Pink Ribbons Post - Laughter the Best Medicine

Pink Ribbons is a feature series I have started that is posted every Wed.  I am a Pink Ribbon Warrior, having gone through the chemo, surgery, radiation, the year of waiting and recently stage 2 reconstruction...which I find is really the first of many little surgeries.  I am at a place in my life where I am willing to open my journal from that time and share with you my anger, fears, challenges and pain of finding out you have cancer.  At the end of the post, you will find the links of the previous posts from the most recent first and going back.  These are not current events.  This is me sharing with you from the other side of breast cancer. 

8/8/2010  

Yesterday was odd. I felt like I'd crashed into a wall. I was sick to my stomach and just felt like that iron weights thing. KJ wound up parking me in a chair and finishing the shopping. Pretty certain there won't be chemo this week but bought foods for it anyway. I broke down and bought him cereals, soups and fish sticks. I plan to cook and freeze meal plates this week too.  It was probably just the emotional weight of everything we have had to deal with.  The physical demand to keep coping with stress weighs you down.  Some lady stopped and asked if I was okay.  I was wiped out, but either she was an exceptionally compassionate person or I REALLY looked bad.

I have to take a chemo class and have surgery to put in the portacath. I'm sure it’s an outpatient thing. There was a amusing moment in reading about the portacath. The surgeon Dr. Etters wants me to mark where my bra straps sit and where the car seat crosses. So marking for the bra is easy. While I'm dressing, I just do it. But I was like...ummmm how do I mark where the seat belt goes on the day of surgery? The only option is to sit in the car without a shirt and do it. But I can just see all the gossip from the neighbors. lol  

Meanwhile, Robin said I had to take a test over my chemo before I started.  So I have the handouts about symptoms from Dr. Joe.  I guess I better start studying.

I rested yesterday afternoon and KJ grilled some Tbones. KC Strips were on sale but the store was out. So they subbed tbones. Then we I decided we needed an ice cream to finish the day. KJ tells me "okay I'll take you but you have to go in for it." I popped off..."oh nice. Send in the lady with cancer!" 

We both broke up laughing. It was the first time we laughed about cancer. I still went in.

During the night I was ill first with low blood sugar but then later with a diarrhea that wouldn't stop. I don't know if I was ill with a virus, food reaction or it was because of the metformin. The met does that at first and I had to stop taking it last week after the CT tests. I started it again last night, as well as my new dose of Byetta. So this morning was not fun. I took medicine for the trots but the nausea from the byetta has lingered. I'm snacking on saltines even now. I told KJ that it does concern me if THIS med makes me this nauseous, I'm worried about chemo.

But the nurse assures me they will manage those symptoms.

Fighting cancer is easier with good Laughter medicine