Part Thirteen: A Whole New World

            Why should a line from a Disney tune present itself as I ponder a title for part thirteen of my cancer journey?  My “whole new world” is quite different than Ariel’s in The Little Mermaid, but it is whole and it is new to me.

            Let’s start with chemo.  At OCSRI, the chemo room is a huge space divided up into cubicles, each one with a reclining chair for the patient, a chair for the friend or family member, bench space, and the requisite medical equipment. Wednesday was busy, but maybe all the days are busy there.  The sheer number of people being treated for cancer at this single clinic in Tulsa is a shocker to me.  Yet the clinic is a cheery and hopeful place because of the wonderful people staffing it with such professionalism, kindness, and compassion. 

            I received many comments and compliments on the prayer quilt Barb made for me.  It was nice to drape it over the warmed blanket on my lap.  There was a lot of preparation to be done before I got hooked up, but before the first drip started, my daughter was true to her word.  She invited the nurse to pray with us.  Nurse, daughter, and patient held hands as daughter prayed.  It was a special moment. 

            By the time we left four hours later, I had received two different anti-nausea drips, my first chemo med (nicknamed “The Red Devil”) and the second chemo med which had no nickname. 

            Then came Thursday, time for the muga heart scan, which normally is administered before one’s first chemo treatment, but scheduling had not allowed the proper sequence.  It was a breeze, and my heart passed with flying colors.  After that, Mona and I headed up to the chemo room to have the Neulasta automatic pump attached to my tummy.  In exactly 27 hours it would deliver the immune-boosting dose of medicine to keep my white blood cell count from dropping too low.

And it did, right on time Friday afternoon.  Because of the pump and because I was tired, I stayed in my pajamas all day to rest, drink, and eat nutritious mini-meals.  It felt really good to shower and get dressed this morning (Saturday) even though I don’t feel really good.

            Admittedly, today and tomorrow has me nervous.  The 72-hour anti-nausea coverage from Wednesday wears off this afternoon.  I am hoping beyond hope that I will not even need to use the two medications I have on hand for nausea, but very glad I have them ready.  I’m being careful to keep drinking lots of fluids and pay close attention to how I’m feeling.  Eating small snacks instead of full meals is easy.  In fact, it is about time for another snack.    I’m pretty tired from this forty minutes of writing, so adios for now.  You’ll get the slightly edited version of this rough draft later today.  I’m going to enjoy some frozen fruit and Greek yogurt and maybe, just maybe, drink a little coffee to ward off a caffeine withdrawal headache.  Like I said, it’s a whole new world.