Update
Its been awhile, and someone was bugging me, so here's an update...
I've made it through 29% of my radiation sessions, and I prefer the chemo chair. I mean, its quick and its not like the treatment is painful. But I'm locked down to a table for 30-45 minutes and I can't move. On top of that, I have this annoying breathing apparatus to monitor my breathing so they can only zap me when my lungs are 70% full. Being of a competitive nature, I tried to make it a goal to beat my last breath hold time, but then I get told that longer is not better, because you have to recover and we could lose the beam while I take an extra deep breath to return to normal. Still, I try. I've made it up to 42 seconds. Each beam is about a minute, so I at least make it a goal to do each beam in 2 breaths. And there are 3 beams. Plus 3 x-rays they take beforehand to make sure I'm positioned right.
Since its proton radiation, the facility only has one proton generator. But there are 5 treatment rooms (only 3 work). So the proton beam rotated around. Which is why they don't want delays when we have the beam, because we could lose it if I'm not ready.
Oh, and since I can't move, my bum is getting numb from the pressure points. I can' even adjust my legs b/c it could make my chest 1 cm different than before, So its claustrophobic from being locked down in a mask and hooked up to a snorkel, uncomfortable from pressure points and being unable to squirm. Also, cold, because its a medical equipment room. And every day I have to drive downtown, park, and be there for about 1.5 hours. *grumble*
In other news, one of my twitter friend died this week. A stark reminder of what its like in the cancer community. This happened a few times during my last stint in this world, but then I was just on a hodgkin's email list and the blogosphere. So I was mostly connected with other young, hodgkins people. Now, I'm in the cancer twitter community. And there, I've mostly connected with other middle age women. So, not really other hodgkins patients, but mostly breast cancer. Melissa had colon cancer. She was 38. Just recently, she posted a picture with her family and looked so happy. But, cancer it a bitch. RIP Melissa. And Terri - I still remember you.
I've made it through 29% of my radiation sessions, and I prefer the chemo chair. I mean, its quick and its not like the treatment is painful. But I'm locked down to a table for 30-45 minutes and I can't move. On top of that, I have this annoying breathing apparatus to monitor my breathing so they can only zap me when my lungs are 70% full. Being of a competitive nature, I tried to make it a goal to beat my last breath hold time, but then I get told that longer is not better, because you have to recover and we could lose the beam while I take an extra deep breath to return to normal. Still, I try. I've made it up to 42 seconds. Each beam is about a minute, so I at least make it a goal to do each beam in 2 breaths. And there are 3 beams. Plus 3 x-rays they take beforehand to make sure I'm positioned right.
Since its proton radiation, the facility only has one proton generator. But there are 5 treatment rooms (only 3 work). So the proton beam rotated around. Which is why they don't want delays when we have the beam, because we could lose it if I'm not ready.
Oh, and since I can't move, my bum is getting numb from the pressure points. I can' even adjust my legs b/c it could make my chest 1 cm different than before, So its claustrophobic from being locked down in a mask and hooked up to a snorkel, uncomfortable from pressure points and being unable to squirm. Also, cold, because its a medical equipment room. And every day I have to drive downtown, park, and be there for about 1.5 hours. *grumble*
In other news, one of my twitter friend died this week. A stark reminder of what its like in the cancer community. This happened a few times during my last stint in this world, but then I was just on a hodgkin's email list and the blogosphere. So I was mostly connected with other young, hodgkins people. Now, I'm in the cancer twitter community. And there, I've mostly connected with other middle age women. So, not really other hodgkins patients, but mostly breast cancer. Melissa had colon cancer. She was 38. Just recently, she posted a picture with her family and looked so happy. But, cancer it a bitch. RIP Melissa. And Terri - I still remember you.
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