Today after my first stage chemo-cut (first stage = my son's bob at one week prior to chemo; second stage = my husband's military style cut shortly after chemo day; third stage = my son's bald grandpas, a head shaving roughly at 10 days after chemo in order to compete with falling hair), I went for a post-op surgeon visit. They all whole-heartedly complimented the haircut. They said that they loved it. I do love it. It really is the best haircut I've ever had.
While changing my old gauze that covered my original drains of the previous weeks and cleaning off my stitches that run about six inches across each old breast area, I told the doctor that right after last week's first balloon expansion of 50cc saline solution it felt like a period in my chest. Crampy, achy, raw. My lungs felt tight and heavy. But just in one week I didn't feel too bad. On a scale of 1-10, it's like a consistent 1-2 versus last week's 6-7-8 pain level. And, today's stitch cleaning felt strange but good. I explained that my breast area felt the way my cheeks feel like at the dental office after being shot up with novacane. It's like you can pinch the numbed cheeks and you know they are your cheeks but then again they feel rubbery and foreign. I don't have much if any sensation in that area. She said if she rubbed a cotton swab across my chest with my eyes closed I probably would not feel it. Pressure on the pecs, however, is a different story. In that way my pecs below my breast area feels like a bone spur -- I've had this in my heal once which is like a gliding of something that also is not supposed to be there. I mentioned trying to shave my underarm pits -- but my right one in which they removed my lymph nodes is very stiff and numb. I couldn't feel the razor under my arm which kinda scared me so I gave up. She said they recommend having my hubby help trims these hairs with a scissors; then again after chemo starts this won't be an issue since all hairs on my body will disappear. Ah, the silver lining :)
The doctor also said I was looking pretty strong this week. I see them weekly but I told them that the biggest jump in my recovery happened this past week, from week 3 to week 4. I was able to bathe alone (huge) and dress at a faster speed. At the beginning of week 3 my son's music teacher affectionately said I walked like a 90 year old but then by the end of the 3rd week she said my color looked darker, I was moving about easily (she said this at the end of the week not the beginning :). I've been walking in the mornings with some girlfriends who've been so wonderful in picking me up in the dark hours of the morning and finishing the walk before my household wakes up.
Running thrills me for many reasons. Not only do my blood levels and lungs feel good -- but I can poop so easily after a run! Such a simple task for many but for me, when heavily medicated, it's brutal. I get so stuffed up there that many people think I'm six months pregnant -- including my mom who kept asking and I kept assuring her that I was just miserably constipated.). AND if I'm running -- which triggers pooping -- then ultimately this means that I'll also be able to get the left-over chemo toxins and tons of meds I'll be on out of my body which I'll be eager to do.
This past week is the first week that I've been off meds post-mastectomy and my whole pooping situation has been incredible. I could have still been on meds for at least this week to get through some pain, but in my case, I wanted to trade pains by sacrificing some chest pain for the ability to go. While on this short interval of testing pains and processes, I've also come up with some great recipes that have helped. The real test will be if these recipes work next Tuesday when I start some serious meds and chemo without quite running just yet. More on recipes to come.
Overall, my quick recovery means that all the juicing and paleo eating that I've been doing is paying off. Food can heal. Grateful. Very grateful.
No comments:
Post a Comment