Last of the Chemo !

Friday, June 1st was my 6th and final Chemo. From previous experiences, I know that I will start Monday with the side effects of roving pains and diminishing energy levels. I have found that starting the day with a boiled egg gives me enough energy to go visiting for a few hours. I usually get a bitter taste in my mouth and the things that have always tasted good---don't taste good anymore, e.g. cinnamon rolls, ham loaf, hamburgers, pizza, toast and jam, etc. I eat romaine lettuce with paul newman olive oil dressing and pickled beets and parmesan cheese. I have soup and I eat baby food: turkey and rice, sweet potatoes and oatmeal and fruit.
As for liquids, I used to drink Sunny Delight because it was the only orange juice that didn't give me acid indigestion. But, I found that it contained the artificial sweetner, sucralose, so I stopped buying it. I stopped buying fruit juices because half the time they contained sucralose or else they were from concentrate and had a lot of artificial flavoring and colors and preservatives. I stopped drinking Gatorade because they began adding sucralose ! I used to buy an occasional 5-hour energy drink but, they too, added sucralose! Bummer !
I bought Grapefruit juice because it was all natural and NOT from concentrate. It used to be very tart and bitter, but I discovered that because of the change in my taste buds, that it actually tasted sweet and full and I actually could feel it nourishing my body ! And, I discovered SOBE Lifewater which comes in a lot of flavors and has a variety of herbs and vitamins. I like yumberry and dragon berry and ginseng. This is a good value and good nutrition and tastes great. It works for me !
I also discovered that if I drank bottled water it would go down into my lungs on the 3rd sip ! But, I can drink a carbonated drink or one of the above drinks (grapefruit, SOBE) and they don't go down the "wrong pipe". Drinking the occasional Dr. Pepper or Coke or ginger ale, etc., tasted great and went down happy and smooth ! Screw you, Mayor Bloombird and your addled, megalomanical ideas on what people should be eating and drinking---your thought process is as twisted as Caligula's...
And, a Vitamin D supplement, I took on numerous advice(s), kept me from getting a cold or infection.
I also took a Vitamin E supplement in the form of Fish Oil.
I am on a regimen of pain killers and had to watch out for constipation. Louis Armstrong used to promote Swiss Kriss (I found this via my brother) and it works great ! I shared it with several deserving friends and they thanked me profusely...because it worked great for them as nothing else compared!
I experienced some apprehension as I readied myself for my last Chemo (I know, this segue is skewed). It is because of the waning of energy the days before a Chemo. 3 weeks from now, when I no longer have treatments and my energy begins to fade...well, what will happen? And, the joint pains and worries about finances and work and life, etc. Will they become magnified?
But, I faced the day and thanks to the new tie that my good friend, Susan F (nee E) made for me, I set out for the regimen. Thanks also to Donna for the ride to the treatment. And, thanks also to my dear wife for coming to take me home afterward.

The staff at the hospital, where I take my medicine, are excellent and are very professional and happy. I need to remind myself to do something special for them (along with finding the means to pay their bills !).
I, of course, slept through the treatment. It started at 8am, and although it usually lasts until 4pm, this time it was over by 230pm. I awoke at 1pm and the nurse was changing my med. Then I went back to sleep and re-awoke at 215pm and she said I was finished !
After I got out of bed and put on my shoes and gathered my belongings, I made sure the two nurses had clown noses and stickers and chocolate candy. Then I asked one of the nurses to hold my video camera and film me as I tested my motor skills. I tried to juggle some clown noses. As jugglers are well aware, lightweight objects don't juggle well. But, I tried anyway and met with no success. I did find, however, that I could bend down to pick up the noses without getting dizzy. Then I tried throwing my hat in the air in hopes that it would return to the top of my head. I am want to do that from time to time. It is a great crowd pleaser---no matter the outcome, because it is a ClownThing ! Reviewing the video, I see that it worked far better than I thought it would!
I have learned from these Chemo treatments that if you have good and varied support groups. If you have a good Spiritual foundation or maniacal philosophy (I have the Spiritual foundation, thankyou). And, if you have a dedicated and experienced and positive Medical Team. And, you maintain a positive and uplifting attitude. If you carry a Smile with you and share it Whole-heartedly. If you make sure to engage in moderate exercise: short 100 yard walks, Tai chi, stretches, yoga breathing-responses, etc.; and, the use of Eucalyptus Spearmint body lotion for joint pain and aromatherapy. And, if you begin to experience Chemo-brain (very real)--then, decide that the only priority is not remembering things but just going forward and seizing the day (carping the diem). If you decide that life is for living! Having a fatalistic attitude is counter-poductive! Dream your dreams and forget about your problems. Don't focus on "fighting" but rather, use this health set-back as a learning experience. Put on a smile-- learn all about yourself and others. Don't draw-up a bucket list. Every move you make from now on is a bucket list. As you wake every morning, know that everything you experience during the day is special and inspiring and educational and take advantage of that ! In other words, as you witness the Sun rise in the morning, don't say to yourself, "This could be my last..."  Instead, say to yourself, "That Sun-rising is really beautiful...I should go visit someone and tell them about it !"  Then, get moving. You never know what Life has in store for you unless you let it show it to you and then share it with others !

Life is Good...Life is an Adventure !

Here is how I left my last Chemo:

                      short video:                   The Off-duty Clown Returns !

So far So good

Since my first Chemo, I only had 3 days of uncomfortableness...it was flu-like symptoms and pain...the pain was like a battlefield. It was as if the medicine was roaming throughout my body and finding cells and body parts that it didn't like. My knees felt as if I had bumped them on something hard, my ribs felt broken and repaired one by one, my shoulder and neck felt stabbed, my left ear felt as if it was being pulled away from my head, my fingers and toes felt tingling then numb...on and on. All of these incidents acted in concert and would last for a few seconds to a few minutes. I still managed to take daily walks even though it was cold outside.
That all happened about 5 days after my treatment. Since then I have felt fairly well. I have the neck and shoulder pain and ache but it subsides after I take my pain medication. My appetite is still voracious and sometimes I eat too much. The pain medication causes extreme constipation and the major laxatives and stool softeners were not helpful. However, my brother told me about Louis "Satchmo" Armstrong's cure-all for this: Swiss Kriss. This product is all natural and is surely a blessing ! It is available at Walgreen's and I sing its praises!
I don't like taking pain medication, but it is vital, it seems. It only lasts about 3 hours and the dosage is supposedly 1 every 6 hours. I try to manage it at 1 every 4 hours. I try to go longer, although everyone says you need to stay on top of it, steady. But, I still am trying to see if I can go every 4 hours and sometimes space it as far as 8 hours.
I try to walk for 20-30 minutes at least once a day and sometimes twice. I also try to visit friends everyday. The main thing that I want to do is accomplish something constructive everyday. I make a list of things to do and try to do as much as I can. But, just doing trivial tasks, i.e. mailing a card and some forms, practicing some clown ideas, reading scripture and magazines, running errands...just trying to accomplish things I spend maybe two or three hours and then I am all in. I don't know if I am tired or if the medication messes with me or it my motivation wanes. I wish that I could get up and go through a normal 8 hours of activity.
Some of this may be related to my sleeping habits. I am still sleeping in an over-sized recliner (about the size as a twin bed) with a lot of pillows. The few time that I tried to lay down in a bed it hurt my neck so bad that I have been afraid to attempt it again...although I am going to try again very soon.
So, it seems that the side actions from my chemo have been not bad so far. I see the Dr. in a day or so and will find when my next round will be...and, then I will see how I fare with that.
Life is good...Life is an adventure...and, I just got 4 rolls of clown stickers in the mail and am anxious to go do some clowning...