Been a while since I've posted a blog, sorry about that. As for general updates, last Wednesday I had chemo, which was the fastest round I've ever had (shout out to the HFM pharmacy for bringing me drugs two at a time). My grandma on my mom's side was able to come up and spend that time with me, which was really nice!
And the cancer center told me that they have a fund which sends families on mini trips, out to special restaurants, and fun stuff like that, so this fall I will be going to see Wicked again in Milwaukee! (For those of you who know me well, yes, this will be the fourth time).
The weekend before treatment I was able to spend time in Chicago at the Interfaith Youth Core learning valuable skills I will use in my internship this fall at the peace and justice center. I got to see more of my dad's side there and have a great dinner especially with my grandma! If you are ever in Chicago, check out
Cafe Ba-Ba-Reeba. The manager was so wonderful. My grandma didn't think we would be able to get a table, but she called and explained that I had been there once before when I was three with her and my parents, and now I was sick, and asked if they could do anything. Julie, the manager, made sure we got a table in back (away from the crowds), came out twice to check up on us, and gave us three desserts (it's a tapas place so they were small, but so delicious), on the house. She just asked us to pay it forward :) Eat here if you can and support such wonderful people!
These past two weeks have been a whirlwind of fun, but they've also taken a lot out of me. Chemo treatments definitely build as they go on, and this last one was pretty hard. I think for me, the first three were like "yeah, man! Gonna go get the treatment and it'll be better and we can all go home and get on with our lives. Whoopee!" Not so, my friend. I know in my head that I'm making progress, but when a minimum of eight more treatments are stretching out in front of you, and you've already done four, it's a lot to take in. I think the emotional effects of cancer are going to start being more pronounced, which is why once I get back to school (11 days!) I'm going to start visiting a counselor. I think it'll be really helpful to get an outsider's perspective on what's going on and hopefully take home some valuable tips/advice on how to deal with the stress and anxiety.
(Sometimes chemo makes me mad like this^)
Wow. Already a short novel. On to the new side effect. Around Saturday I started to get a weird taste in my mouth, almost metallic-y. My tongue was swollen, and as the days went by my mouth just felt itchy. After I would eat something, it was as if I had a bunch of small cuts on the inside of my mouth and bit into a lemon. So these past couple days I've been experimenting with foods, seeing what I still like and what's tabled for now. Tomatoes and anything acidic are out for the time being. Beef stroganoff, sandwiches with little flavor, and creamy soup are in. So if you have any really bland recipes, shoot them my way :) Really hoping this a short term side effect!
The side effect I forget about every single time: the muscle aches. Every Monday after chemo like clockwork, my back and shoulders try to force me to believe that I just worked my heart out at the gym. Confused, I wonder to myself, "but I don't exercise...." It's the steroids. After I stop taking Preganzone on Saturday, my body begins to put itself back together like a body builder's. This makes sleeping and just general comfort hard to come by. But for some reason, I'm always surprised when it happens again.
Oh! And my hair has been thinning! Most of it is still holding strong to my scalp like a champ, but seems like with each treatment more decides to thin out. I've noticed it mostly when showering, but this morning woke up to a nice amount on my pillow. We'll see if this is where it plateaus out or if I'll be rocking the bald is beautiful this fall.
Current symptoms, side effects, and complaints: hair thinning, sore shoulders, weird tongue/mouth thing, little nausea (but not so bad this time)
