Last month the Professor was away, so I saw his Registrar, who didn't know much about me and didn't really examine me. Today, it was the man himself. My appointment was at 9am. I had my usual list of grievances: fatigue, pain, runny nose, cough, and various body functions, lethargy, dry skin, etc, etc. He gave me a thorough examination and sent me off for a chest A-Ray.
Sure enough. I have a rib fracture on the other side from where I had a few before. OK, that explains the pain and pain. So, I went on the internet and came up with this very interesting explanation of a rib fracture. So this explains most of what I thought were side effects of the chemo. Maybe this Caelyx is not as bad as I thought. However, it can damage the bones, which lead to hairline fractures, so maybe it is. Now that I am aware, I am not going to focus on it anymore. Evidently the pain will go away after 6 weeks or so, so I am about half way through or more.
What else has been happening? Well, because of all these cancer treatment related things I have been less active in my social life. I am undable to go to functions at night, or if I do I need a ride and also need to sleep during the day to have enough energy. I can do one or maybe two things in the morning and early afternoon, but mostly I am done for after 2-3pm. For someone who has been as active and as involved in community and the arts as I've been in the past, this seems like purgatory.
For the past couple of months I seem to be on my bed for much of the day, either sleeping or watching TV, movies or play iPad games. For the past two weeks I've been getting bored with all this, so I put it down with getting better. Today's blood test confirmed it.
The liver function is better and the major organs are fine. The cancer markers are not normal, but stable, as they have not changed in the past month. Hooray! We can now make concrete plans for my move to the US and I will have only one more chemo - in May. I love it. I really look forward to playing with my grandson in person. I'll put up with the pain and discomfort.
My personal life has also improved in the past week. On Sunday I went to the Australian Museum to see the National Georgraphic's Wildlife Photographer photographer of the year exhibition. I go every year and this time I was determined to see it also, despite the pain. We rented a wheelchair (for free!) and it was fantastic.
On Monday, my final social justice project in Australia became a reality. We had 70+ people attend our Table Talk at the Jewish Museum to change the conversation about asylum seekers in our community, organised by the NSW Jewish Board of Deputies and the Sydney Alliance. The original idea came from my work with both organisations over a number of years. It was fabulous and I hope the conversations will continue after I move back to the US.
On Tuesday, my body said: 'go to hell!' and I rested most of the day. Tomorrow we will have the same conversation, but I feel that things are moving in a positive direction, so I'll listen to the old dog and pay attention to its needs. What else can I do, if I want to get well and prove the prognosis wrong?
What else has been happening? Well, because of all these cancer treatment related things I have been less active in my social life. I am undable to go to functions at night, or if I do I need a ride and also need to sleep during the day to have enough energy. I can do one or maybe two things in the morning and early afternoon, but mostly I am done for after 2-3pm. For someone who has been as active and as involved in community and the arts as I've been in the past, this seems like purgatory.
For the past couple of months I seem to be on my bed for much of the day, either sleeping or watching TV, movies or play iPad games. For the past two weeks I've been getting bored with all this, so I put it down with getting better. Today's blood test confirmed it.
The liver function is better and the major organs are fine. The cancer markers are not normal, but stable, as they have not changed in the past month. Hooray! We can now make concrete plans for my move to the US and I will have only one more chemo - in May. I love it. I really look forward to playing with my grandson in person. I'll put up with the pain and discomfort.
My personal life has also improved in the past week. On Sunday I went to the Australian Museum to see the National Georgraphic's Wildlife Photographer photographer of the year exhibition. I go every year and this time I was determined to see it also, despite the pain. We rented a wheelchair (for free!) and it was fantastic.
On Monday, my final social justice project in Australia became a reality. We had 70+ people attend our Table Talk at the Jewish Museum to change the conversation about asylum seekers in our community, organised by the NSW Jewish Board of Deputies and the Sydney Alliance. The original idea came from my work with both organisations over a number of years. It was fabulous and I hope the conversations will continue after I move back to the US.
On Tuesday, my body said: 'go to hell!' and I rested most of the day. Tomorrow we will have the same conversation, but I feel that things are moving in a positive direction, so I'll listen to the old dog and pay attention to its needs. What else can I do, if I want to get well and prove the prognosis wrong?
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