The Morning After
Day 1 after Chemo has gone relatively smoothly for Victoria. She woke up feeling great this morning, no nausea or fatigue, pretty much a normal morning. The nice thing about the hospital that we are at as I believe I mentioned in an earlier post is that they do alternative treatment that compliments all the medical treatment that she will be going through. Alternative as in they have you meet with a naturopathic doctor, who can recommend different herbs, vitamins, and foods for you to eat while going through treatment, along with recommending massage therapy, acupuncture, physical therapy, and chiropractic care. All of which is available within the hospital.
This morning Victoria had an acupuncture appointment, which she seemed to enjoy. She had a red dot between her eyes where they stuck a needle when she came out. She said the appointment was pretty neat, at one point she thought she was done, raised her head and there were a ton of needles in her arm. If anything this alternative treatment will help her to relax and heal after the chemo, and I'm happy that we chose a place that offers this type of care.
Victoria did begin to feel a little nauseous around noon, so instead of going out to lunch we returned to the hospital where she received a Neulasta shot. The Neulasta shot is required 24 hours after chemo. Basically it forces your bone marrow into overdrive, so it can start producing more white blood cells. The downside about chemo is it kills good and bad cells to include your white blood cells, so it's important to get the white blood cell count up as quickly as possible after chemo to strengthen the immune system.
After the shot I drove Victoria home, we had to bypass Paradise Bakery and their wonderful cookies due to the nausea. Once we arrived home I quickly prepared one of my gourmet chicken breast sandwiches, which appears to be a cure for nausea (well maybe it's just the carbs and protein), but Victoria felt great afterwards. She decided to take a nap and has felt well for the rest of the day.
While napping I took a trip to the local Sprouts market to purchase some supplements and vitamins that were recommended by our naturopathic doctor and dietitian. My trip was successful and I found all the items I was looking for, even strange ones to me like Black Elderberry Syrup. Right now Victoria's pill regimen as I refer to it is 75% supplements/vitamins and 25% prescription medicines. We are willing to try anything to assist in beating this thing and I'm happy that she isn't on just a heavy prescription medicine diet.
I may not be a pharmacy tech, but after organizing the 15+ bottles of meds and supplements, building an excel spreadsheet for her regimen, and placing everything in 7 day, breakfast, lunch and dinner pill boxes I sure feel like one.
I'll wrap this one up. Victoria has the next few days to rest and recover......I'll keep you posted!
This morning Victoria had an acupuncture appointment, which she seemed to enjoy. She had a red dot between her eyes where they stuck a needle when she came out. She said the appointment was pretty neat, at one point she thought she was done, raised her head and there were a ton of needles in her arm. If anything this alternative treatment will help her to relax and heal after the chemo, and I'm happy that we chose a place that offers this type of care.
Victoria did begin to feel a little nauseous around noon, so instead of going out to lunch we returned to the hospital where she received a Neulasta shot. The Neulasta shot is required 24 hours after chemo. Basically it forces your bone marrow into overdrive, so it can start producing more white blood cells. The downside about chemo is it kills good and bad cells to include your white blood cells, so it's important to get the white blood cell count up as quickly as possible after chemo to strengthen the immune system.
After the shot I drove Victoria home, we had to bypass Paradise Bakery and their wonderful cookies due to the nausea. Once we arrived home I quickly prepared one of my gourmet chicken breast sandwiches, which appears to be a cure for nausea (well maybe it's just the carbs and protein), but Victoria felt great afterwards. She decided to take a nap and has felt well for the rest of the day.
While napping I took a trip to the local Sprouts market to purchase some supplements and vitamins that were recommended by our naturopathic doctor and dietitian. My trip was successful and I found all the items I was looking for, even strange ones to me like Black Elderberry Syrup. Right now Victoria's pill regimen as I refer to it is 75% supplements/vitamins and 25% prescription medicines. We are willing to try anything to assist in beating this thing and I'm happy that she isn't on just a heavy prescription medicine diet.
I may not be a pharmacy tech, but after organizing the 15+ bottles of meds and supplements, building an excel spreadsheet for her regimen, and placing everything in 7 day, breakfast, lunch and dinner pill boxes I sure feel like one.
I'll wrap this one up. Victoria has the next few days to rest and recover......I'll keep you posted!
So happy to hear day one went well! Jeff, V is so lucky to have such a dedicated, loving, and organized husband to support her during this fight! I'm sure you make her stronger everyday! Check amazon for supplements! You ca usuallly save a lot of money.
ReplyDeleteAh! Between the hospital, her doctors and her husband it sounds like Victoria is in great hands. I'm pretty sure if I ever needed medical treatment my husband would shut down, curl up in a fetal position and start rocking himself, LOL! Which is basically what he did all three times I was in labor ;) I'm sure that Victoria's family is greatly relieved to know that you and the doctors are taking such great care of her. BTW, Thanks for the clarification on the estrogen/breastfeeding thing too. I am a LLL Leader and discuss those types of things at great lengths but since I'm no longer breastfeeding myself, I often worry that I'm "out of the loop" and not keeping current. Glad to know that wasn't the case. We're all rooting for both of you! I'm not sure what that work/life/job situation is with you guys but if there's anything I can do for you from here in Italy, please don't hesitate to let me know.
ReplyDeleteI'm not sure if this is your "thing" or not but I'm passing it along anyway. I hope you can see this - this is my cousin, Alyssa: http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10151235284110262&set=a.10151231241775262.794679.583615261&type=1&theater (Victoria - she's the one I mentioned to you that was excited to be getting nipples for Christmas)
ReplyDeleteShe told me about a yahoo group called sistersinsurvivorship that is STRICTLY for young women with breast cancer. She says it is an AMAZING group of people and all very supportive of each other! People that REALLY understand what it means as a young woman to go through this. She also told me to feel free to pass her info on to you, in case if along the way you needs support from someone who has been there. You might be able to find her from the picture link posted above but otherwise her name is Alyssa Sparks and she's on FB. :) Ciao for now!
I am so very proud of both you, Jeff. Sometimes I still think of you as the twerpy 6 year old who always knew how to push my buttons, but you have grown up to be such a great man. I am really rooting for you guys and you've ALL been in our thoughts and prayers! We, as HUGE fans of alternative treatments are thrilled you've been provided info about supplements, etc. I hope it helps speed her healing. We're excited for the day when Victoria can call herself a cancer conqueror.
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