The second round of Brent took a major toll on me physically. The second dose is notorious for being the worst, so I had sort of mentally prepared, but it was a hard thing to deal with. The joint and muscle pain, the neuropathy in my feet first thing in the morning, the extreme exhaustion just trying to get around with all that. It was super hard for me to have to be back to relying on others for almost everything again. There were definitely times that moving wasn't so bad (and the symptoms seemed to ware off by my next dose), but as soon as I felt a little better, I was so tired I had to sit again and the whole "stiff joints and hard to move" cycle started again.
Eating has also gone back to being more difficult. We haven't been getting as many prepared meals delivered, so more cooking has been required. I haven't had the voracious appetite I had, and foods are harder to pick out (sucky part about chemo!). Having hunger but not wanting anything we have in the house has been a big challenge, and there are days when this is so amazingly frustrating I eat almost nothing (or just salad and fruit which is not exactly calorie dense). Because I haven't had any real nausea, I haven't been forcing myself to eat constantly and that is showing. My weight is "stable," but I need to gain a few pounds (or like 15) and eating will help with my energy so I have enough to exercise and build my muscles back up.
My third round was "delayed" by three days (well, the weekend) because I had an event that I desperately wanted to attend on my normally scheduled chemo day. Luckily, my doctor was totally ok with this change, so I was able to attend! I went to Jacobs Pillow in the Berkshires to attend a talk and book signing by a photographer who's work I have been following since I was probably in middle school - Lois Greenfield! Mike and I went out for the night - we drove and stayed in a Super 8 hotel a few miles away (I would love to stay out there for a month! It's so peaceful and beautiful and relaxing. Such a change from here). When we arrived, I was a bit sore and stiff from the drive, so we rested (with my swollen feet up) for an hour and then I BEGGED to go early so we could get good seats. We got to sit FRONT ROW and spoke to some awesome people while we waited (an hour!) for the event to start. I brought my marked up copy of Lois' second book (couldn't find a copy of the first book- I either didn't have one, or lost it), and bought a copy of her new book while I was there. Her talk was so amazing - and I even got to ask her a question at the end that led to a great topic discussion.
She signed books after the talk, and I got her to sign my marked up book and my new book. I also got to show her a print of my work (which I gave to her to keep) and she told me to keep in touch! I was so excited and I can't wait to reconnect with her in the future. What an amazing way to spend a day that I was supposed to be stuck inside with an IV in my arm!
Round three went off without a hitch, and over time my stiffness and pain started to subside. Moving started to get a bit easier, and I started to feel a bit more normal. I scheduled my scan for the 29th of august, so scanziety was setting in, but I was confident in how I was feeling so I didn't think too much of it. Hopefully all will go well. Keep your fingers crossed!!!
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