Saturday, July 27, 2013

Week 5 BREAKTHROUGH...wait a minute, what do you mean no more Pixie Stix!

5 weeks down as of today.  2 full weeks and then a Monday and Tuesday radiation till the treatments are over and recovery begins.  Ya Freakin HOOOO!!

Now for the good news.  As you all know from my incessant whining I haven't been doing so well with the treatments from an energy/nausea standpoint.  Well, it hit the breaking point this past week.  I went home for the weekend to see my cherubs, and spent 24X7 in bed unable to hang with them.  If I ate, I felt like passing out, if I didn't eat, I felt like throwing up.  I was disgusted and getting really flat out pissed at myself.  So Monday rolls around and I head to radiation.  All the nurses commented gently on how bad I looked.  I said thanks, rolled back upstairs and tried to cope.  Then came Tuesday.  For a full week since chemo I had struggled and was close to passing out almost every day.  Tuesday are my full day.  6:45am for blood work, then 3 dr meetings and IV fluids then the nutritionist and any other things that need doing.  I'm in the waiting room for the blood work and they call my name.  The nurse meets me in the room, checks my bracelet and says ok come with me.  She turns and does a 4.3X40 time down the hall cuts the corner and disappears.  I'm 20 feet behind dizzy and weak kneed trying to follow her.  She stops and looks back and I said "is my 40 yard dash a new measurement you guys are taking or are you late for breakfast?"  She looked at me, came rushing back and sat me down in a seat saying "ok, you stay here, i'm getting the head nurse".  From that point forward Denise and I spent 12 hours getting wheeled around the hospital doing tests, getting shots, IV fluids etc..  When we checked out that night, I was heading home with Insulin and a test kit.  The steroids they had given me was working wonders with my body and my sugar levels were through the roof.  That seemed to help explain everything.  The weight loss, the dizziness and fatigue.  The nasty taste early on they think was due in large part to that.  I wish we had caught that one earlier...or that I had complained earlier in the week so they would have checked all that.  That's ok, things definitely got better, not great, but MUCH better after that.  I went from total frustration and low morale to seeing some new light at the end of the rainbow.  Now I just have to stay away from sour patch kids and pixie stix and make sure when I'm done I control this and don't have to stay on the insulin.

Thursday we met with Dr Margalit the radiology oncologist.  She is the best.  Great disposition, always positive, doesn't rush our conversations, and says I look 10 years younger without the goatee.  And she has a great way of making the bad stuff seem manageable.  As we get further along I keep saying, ok, now what about post treatment, how long is this going to continue to be bad.  Each week she shares a little more of the detail and it sounds like it's going to be about 3-4 weeks before it starts to improve and then another couple months before the pain goes away and energy levels return.  The last week of radiation she said really takes a toll plus the final chemo wipes out your blood cells.  However, everything seems to be shrinking (tumors and me) so it's looking good so far.  That's ok, with two weeks to go, let's get 'er done and move on with life.

I'm sure many of you are reading this and thinking how different this blog was.  What happened to everything going wrong at every turn.  Well, we did get to cap our LONG Tuesday of discovery off with a funny one.  Denise and I are in the 12th hour at the hospital and we are wrapping up with Jason who is also simply an awesome person.  He meets with me on Tuesday's to go over how I'm doing, blood work etc., and he was with me to figure out the sugar issues and get going on insulin.  Anyway, it's been 12 hours, I'm tired, haven't eaten, and we just went over all the insulin injection directions etc.. As he is about to leave I said, "oh wait, I forgot to mention the feeding tube feels tight again, could you loosen it a little".  "Sure" he says.  He grabs his tweezers, goes to adjust the tube, and says, "actually Mark it's infected".  "Of course it is Jason, of course it is".  One more med added to the kitty!

LIke I said, 2 weeks left and we are running out of things to go wrong so BRING IT!

Cheers everyone, thanks for listening.


6 comments:

  1. Thinking of you Mark...sorry you have to go thru this battle in life. Sounds like your in some wonderful hands. Keeping you in our thoughts~ luv Elaine & Family xxoo

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  2. Oh, no Mark. Thanks for writing.

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  3. Hey Mark.....sorry to hear about the weight, more sorry about the 12 hour hospital stay. Stay up, stay encouraged, I just hit the one year mark since my last treatment, it truly does go by quickly. I NEVER thought I'd say that. Some of the folks that follow me are now following you, believe it or not. You are getting some Left Coast Love right now.
    Just one day after the other, and hang in there, post treatment can be rocky, I want you aware of that. I put so much emphasis on the "final" treatment day, it ended up a little tough.....keep your sights on 90-100 days out.....you've gotta get that far. I'm pulling for you, buddy, stay strong, your writing is great, you're bringing us right in there! Love to ALL of your girls. All the best, brother. Tom

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  4. I Love this Tom Stack Guy, never met him but he was put in Marks life for a reason and its a big one! He knows exactly what Mark is going through. The rest of us supporters, friends, and family will do anything for Mark but Tom really knows what he needs, what he needs to do, and exactly what Mark is talking about so Thanks Tom for your words of wisdom, encouragement, and support. I was thrilled that Denise asked Mark W and I to drive them back into Boston on Sunday. It was nice, the conversations were great even if I did most of the talking but the best part was to see Mark smile a few times!! The one thing I felt bad about was when we got to the hotel I didnt get out of the car. The four of us were trying to decide in less than 500 ft of street if we were staying or just dropping off. Being later in the evening we had eaten before so as to not make Mark feel bad or sick by the sight and smell of food. So I thought we were just dropping off. Next Sunday we will discuss prior Mark, whatever you want is fine with us. You had a look on your face of "Where are you going?". I hope your week this week is going better than the last, like you told us dont think there is another thing that could go wrong! And like Tom said Stay strong. Hope you like the book he recommended Younger Next Year and hopefully you got Mark W's letter. He tried to Blog but wouldnt work....see you soon. Darlene.

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  5. Mark,

    Hey, I am Tom Stack's Best Man and that means that I am now in your corner too. I'm 1-0 in support teams and looking for my second victory. Thinking about you and keeping you in my prayers and positive thoughts. Someday you can travel out the SF Bay Area and we can celebrate how you beat cancer...All my best. Dan Kelleher

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    1. Dan, I look forward to make sure you keep batting 1000!!! Thanks for the note. Just finished up my last chemo. Ready for recovery and the hell it starts with. We are talking about a family trip in April to celebrate recovery being well underway. California is the favorite right now...I'll be looking you guys up if we do.

      Thanks Dan
      Mark

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