Chemo: Round One

Had my first round of chemo this week. After weeks of high anxiety around chemo and it's side effects, I'm really glad to have the first round behind me. It makes it all seem less scary.

I had the port put in the morning of the first infusion. That sucked majorly. My anesthesia didn't work so instead of sleeping through the procedure, I sobbed through it. It wasn't the pain - although I could feel tugging and pressure, I didn't feel the incisions. I could feel them snaking the catheter up into my artery which was very very creepy. The very worst part was that I wasn't asleep and I knew I was supposed to be asleep. It completely freaked me out and I started crying and couldn't stop. The doc got cross with me because I couldn't stay still (ever tried to stay perfectly still while trying to pull yourself back from the brink of hyperventilation?). Overall, a very bad experience.

Next stop: chemo suite. Not so bad. Don't know if that was cause I had the port experience for comparison or because I had my friend Susan sitting next to me the whole time knitting me a prayer shawl. How comforting that was; knowing she was there for me. Never go to chemo alone.

Side effects haven't been so bad either, except I'm very very tired. No nausea. Some dizziness and a lingering headache. Hoping the fatigue will lift a bit over the next few days.

Bottom line:  Except for the port issue, it's not been nearly as bad as I imagined it might be. No nausea at all, which was my worst fear. I can deal with the fatigue, though I know it will shortly get tiresome.

Get it? My fatigue will soon become tiresome. Smile!