In-Person Chemo-Blogging Experiment: Mostly screwing around some here...in the infusion room as of this initial paragraph. Kind of wanted to see if I could post from my iPod (yes, it's possible, but it's frustrating partially because the screen is so small...too many buttons wrongly pushed). So, the rest of this post will be from home.

Home as of 2:00 PM-ish with the pump. I woke up much too early this morning so that might be a factor in why the drugs seem to be hitting me a little harder than last time. I don't receive Benadryl as a "coping" drug with this particular regimen, but I still get the steroid and the anti-nausea drug, the latter of which isn't kicking in as hard as I'd like this time. Blech. I eventually broke down and asked for some Lorazepam from the center's pharmacy (yes, I said I was trying not to limit drugs in my last post); popped one while in their elevator as I was making my way out. Helped after awhile, but getting home and having something to eat has helped more.

Oddly enough, I don't feel the steroid at all right now. My BP and heart rate were low for me when a nurse checked (pulse was 48, which struck me as very weird).

Sometimes I toy with the idea of having someone stop by for a short visit while I'm receiving treatment, but I have mixed feelings about having friends and family visiting the center. The atmosphere in the infusion room can range from jovial to stoic to blasé to sobering; sometimes you get the entire spectrum in one day. No, I don't consider myself remotely immune, either; two mildly disconcerting events from the last two days stick in my mind. Yesterday, during my doctor's appointment, I saw a man with no fingernails (well, he had one left, apparently...nine of his fingers were covered with multiple band-aids); chemo seemed to have a generally rough effect on the rest of his appearance, too, but he was definitely in good spirits while talking with a fellow patient. As for today, I overheard a woman tell a friend that she's been on chemo for five years now; she was very matter-of-fact about it, as if it were no big deal. On the other end of the proverbial dial, you get people like me joking with the nurses and generally making asses of themselves (well, okay...making an ass out of myself; usually it's just me playing the fool). On balance, though, most patients seem quiet and keep to themselves. Different coping mechanisms for different people, you might say.

I did see Anime Guy this morning. He didn't have his fuzzy hood on, but was wearing the fuzzy tail.

I'd be remiss if I didn't thank a very special person for keeping me occupied this morning during my treatment...thanks so much, Barbara. You're the best.

 Going to take a nap now...back on Thursday when I get the pump off.

A little Wednesday morning update, just because: Had some moderate nausea last night which wasn't helped much by the Lorazepam. Ran out of pickled ginger, too, which might have been a helpful alternative. The bad feeling has mostly passed this morning, thankfully. Starting to flush a little, though, which beats a flip-flopping stomach any day, in my book.