I remember blogging about how day 3 was “just plain hard”, but I don’t remember feeling nearly has bad as I have felt over the last two nights.

I was mostly fine on Friday during the day. I got my Lapelga shot (white blood cell booster) at about 2pm. I used the VON, so a nurse came to administer it. I don’t think we will bother with that for next time as it takes too much of both her and my time. The shot is pretty simple to do. This is given 48 hours after chemo, rather than 24 – so I expected that day 4 might be a struggle rather than day 3 as this booster can have some pretty rotten side effects.

I seem to be mostly OK until Friday evening. I’d had a headache and stuffiness but hadn’t done anything for it. Friday night I took some Tylenol (after validating that I didn’t have a fever). I don’t remember too much of the specifics of the time between Friday evening and Sunday morning other than a short walk Saturday morning and then generally feeling super crappy all day.

At one point I started to feel some zaps of bone pain. I remember that advil helped it, but didn’t have any in the house. I had to send my hubby out to get some.

Then, near dinner time with a very stuffed up head, it occurred to me to look at the drug reaction forms I’d been given – which included what you could do about it. Apparently the Cytoxan can cause the sinus / stuffiness that I was feeling and that I was permitted to take sudafed. Unfortunately, I didn’t have any in the house so I sent Scott off to the drug store to get some. Poor guy, he is busy and I felt like I kept having to send him out for things.

Last night didn’t go so well either. I was still feeling crappy and hoping to just sleep it away – except I couldn’t sleep. It wasn’t until around 3am before I remembered that I have some medication that I can take when I’m having issues with insomnia. When I got up to take it, I took out my bite guard to discover that my mouth was all thrushy – yuck. The sore throat that I had since pretty much the start of chemo had led to thrush – which I’m prone to and when my immune system is getting kicked thrush can get out of control. Fortunately, I had some meds from 5 years ago for it (only expired last year – so good enough to get my through the weekend). I took some of them as well as the pills I needed to sleep – and eventually was met my slumber.

I woke up not feeling great but not feeling nearly as crappy as I had been. I was still stuffy, so I took another sudafed. Throughout the day, I’ve had the odd zap of bone pain, and took a little more advil a short while ago which seems to help. I’m starting to get my energy back, but it doesn’t take much to exhaust me.

I got out for a short walk today – not sure really if it was that “short” – it was a nice walk on a day that is slightly cooler than yesterday. When I got back I needed to sit and relax a bit, as the walk had done me in. I am feeling a level of fatigue that surprises me.

I hope that tomorrow will be a better day – with a little more energy returning. I have a reiki appointment, so hopefully this new reiki healer can help clear a few things up and help my body heal. My arm isn’t feeling as weak from the surgery as it had been, but that might be because I spent the better part of the last two days in bed rather than doing anything.

I wasn’t able to cook last night and wasn’t sure how I was going to feel tonight – so I reached out to a couple of neighbours. I know for next cycle that we will really appreciate someone making / delivering dinner for Saturday night and Sunday night post chemo. I think in California, we were able to rely more on take-out and ordering foods in. With celiac that is a lot more difficult, and living in a small town means very view options. It is good that I can lean on a few of my neighbours. I may also be more prepared next time by making a couple of things in advance that are easy to reheat. With the recent move, that level of preparation just hasn’t been feasible.

Overally, I think I’m past the work of the yuckiness. I still have the nadir when the blood cells are low, so I don’t know how that will affect my energy, but in theory I shouldn’t also be dealing with headaches and bone pain then – so simply fatigue (if there is such as a thing as simple fatigue).

One day four done, three more to go. If the second cycle doesn’t go better, I’m not sure I’m going to make it through a third. Ya – it was that bad.

This evening, things are starting to take a turn for the better.