It has been 14 days since my first
chemo. I am happy to report that
overall, the side effects haven’t been too bad (knock on wood!). I had an unsettled tummy and felt
more tired than usual, but still managed to get in my daily walks (although one
was only around the block!). We are
crossing fingers that I do as well with chemo 2 – which is on April 14th. Some good news – I now have an oncologist at
the Santa Barbara Cancer Center – Dr. Kass.
This means that my second chemo will take place in Santa Barbara – which
should make life much easier! The drive
to LA through Malibu is pretty, but it is a bit of a mission to drive down (2
hours) for 5 hours of chemo, and then stay the night so that I can get my neulasta shot the next day and
then drive back to SB. So hooray, I am
now set up for chemo in SB and will next go to UCLA for an MRI after chemo 3 in
mid- May to see if the chemo has shrunk my
tumors (think shrinking thoughts for me!).
The SB Cancer Center is a fantastically supportive environment –
offering yoga, meditation and lots of classes along with various support groups. They have a very
holistic approach which is wonderful.
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| Green juice cocktail hour! |
My mom and dad came in from Arizona just
before Chris headed back to London on March 28th. They have been taking very good care of
me. My mom is a real trooper. I drag her along on
my walks, take her to yoga classes at the Cancer Center, and have now trained
her to know the difference between organic (certified) and no
spray/pesticides. I think that before
long she will have good friends at the farmers market (those of you who know my
mom won’t be surprised by this, she makes new friends in line at the grocery store)!
Everyone continues to be supportive! My dad in Thailand and my little brothers (in
Washington and Oregon – we are a spread out bunch) have said that they will all
shave their heads when I lose my hair – and my dad assures me that bald is
beautiful (OK, he already shaves his head, but I have to say it does look
pretty darn good on him so I am hoping I will take after him)! My grandma who has the greenest
thumb I have ever seen has been sending me flowers which is a real treat (as
were the flowers I received from my University of California colleagues and
friends in London).
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| With Regina and Mom - pre-haircut! |
My big news is that I have preemptively cut
my hair off (ha, take that cancer)! I
went to see Terri at the Luce Salon in Santa Barbara and she did an amazing
job. She cuts my friends' (Debbie and Regina's) hair and she was kind enough to squeeze my mom and me in for our cuts. Regina even joined us for the fun and Teresa joined us after to celebrate with a cup of tea! My hair is being given to Locks of Love, an organization that makes wigs for children. Would you believe that I actually like my hair short?! Who knew?? It is a good reminder that we shouldn't be afraid to try new things. The last time I had it this
short I was probably 8 years old! Next,
I go in to get some bangs cut (fringe for my UK friends) to test out short hair
cut number 2 - before it all starts to fall out…
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| Going, gone! |
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| Going... |
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| With Teresa and my new hair! |
I am still doing my best to stick to the
healthy diet – but as the nutritionist told me – there is your diet during
cancer treatment and there is your diet after treatment. So, long story short, I have
reintroduced some bread and pasta into my diet.
In part this is to ensure that I don’t lose weight, but also to help
with my energy levels – especially when I am in the first 1-2 weeks after a
chemo session and I am feeling rather fatigued. However, I am still off of sweets, refined
sugar, caffeine, diary products and alcohol. I can report that the winning green juice combo at this point is:
Kale
Spinach
Cucumber
Parsley
Ginger
Apple
Lemon
The lemon and apple are key! Chris can also make a mean almond milk,
almond butter, vanilla smoothie!
Thanks to everyone for your messages, cards
and thoughtfulness – it all lifts my spirits and helps me stay strong!
Stay tuned for a recap of my visit to the
Santa Barbara wig shop…my visit with a reiki specialist and my appointment with
Dr. Henry Han a respected Dr. of Chinese medicine here in SB…all coming soon…
I will leave you with a quote from my new
(thank you Sara Jerome!) book of Dolly wisdom:
"Someone once asked me, 'how long does it take to do your hair?' I said I don't know I am never there."
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| Thank you UC London Friends! |
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| My "Oceans of Love" quilt | made by Carolyn! |
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