Jay Lake: Writer

[cancer] Chemotherapy, wrap up on day one of session one

So, after multiple posts in the course of the day, a wrap up on the first infusion session. (Chemo is not over til Sunday afternoon, when and remove my takehome infusion pump.) Much of my confusion and mental wooziness has cleared, though I continue physically very flattened out.

When we first arrived and my needle was set in my chest port, the Nurse Practitioner trained and in how to unhook the pump, cleanse the port (saline and heparin injections) and then extract the needle. That was interesting.

Day was far less upsetting and disruptive than I expected. The last couple of hours were rather a journey into a mental fog, coupled with a sharp drop in my physical well-being. Mostly, though, it was boring; or would have been except for the presence of my loved ones and family. And the spoons.

More spoons came with , collected from friends and family. Combined with the ones presented by , there must be forty or fifty. You guys are so awesome. That was hilariously funny. And some of the notes were quite touching. I have family heirlooms, historical and antique spoons, medically significant spoons, deeply humorous spoons. I’m still too stoned on chemo to do any kind of a job of thanking people by name, but I will try tomorrow if I can.

After we left, we swung by the pharmacy to pick up my prescriptions. Trouble ensued, as TV Guide likes to say. Only the first of my five or six scrips from the chemo team had gone through. Multiple phone calls later, and some serious Heroism of the Revolution on the part of my pharmacist, and I headed home with a sack full of brightly colored pills.

Home now, we have a fridge full of food most generously delivered this week by and . I will be on a very slow dose of 5FU until Sunday afternoon, so I am expecting to lay quite low these next two days, and be massively unproductive. It’s like a vacation, except for confusion and nausea! Ok, it’s like a drunken vacation! (I had one of those in New Orleans when I was in college.)

For now, I am going to mellow my way through the evening with and . Enjoy yours. I’ll update tomorrow as energy and health permit.

Tags: Calendula, Cancer, family, Food, health, Personal

Posted: 5:25 pm Fri January 08 2010 |

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• Jan

  January 8th, 2010 at 8:10 pm

  Jay you are a trooper. I also have to say you are so lucky to have such wonderful people in your life who love you and take such good care of you.

  When my Mum was going through, some of what you are, for breast cancer I took care of her for the 2 1/2 years on my own. Family arrived the last 3 days she was alive. I am also just 9 months out of cancer surgery and so far so good on the ’5 year plan’. (TMI)

  I know you are not in your ‘prime’, and may not feel like it right now, but rejoice in the love around you – it helps in the whole process, and I send big hugs to those who are helping you. How wonderful.

  I will have to send you a spoon from Canada – address?

  Jan

  Reply

  • Jay

    January 9th, 2010 at 11:58 am

    Thank you! See here for spoon info and address:

    http://www.jlake.com/2010/01/09/cancer-a-note-on-spoons/

    Reply

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