Saturday, October 1, 2011

How am I doing?

I have been gently prodded to update my blog. Thank you, Grace for checking in on me! I will agree, it is a bit overdue.

So here's the latest... I am the Energizer Bunny!

Last weekend I had so much energy, it was insane. I completely took apart our home theater system and re-assembled all the components on the opposite side of our family room. I have been wanting to do this for ages because our current surround sound system just wasn't working well (crackling speakers, poor sound quality and a programmable remote control that required a Ph.D. to operate). I also bought a Roku and got our TV connected to the internet. So now our sound system issues are completely fixed, our cable signal is stronger, we are streaming TV and movies from our Netflix account and listening to Pandora. And I did it myself. Yay!

And that's not all... I also cooked several meals with lots of leftovers for the week, decorated my house for Fall and ran a bunch of errands. My husband was a little concerned and told me to slow down and conserve my energy for the coming week. He was probably right but I just couldn't stop.

Feeling like the Energizer Bunny is great, but I am also feeling like a puffer fish.


My weight is continuing to creep up and my ankles are nearly non-existent. When I look at pictures of myself, my face is round and bloated. Elastic waist pants are my new best friends. Ugh.

I looked up the side effects of my chemo drugs online. The taxotere seems to be the culprit. One of its main side effects is water retention and bloating, particularly in the abdomen, which is where I am experiencing it the most. When I see my oncologist on Wednesday, I am going to ask her if she can prescribe a diuretic or if I can take something over the counter. If not, I guess I will just have to suffer through this until I finish my chemo in December.

By the way, I go in for Round 3 on Wednesday, October 5th which is the HALFWAY point for me! I know I will be pretty tired a few days later but believe me, I will be having a small celebration of making it to this point.

As for this weekend, I am feeling very good (albeit puffy) and plan to make a few meals ahead of my chemo and have them stocked in my fridge and freezer. I didn't do this the last time and it was a mistake. This time I will make sure I am more prepared.

The weather has really turned and we are experiencing some lovely, cool autumn temperatures. I went to Lowe's last night and picked out all my autumn flowers. I need to stop here so I can get outside and do some gardening.

All for now!

4 comments:

  1. I hope you are drinking tons of water! I think it helps with any water retention - it's counter-intuitive but it works. I drink 64 oz of water on chemo days. You are probably getting decadron too and that could be doing it.

    Glad you have energy!

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  2. I agree with Ann about the water, although I admit I've never been the best at practicing what I preach. Congrats on reaching that half-way mark this week. Good luck with the rest of everything... My best!

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  3. So true about staying well-hydrated. I need to keep reminding myself to drink more water.

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  4. Sending love from CA. I know you know this, but it's what's on the inside that counts. Have you ever seen "Shallow Hal?" If not, watch it. If so, rewatch it.

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