you in it. I hope it all works out. I really hope your doctor will talk the insurance company into the PET scan. It's insane that people you have never met in some company will be making such decisions about your life, hopefully they take the doctor's advice into serious consideration.
Love you sissy!!
So happy that your heart and blood look healthy!!
ReplyDeleteI can't believe your brother's getting married. I think I keep thinking of everyone's brothers as being their "little" brothers, even though they aren't so little anymore! Wishing him and his wife-to-be all the love and happiness in the world!
Keeping you in my thoughts and prayers. Can't wait until you get to use this French in practice - hopefully in France or somewhere else cool!