D.O.N.E with Chemo

Hallelujah! I am done with Chemo forever! (Well except for Herceptin for a year but technically they don't put the spacesuit on for that one so they don't actually call that a chemo drug) Before all of this is but a fleeting memory (yeah for that day!), I am Documenting On the Nasty Effects of my Chemo. So many different things happened during my "icky" days that I wanted to have them all down in one place. In reality I can't believe how fast it went and NOW I can say- "It really wasn't that bad!" But that is because of my little bit of cancer, I'm sure. LOL
I did fully intend to just copy someone else's list from another cancer blog [maybe laziness needs to be on the list] but after spending one early morning (I woke up and couldn't turn my brain off enough to go back to sleep. Add that one for sure. LOL), and crying because of their heart-wrenching stories, I decided that my experience is my own. Thank goodness! So here's the nasty effects that happened to me during my Chemo treatment ...
* First there are the steroids I took the day before. They made me very hungry! A good excuse for someone that has amazing chef friends that bring lots of meals. We are NOT on a diet here, people!
* Except for then after chemo- food tasted gross! A bit of a metal-ly cardboardy taste. Oh yum! It's quite the double-edge sword- hungry for things that taste icky?
* Sleeplessness was caused by the steroids and chemo as well. I lived a couple days of the Vampire Life. By Day 3, I was so tired but can only manage to sleep in small increments of time- a couple of hours at the most. Irritating!
* On Chemo, it seemed impossible to be able to turn my brain off. Too many things going through my mind. Although now as a bonafide Cancer patient, I am not completely convinced that is all because of the chemo. Cancer itself gives one enough to think about without any drugs.
* For about a week, I would end up with a racing heart. It totally is scary for someone who has never had any health issues. It made me feel like I was having chest pain. Totally never want to have a heart attack!
* Other heart matters- I had to take Prilosec for a while because of the acid reflux feeling in my throat. In later treatments it caused severe heart burn. For someone who never had that- it is awful!!! How do you heart burn people do that?
* Each time, I got body aches in my muscles. Like I'd been working out A LOT! (For the record- I don't!) It hit me the hardest in my shoulders and upper back. I couldn't stand anyone or anything to touch me for a couple of days. The last time it also felt like I had done a million squats. My thigh muscles hurt to even think about them.
* Then there's the skin peeling problem. The first couple chemo treatments it was on my hands but by the 4th, it moved to my feet. The skin peeled the worst around my heels. It was deep and buggy!
* For a week or so, I would end up with a bad case of cotton mouth. I couldn't seem to get enough to drink.
* Then I know it seems contradictory but I also would have a vast amount of extra saliva. I  would end up with a big puddle of drool on my pillow quite often. Gross!
* While we are in the mouth region, I'll mention the lovely mouth sores. By week two of one cycle, it had sorely affected the cells in my mouth. Tooth aches, sensitive/bleeding gums and un-heal-able canker sores are the funnest! NOT
* Sometimes my eyes would have a hard time focusing. That could be because I'm too lazy to go get glasses again. But dang it! I haven't had them since high school and I am blaming it on Cancer treatment. Cuz I can! LOL
* I heard a lot about bone pain but I never had to endure the Neulasta shot so I can't complain much about this one. I think I would lump my bone pain in with the achy body stuff. At some point the pain all blurs together.
* Next, Chemo stinks. It IS poison afterall. I could smell it on me. In my urine, in my body odor, it my breath. Stinky!
* Embarrassing but this has to be noted-- the dreaded Chemo Toots. It takes on a life of it's own! TMI, I know!
* I've heard about the diarrhea/constipation scare of chemo treatment. I would have to say that I was pretty lucky with this issue. I think that had to do with drinking tons. However, I have mentioned and will mention again my strong loving feelings towards the makers of Preparation-H. Harder bowel movements caused major hemorrhoids for me during one of the treatments. Horrendous!
* I ended up with slight bruising at the IV site. For the most part, the nurses did an excellent job. No complaints. Nonetheless, there was still a very sharp object stuck in a tiny vein of my hand for 6 hours every 3 weeks pumping poison into my blood stream. Poor little vein! I would ache and turn black and blue too! ;(
* By the 4th treatment, I would wake up several times with eyes kinda goopy and shut. Nothing that wiping them out didn't clear up but list worthy anyhow.
* Oh then the Menopausal symptoms known as hot flashes. Normally I am a freezing kind of person! Freezing enough to wear long sleeve shirts and long pants tucked into my socks every night to bed. LOL But during chemo- oh my heavens! To start, I never slept with socks and if anything I would wear short sleeves and some shorts. When a hot flash hit- I would tear off the blanket and pray the air conditioning would turn on. And if Brett even looked at me- he would raise my temp. (Seriously, he is a furnace!) So he had to look the other way for 3 months. Sorry, love!
* Another contradiction-seeming occurrence but I also had times when I thought I would freeze to death. Couldn't warm up to save my life. Thanks heavens I did Chemo during the Summer. Can you imagine? [Those who have survived a Fargo Winter will empathize. LOL]
* This has to be mentioned. The lovely Chemonesia- a type of brain cramp as I like to call it. It wasnt as bad as I had expected but there were times that I had things to say that couldn't quite process correctly. So I either sounded really stupid or had to do the "Oh never mind- I don't know what I was saying" line. Just call me the brainiac of this operation!
* With this one, I give you permission to not feel bad for me. With chemo, I have had no menstrual cycle. I should be and am partly grateful for this one. However with all the enjoyment of not enduring the lovely monthly ritual, it is also just a reminder that life is NOT normal. So onto the nasty effects list you go.
* The real sucky thing about no menstrual cycle during chemo for me was that I still had a very bad case of total PMS. Not all the time but I had my moments of mood swings, irritation, irrational behavior, etc, etc. Beware! Stay out of my way people!
* OK- one last thing to mention before I go on with my life. Baldness. Really, really, really nasty side effect of Chemo. Wigs are fun to try but they get old fast! Scarfs, hats- also fun but not when it comes done to a HAVE to situation. Let it be known that they are hot and itchy and a pain for the daily usage purposes. AND for the record- at least in women "Bald is NOT beautiful". Just saying!
* P.S. Thinning eyebrows- not that I had very many to begin with but this does deserve to be on the list.

Wow! That is a one depressing list! Who would choose to go through that??? BIG LOL!!! Oh I guess I did. And really like I said, I can't believe it's already over. Seriously I can't! Most of these happened at different times. They never happened all at once at least. All in all- it wasn't that bad. It's do-able, let's say. But so glad it's over and DONE!!!! Onto better things, right?