I'm slowly getting back my strength from treatment. I think everything just hit me all at once. My upper respiratory infection knocked the stuffing out of me along with my RA flare. At the same time I was trying to recover from radiation. I'm so envious of the women that can just breeze through these treatments. Let me tell you, there are many of them. Such strong woman in my view - I feel like such a wimp.
I had an appointment with my MO this past week. He said my
cognitive issues are caused by chemo brain. He said it can take up to two years
to get better. He also said older women sometimes don't recover fully from
chemo brain. He said reading can help restore some of the problems.
Unfortunately, after my bout with Necrotizing Fasciitis, the multiple pain
killers I was on really messed up my concentration, and I haven't been able to
read. Staying focused has really been a problem. I'm going to give it a try
though and see if it helps.
My MUGA scan results turned out well. All my blood work was
good except for my lymphocytes which were low. I haven't received any panicked
calls, so I'm guessing they weren't too concerned. My cough is still with me,
and keeping me awake at night. I am also experiencing swollen glands. He put me
on an antibiotic, so I'm hoping it finally kicks the URI to the curb. He also
ordered a chest x-ray. I haven't gotten the results of that yet. Of course
every new symptom I experience, I think it's progression of my cancer. I guess
that's normal from what I'm told.
My hair is growing, SLOWLY. I've got full coverage, but it
doesn't seem to get any longer. I stopped wearing my wig, but I typically wear
a baseball hat. I had it colored for the first time last week. Unfortunately it
pulled a ton of red, so I look ridiculous. I should get a pretty good
indication of how quickly my hair is growing. Before treatment my gray would
start to show within four weeks of having it colored.
I think my depression is improving. I've decided not to put
too much pressure on myself to return to my daily activities. I'm just taking
it one day at a time. I haven't posted much because I feel like my attitude has
been crappy. That's another reason why I haven't been too social. I guess
that's normal from what I've read. I was offered anti depressants, but I feel
like I should give it a little more time. I don't really want to add to my
daily drug intake. It's odd that I didn't experience depression when I was
recovering from NF. I had so many obstacles to overcome during that time -
especially with all of the surgeries. I guess they kept me drugged up most of
the time, so I didn't know the difference. My MO said depression is common due
to all the chemical changes to your body - I guess that makes sense. I feel
guilty about being depressed when there are so many more women facing worse
obstacles with awesome attitudes.
That's about all. I have nothing fun to report because I
really haven't left the house. Once I'm feeling better, I will work on all the
weight I've gained from treatment. That's another reason I haven't left the
house - none of my clothes fit. The only thing that fits me are sweats - I
refuse to buy bigger clothes. Hope you are all doing well. Thanks for checking
on me. I'm sure I will be back to my old self before you know it.
Cheers,
Beppy
