Wonderful Friends - THE MOVIE

For your viewing pleasure

Click on this two minute video of the day 14 of my Massachusetts friends got together to create a beautiful quilt for me which in their words is to "cover you or wrap around your shoulders during treatments to represent the friends who want to wrap you in their love."

Careful - it's a tear jerker....

Treatment Update

First treatment with port access today. Last week access was left in after insertion, so I wasn't sure what accessing the port would actually be like until today. I must say, it made everything so much easier. Just a quick prick and slight burn with the administration of Lidocaine for numbing and then insertion of the needle which I didn't even feel. A quick 10 minute process with no anxiety, no pain and no boo boo's! I must admit, never in my wildest dreams did I think I'd be singing the praises of having an "implanted vascular access device." I received my half hour dose of targetted therapy with no problems and was off on my way to the best medicine of the day - meeting my friends Becky and Cindy downtown for lunch.

I did experience a chemotherapy patients worst nightmare today - a windy day. I haven't really been covering my head much unless it's cold, but today since I was going out to lunch I decided to wear a hat - cute little newsboy number - and, yes, it blew off my head. After that I just gave up and went without cover - sometimes it just doesn't seem worth it to worry about it. Like I said to nurse Deb when she was worried that my bandage might show and I was heading out to lunch - it is what it is.

Feelin' Fine

So it's the 5th day since my last Chemotherapy treatment and I'm feeling quite well. On Sunday and part of yesterday, I did have pretty much a "maybe its better if I just lie down" kind of a day, but nothing really bad. I've been able to continue to walk either on the treadmill or outside for at least 1/2 hour every day and I've been able to continue to eat healthy meals. The first couple mornings I switched over to Carnation Instant Breakfast, but this morning had no problem with the pancakes and bacon we had to celebrate my mother's 87th birthday.

I've learned that one key to a successful morning is slowing the process of getting up (although I'm not sure that's possible for me - an expert snooze alarm manipulator). I've found waking up and having a few crackers and something to drink and waiting for 20 - 30 minutes diminishes the chances of long-term upset stomach, which is probably something all of you who have faced morning sickness already knew - but it's news to me. Also, a friend of mine gave me some great ginger chews which have proved to be quite helpful for settling my stomach - especially after eating. I'm working hard to continue to eat right, exercise daily and get enough rest so that the incredible machine we call a human body, aided by some pretty cool science, can do its thing and ensure I have a long and healthy life.

If you have any tips or tricks for getting through chemotherapy, or even just run of the mill stomach ailments, please feel free to share those in the comments section. THANKS!

Wonderful Friends

13 years ago, in the spring of 1995, I took the classified ad I had cut out of the paper and carried around with me for months out of my wallet and picked up the phone. A very warm and caring woman answered on the other end and changed my life! No, I wasn't calling a rehab - I was calling the Suburban Adventure Club (SAC) in Massachusetts. I told her of my circumstances and that I wasn't looking for a dating club, but wanted to take my life in a new direction. In her turn, she convinced me not only to give the club a try, but to go away for a weekend in Martha's Vineyard with a group of complete strangers. Believe it or not, I agreed. Those strangers, some I met that very first weekend, and others I met over the next months and years, have turned into some of the most important people in my life ( I did eventually meet my husband through the club). I can honestly say that without the lifeline of these friends, those first days and weeks of my diagnosis and surgeries would have been a completely different experience. Cards, letters, emails and gifts came pouring across the border to brighten my days and help me remember there were people out there who cared about me.

Then, a few weeks ago, a gift that cannot adequately be described in words arrived (see photo). They had a quilting day and made me a beautiful quilt which will allow me to wrap myself in their love and caring, not only as I continue through my treatment, but for the rest of my life. There have been very few times when I have cried through this process, mostly when I'm tired, but when I opened the package and realized the extent of what I was holding in my hands, I could not stop the tears (as I cannot stop them now as I write this). You may have noticed my new quilt in the Chemotherapy #2 treatment photos from last week, and you can be sure that you will see it in all the remaining treatment sessions.

Support is such an important part of cancer treatment. There are as many ways to support a cancer patient as there are patients that need that support. Just take a minute to think through what the person you know needs most – sometimes it’s a dinner or a ride and sometimes it’s just to be treated like a person without cancer and then a lot of the time, it’s just to let them know you love and care about them. And, as my friends have shown, there is the completely unexpected, and forever treasured.