I start chemo on Wednesday. I guess Im a little scared, more like apprehensive, simply because I dont know what to expect. Ive been told and read about all the potential side effects...but everyone responds differently. I can only hope that because Im such a medical miracle, Ill mostly breeze right through it. Theres so much to know and prepare. For instance: Mouth sores, my local pharmacist was able to recommend a good mouth rinse to contend with that. And take extra care with dental hygiene. I had to buy new make up: old make up has bacteria on it and chemo kills your immune system, increasing your chance for bacterial infections. The American Cancer Society offers free make up and a class called Look good, feel better. Ill be attending on Oct 20 in my town. This is designed to help you cover up how ghastly you may look during chemo. No dental procedures, piercings, tattoos: again, infection risk. Free wigs: Im getting fitted for one today, just in case I feel like wearing one. I let Koz pick the color, so Im going red. Medical alert bracelet: so nobody takes my blood pressure or draws blood from my left arm again. Having my lymph nodes removed from that side puts me at risk for lymphadema, a swelling of my left arm that would never go away. Well, the list goes on a bit, but you get the idea. I found out some of this stuff on my own. Then if I have questions or want to verify, I double check with my medical team. Last week I called a VA Dietician to get the straight scoop on some nutritional concerns I had because there is just way too much info out there on that for me to sort out, Turns out, its really pretty simple. My oncologist told me at our first meeting, No crazy diets. No dieting of any kind! No worries. That became a non-issue for me as soon as I got my diagnosis! Im just going to keep breathing in and out everyday and hope for the best.
Posted on: Sat, 20 Sep 2014 14:46:15 +0000
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