Going backwards to Monday morning past, here's what my counts were pre - chemo
wbc 4.1
rbc 4.76
hemoglobin 13.7
platelets 156
absolute granulocytes 2.1
From 7 days prior to that, wbc went down 2.2 pts, to out of range low, hemo and platelets went up (both still in range), but the absoulte granulocytes went down to 2.1, still in range. For my next level check, I'll drag the chart out again.
Obviously since they gave me chemo, the low wbc is not a factor... yet. It will be interesting to see if I get to the next chemo session without having to get my levels pumped up.
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The night after chemo (Tuesday the 17th) I was up late and realized I hadn't taken my new sedative (lorazepam). So I took a half a pill, which was ridiculous because it's already super small. Finally I went to bed even though I didn't really feel sleepy. My hands started to feel funny, like they were vibrating wildly. Hadn't experienced that before. So I just laid there in bed for a while and it finally subsided. I believe I finally fell asleep about 4:00. Then I got up about 6:00.
Went to work and started with the prednisone symptoms. Hiccups, pretty bad. Then in the afternoon, my cheeks started looking puffy. What I also noticed this time is that my ankles are swollen. Never noticed that before but not sure that I had looked. Also, I don't know if the symptoms are progressively worse the longer you stay on the 'roid. This picture is from tonight. Flourescent (bad) lighting, foul looking cankle.
Today, Wednesday, I didn't start out with the hiccups but they showed up before lunch. Then they quit for a while and came back just in time for me to look stupid at my daughter's doctor's appt. It was one of those things where I didn't know if I should mention the cause or not... now that I think about it, maybe I should have. (Did Doc deduce: "Dad's Drinky"?)
I'm not sure when it's appropriate to discuss my chemo outside my circle of friends/family/immediate work associates. Probably because I don't think most people know how to react and might think I'm just looking for sympathy. And I don't want to make people uncomfortable or get distracted from the task at hand.
I came home after that and laid down and watched tv/snoozed a little bit. No hicks. Then I got up and ate and back came the hicks. The Bs came over for a short visit. After they left I worked on my bike for 45 minutes or so.
Now it's 11:15 (which is fascinating considering I took the sedative at 8:30) and the hicks are still here. Sometimes they kind of like reverberate or resonate, like they will flutter for a couple of seconds. They sometimes make you feel like you have heartburn. Kind of a drag but I can deal with them.
Looking back in the 'blog, this is following true to form. Hopefully after tomorrow morning they'll be gone.
Otherwise, I've just got that disconnected feeling a little bit that I had before with prednisone. Don't seem to have the same energy level I had last time though. Maybe I'm not caught up on my sleep.
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My mom is doing better. The plan is for her to check into a nursing home so they can take care of her while she's without the use of either arm. The ortho thinks slinging, immobilizing, and building up her calcium, etc. along with letting gravity go to work, should allow it to heal on its own. Initially they think 2 weeks in the nursing home and then on to rehab, whether that's at home or somewhere else I don't know.
Anyway, she'd had a rough day yesterday but today her pain is under control and we think the arrow is pointing up.
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I was questioned about my use of "scrip" for prescription today. Here's what I found:
scrip3, script
n
(Medicine) Informal a medical prescription
[short for prescription]
I had to look on more than one site to find it, so it's a little obscure, but so am I. I believe this usage is more common in GB, maybe?
I had to look on more than one site to find it, so it's a little obscure, but so am I. I believe this usage is more common in GB, maybe?
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Thanks for checking in.
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