Monday 23 September 2013

First round of chemo

Went in every day last week for chemo. Came home and slept every day. Really feeling exhausted but trying to focus on the positive. I'm doing this so my kids have me around longer :). It's tough on me to hear them cry for mommy when I'm upstairs sleeping away, but I know that sleep means healing. Hooked up to home hydration so I can keep up what little energy I have. I try to make it downstairs for a bit of cuddle time. It's easier with Kyra in school. I get about half an hour of cuddle time with Megan before her nap and then rest again. I get up for Kyra's bus and spend half an hour with her before Megan wakes from her nap. Try to hang out for supper and back to bed. Liam gets me here and there for feedings and naps with me :)

Week 2 of each round is when I am most susceptible to colds and flus and infections. Any of those, will land me in the hospital. Happened twice last time,so I try to get the girls to understand the importance of hand washing. Especially with Kyra being in school. I do not want to catch an infection and land in hospital for a minimum of 4 days, getting blood transfusions and antibiotics and being depressed and sad and crying and away from my babies. 

My neighbours and hubby have been very helpful. Bring the girls out for a run around the block after supper and bringing snacks and meals for me and the girls. They are wonderful people. God bless them. They understand I need all the rest I can get and are always telling me not to worry and ushering me back to sleep. Day 7 to 14 of each round is supposed to be when the chemo is killing all those bad cells... Unfortunately killing the good with it but those know to reproduce and should be back up to normal levels by Day 21. That's when I start the next round again. Scheduled for October 7-12th. Please bear with me if I don't post. I do try to do updates on Facebook as well so feel free to add me on Facebook if you do not have me on there :). 

Thank you for your continued support and comments. They really make my day :). 

Love and blessings to all

Priscilla. 



Resting with Liam

Mommy's big helper
Mommy's banana eating monkey


2013 Family Picture <3 all my loves. 

Wednesday 11 September 2013

Getting stressed.

Hi everyone,

Liam is doing so very well and blowing the standard newborn weight gain of 5-8 oz per week. He gained 11.5 oz last week and 13.5 oz this week!! Super proud mommy here :). Here he is smiling. It's a little blurry cuz he wouldn't stop moving his head :). 

Happy boy he is :). 

In other news, chemo is coming fast and making me feel ill because I'm feeling stressed. I've unfortunately have already had a few bouts if anticipatory nausea, which I also experienced last time around.  I do feel confident though that things will run smoothly on the medical end of things though. My nurses,  from Saint Elizabeth Home Care,  visited today and gave me a letter to bring to my doctor on Friday with a complete chemo action plan. Basically, access to IV hydration as it helped me sooooo much last time and wasn't discovered until the final round of chemo,  subcutaneous injection anti-emetic (anti-nauseant) meds and portacath access. 

At this point, I am really not looking forward to doing chemotherapy once again at all but am also in the state of mind to get it done and over with.... I want my life back and I want to enjoy my family and stop feeling stressed and tired and weak all the time. 

I am very happy with everything that got accomplished when my step mum and dad were visiting the past two weeks (by the way 2 weeks is not very long when you have visitors) :( . I mustered up as much courage and energy as I could (all while wrangling 3 children under the age of 4, with one who is up every 2-3 hours wanting to eat) and Sue was an amazing and I mean AMAZING help as well and we got my main floor completely de-cluttered and cleaned. Feels very rewarding to see it that way, knowing all the effort that was put into getting it that clean. Also when Sue or I (mostly Sue) would prepare supper, we would make an extra dish or two and stick in the deep freeze. We also set up and froze a few meals to throw into the crock pot in the mornings. Hopefully a few more friends and neighbours will gather around and help with meals as well as it will be very difficult for me to get those kind of things done during chemo and the energy I will have, I will want to spend with my children, not in my kitchen, cooking. 

So next appointment is Friday, September 13th at 1:20 PM. It's the pre-chemo appointment with Dr. Nicholas and then chemo is every day the following week. Monday the 16th at 10 am, Tuesday the 17th at 10 am, Wednesday the 18th at 10:30 am, Thursday the 19th at 11 am and Friday the 20th at 11:30 am. I will try to update Friday if there is any new information. 

Thank you everyone for keeping me in your thoughts and prayers. I love each and everyone of you. 

Priscilla

P.S.  We got our family pictures done at Walmart on my birthday. Should be arriving anytime. Can't wait to see them. Wanted to get a nice one of all 5 of us before my hair goes again. But in the meantime, here is a nice picture of Daddy and his 3 babies <3