Side Effects (?)

Ten Days After Chemo #1
The mood of the last week and a half has been mostly "wait and see," as I assess what the effects of chemo are to this point. No new developments as far as doctor visits or test results, so it appears things are settling down a bit (a good thing). So, WARNING, this entry could be a little boring as I can't think of anything terribly witty to say.


For the first few days after the treatment, I felt a little queasy. Just slightly -- as though if I weren't looking for it, I might have felt fine. I have a prescription for nausea, but quickly discovered that taking it caused a whole new concern...one that would require a steady stream of stool softeners or perhaps some Miralax. Decided I'd rather be a little nauseous and save the drugs for if/when it gets really bad. As the week wore on, the queasiness subsided and I felt more normal than anything else.


Today is day #10, and there are a few newer developments. First, mouth sores. More specifically, just one so far but it's in a terrible place -- inside my lower lip, down in the crease. Second, headaches. This started a few nights ago, when I woke up at 12:30 AM with what was probably the worst headache of my life. I took two Tylenols and a flexeril (and repeated two or three times), but it raged on for the better part of two days. Phew, finally feeling better now. 


Yesterday morning, I noticed that one of my fingernails looks like it's pulling away from the nail bed. Not so unusual, but by the end of the day four or five nails looked like this. A little Googling didn't yield any link between this and my specific type of chemo, so I'll just have to keep my eyes and ears open until my next visit with the oncologist. On the bright side, this gave me an excuse to try out the press-on french manicure my friend Celia recommended, and it looks pretty good! (Photo below. Assuming I linked it correctly, click on it to see the product.) Thanks Celia!

Broadway Nails Press-On Manicure!

Last but not least, looks like I'm at the very start of the shedding of my hair. Hubby likes the ceiling fan on at night, which sometimes is annoying because it blows my hair into my face. Usually I just brush it away and go back to sleep, but last night I became aware that both times this happened, I ended up with a few hairs in my hand. I've refrained from brushing today. I'm trying to keep my hair for just THREE MORE DAYS because my sister is coming to visit, and I promised her she could shave my head! We're going to try and have a little fun with it, and get some good pics. 


To summarize my experience with chemo thus far: even with headaches, mild queasiness, mouth sores, fingernail issues and *gulp* the HAIR, it has been not even close to as bad as I was afraid it would be. I've been warned that it gets worse, but I'm going to opt for an attitude of cautious optimism!