1/30 Day +7

Tomorrow will mark 2 weeks on 8NE. Overall things are going well, although there has been some low points that come along with 5 days of chemo and no immune system.  It has been helpful to know what to expect, this being the 2nd time around. Many things are the same: the 7am nurse shift change, a mid-morning visit from the PA, a call down for protein-rich breakfast (2 eggs, blueberry greek yogurt, cottage cheese, sliced peaches), a late-morning visit from the doctor and PA.  Then it transitions into slow afternoons, trying to walk some laps, some tv, some visitors, and an annoying night of being woken-up 3-8 times for vitals and blood products.

Some things are different though. This time around my biggest complaint is my feet. They are swollen and angry and at times hurt like hell. The biggest source of anger comes from a side-effect of my immunosuppresant, Cyclosporine.  Although the pill form doesn’t cause the hands, feet, and face to get hot, the IV formulation does. Weird, I don’t understand it, but I have to take the IV form in the beginning because it’s the only way they can be sure I’m absorbing all the medicine (it’s an important one).  In a week or so hopefully I can switch to oral cyclosporine. Besides the discomfort, the feet swelling make walking laps harder and distracting when I’m trying to sleep.


Overall it’s about what I expected, things should continue to get better as I get further away from the chemo conditioning.  Now just waiting for engraftment, dreaming of summer, dreaming of fun with Alpen and Breezy, dreaming of all the ways I’m going to take advantage of life in the next year, dreaming of watching my native pollinator garden bloom this spring. It’s been two weeks, so things do move kinda fast when it’s one day at a time and nothing too exciting is going down.  I hope everyone is living to fullest on the outside and 2020 is off to a good start.


2nd day in my hosp room, when I still had an appetite

My Cord Stem Cells!!!! Unknown donor but a female cord from the USA. Infused in 25 minutes.

   My Green Mask used for precision radiation to the face. Hopefully never see again