I don’t have anything special to tell you about my treatments or my health today. I’m feeling fairly well, my mouth is a little tender, but not serious, and I think the rest of the day will be good for it, so that’s a good thing. I’m just sitting here thinking how wonderful it is to have it be my birthday and feel so peaceful and contended.

I feel like life is looking positive, even tho the DRs like to poke and prod and find things to look at, and little issues keep cropping up to annoy me. I have the majority of my health, my family is always here to support me, talked to my kids today and got birthday wishes. My extended family has been wonderful, my brother bought me some “do rags” (your hubby’s will know what those are quicker than we do) plus a gift certificate. My Dad stopped by with his girlfriend & gave me $20 so I can buy a software subscription I’ve been wanting. One of my kids is either going to bring supper after church, or we are going out, we’ll decide later.

Some friends brought us lots of fresh veggies this week. We’ve been dining on fresh tomatoes (thankfully the mouth is staying under control!), cucumbers, green peppers, and sweet corn! Oh, what a heavenly diet.

I don’t hurt today, I’m fairly comfortable, I’ve got a great book, and nothing pressing me for time. Now what can be wrong with a life like that? I’m going to see if this mornings services is online yet, otherwise, I’ll listen to last weeks, and read some scripture. Got a nic devotional book here I like.

I have a friend that has had a lot of health issues and she called me yesterday, and was very encouraged that the DRs actually are seeing some elevations in certain enzymes and organ abnormalities, that may lead to some answers for her discomfort. I feel very lucky in knowing exactly what is wrong with me, tho we still have a couple questions coming up, but for the most part, we know what’s up and directly attack and treat me. She has had so many problems that seem to be underlying and hiding from the DRs so they can’t make a direct attack. It’s horrible to have DRs tell you that your pain is all mental, I’ve been there, done that, and it’s no fun. I thought most DRs were done with that type of attitude this day and age. I was very encouraged when she called yesterday with information that she had some positive test results. Please pray that the DRs will be able to pin-point something that is causing her so much trouble and that they can find a way to help her.

As for me. Simply pray that my mouth continues to stay as close to normal as it can. It is some tender, but not really bad. A lady in the chemo infusion room gave me a remedy, which seems to be helping, or it’s a great coincidence if it’s not, and I just pray it keeps on helping. I’m enjoying the tomatoes soooo very much!

I just felt like sending out a letter of glad tidings and joy, since that’s just how I feel today! Minor discomforts can always be dealt with, and when the overall feeling of health is good and pleasant and peaceful, we should take a moment to say “Thank You, Lord, I appreciate the good day!” and that’s what I’m doing now

Blessings to each one of you, and may you share a bit of my peace and joy today, and relax and have a wonderful birthday for me! Sherry

Hi, Everybody,

Sorry I didn’t get an update out sooner, but here’s one finally. Thanks to everybody for reading and caring to hear from me.

Well, last week turned out to be a little bit of a roller coaster ride for me. Actually the past couple weeks. First, my mouth got so sore I couldn’t eat anything that wasn’t pureed. Then I got diarrhea so bad that I finally had to call the DR. They brought me in for blood tests, samples, and to give me a bag of fluids for dehydration. Blood tests showed that my white cell count was down to 1.0, which it is supposed to be at least 10, and they give you blood before your chemotherapy if it falls much below 4, I believe it is.

I woke up the next morning with fever, chills, and achiness. So, it was right back out to the hospital for more tests, more blood draws, etc. The nurse said, with most patients, the combination of all this means an automatic trip upstairs to stay for a few days in the hospital to be more closely monitored. But, she felt that we are very carefully monitoring, and have been quick to call with any changes or unusualness, that she feels she can trust us to go home, take my antibiotics and come back if anything at all worsens or changes wrongly. We both assured her that we would be extremely watchful, as we have been already, and would not hesitate to come back.

I fortunately don’t have insurance concerns, so there isn’t a money issue to keep us from going, but I feel it’s wasteful and unnecessary, when all they are going to do is check my temp every hour, give me extra fluids, and watch me lay in a bed. Well, I can certainly do that at home! I’m drinking as much extra as I can, taking my antibiotics as instructed, and trying to get enough to eat, even tho my mouth and throat are still sore, just not nearly as bad.

I’ve added a glucerna shake a day, and am looking at some other high nutrition recipes that the nutritionist and naturopath gave me, to stave up my immune system and help me overall. I’m surprised at the number of things I can’t eat, because my mouth is so tender, and then how much I can’t swallow, because I apparently have a chemo mouth sore in my throat. Instead of taking my handful of pills in one shot now, I have to divide them into 3 or 4 batches. Got one or two stuck the other day (kept drinking to force them down and could feel the water bubbling up and around them!!!) So, now I only take a few at a time, just to be more cautious.

I’ve been reading more this past week. Spending time at the computer doing things has just gotten more than I can sit up and do. I did finally get the last touches on my website, which took me such a long time to do, since I could only work a little at a time on. It should have only been a couple hour job, but I think took me nearly two weeks. I hope you will enjoy it, I’d like to do a few other things, but it’s up for now.

I have all my updates from early April, some may not have made into emails, some of them were only on my book swapping website where I keep a lot of people informed on how I’m doing by posting updates, and some may not have made it onto the posts and were only in the emails. So, whichever way you get updates from me, you might want to glance thru the past posts and see if there’s anything you missed.

I’ve also got some other fun stuff on here, specifically, me trying on different wigs with friends, our oldest son, Todd, starring in a video of him shaving his head, and of course links to my children’s sites if they have them, and links to my granddaughter’s pics.

I did have a very good weekend. We started on Friday night going to a banquet that we are invited to because our 2nd son, Eric, takes pictures of all the members of the 4-H Beef club during the County fair when the kids show off their beef. Then at the banquet, we set up a slide show so that everybody can see all the pics he took during their competitions, and we always have a few orders that came in last minute and have to be delivered at the banquet, and a few people that didn’t order pics during the fair, so we have two computers set up for them to find their kids pics and order them to be mailed or picked up at the studio.

The best part about this, is that it the main meat served is my favorite food in the whole world. If you are local, you will recognize “Nelson’s Golden Glo Port-A-Pit” chicken. I just don’t think there is anything comparable to it. I totally love it! Of course, I love chicken fixed most any way, except dry but this is my fav. And we can eat all we want. Unfortunately for me this year, my mouth was still a little sore, so I couldn’t eat more than was healthy for me! Hahhaahaha

Then Saturday morning we took a trip to a little town about 20 min away to a gal that does a lot of coupon shopping and always has a house that looks like a drug store exploded in it! We went with our son Eric & his wife & mother-in-law. We got shampoos, and other bathroom items, she specially bought some sugar-free candy for me (she was buying the candies anyway, but made a point to get some of them sugar-free, since she knew I was coming). Baby lotions and other things. And some sugar-free drink mixes for me. All the stuff was much cheaper than store prices and we had a nice time looking thru the stuff.

We stopped at a couple yard sales on the way back, along with a couple fruit & veggie stands, and then later went to their house for supper. A very good day for everybody!

Today, I don’t think I’ve done a single thing of any importance, and Marcus has taken several naps since coming home from church. I had thought I would go this morning, but since my white count was so low still on Wednesday, I figured it would probably not be a good idea. Marcus brought home hugs and hellos from several people along with many prayers.

I sure hope they are right that after tomorrow’s treatment, the next batch will not be nearly as bad. I get tired of hardly getting to go any place. The only reason I felt I could go to the banquet, is that we are set off by ourselves, and nobody would be getting very close to me, since Marcus, Eric, & Ana took care of all the ordering and such.

I got three surprise packages in the mail this week! It was really nice since I was feeling bad half the time, and not having a very good week, they sure brightened it up for me! First a friend & his wife ordered me a bracelet. It is a copper band with some beautiful abalone and a center filigree design work with a butterfly. Just beautiful!

Then a friend from our book swapping site, sent me a box just full of goodies! A book from my WL, a hat her daughter knitted (which is actually nice already. I sit near the air-conditioned, which is fine for most of me, but my bald head gets a little chilly, and the cap is just great! I have scarves, but they are always enough! Hahahaha), she included some nice inspirational books, even one just for men for Marcus. Some book marks, and a great selection of Celtic music, which we had talked about in one of the topics. It is so beautiful! My Scottish daughter-in-law will be a little jealous, so I might have to share with her

And then I got another book pkg, which confused me when Marcus said who it was from, because I recognized the name, and knew I did not have a book coming from her. He opened it for me, and it was another book from my WL that was obviously brand new and bought just for me. I just felt all kinds of special this week! I really appreciated the thoughtfulness of people it sure makes me feel like such a special child of God’s to have him send me friends just when I need a little extra care. God is sooooo good!

Well, I guess that’s about all the news I can think of to tell you. Be sure to check out my website, and sign my guest book so I’ll know you stopped by! As always, I appreciate the prayers and emails from all of you. Please pray that the mouth sores don’t get so bad this week, and that my white count stays up at least enough to keep me from getting sick. Please pray that the tiredness will not be so bad. This last time was really good most days, but the first couple treatments made me so totally exhausted most days.

Until next time, I’ll be here, reading a book, surfing the Internet, and waiting until I can go a few places and do a few things. If you are local, and haven’t been around anyone sick (or aren’t sick yourself) I’m usually up for visitors, it’s not any more tiring to talk with people than to just sit and read a book or play/work on the Internet

Oh, and if anyone wants to send me an inexpensive get well/birthday gift (the 10th Walmart (and I’m sure other places) has these delicious sugar-free turtle candies, by Russell-Stover, I think, but maybe others make them too. Anyway, just a little thought I’d pass along It’s not too terribly impolite for me to make a suggestion is it? Ah, well, we can blame my lack of manners on the chemo if it is

Bless you all, and may you each have a wonderful week!

Sherry

Bald is the theme for the day!

I’m really tired this week. Unbelievably tired. I had no idea it would get even more tiring than the first week. All I’m doing is resting and napping.

We went to look at wigs on Friday, and it I couldn’t believe how tired it made me! Just sitting there donning and doffing the headpieces while the others handed them to me, I wasn’t standing up and down or anything, just raising my arms while sitting. It really wore me out.

True to the timetable, my hair started coming out by the handfuls so we just took it all off. The hair started coming out in clumps already Thursday night, and was getting pretty thin yesterday. So, we just eliminated most of the mess. Marcus lovingly took the clippers and sheared me free of the falling locks. He’s asking me if I want to shave the stubble off, since it does feel kind a funny under my scarf, but I had some Nair and removed most of the stubble with it. He then turned the clippers on himself, but I don’t think it quite had the same effect on him that it had on me

My eyebrows are considerably lighter too, I noticed that Friday when we were trying on wigs. I’ve got some nice scarves, and Monday the fitter should be in so that we can actually order a wig for me. We cut off a ponytail of my hair to try and match it better on Monday. We looked on Friday, and really didn’t come up with a good match. But, the gal that was there, said they can try to custom match it when we actually order it. Getting the right amount of salt & pepper look is the hard part! hahahaha

My upper chest hurts a bunch. I’m having some fluid retention. Most of the time, it happens down the arm, but I’ve decided to be a bit different, and the fluid is building up in my neck and upper chest areas. Just makes me a bit more tender to the touch. I think it is easier than when it’s down the arm, because there is more room for the fluid to dissipatate, whereas when it builds up in the arm, gravity makes it even worse, by pooling it harder towards the bottom of the arm and into the hand.

I went out to visit my Dad again yesterday, and had a turban on. He asked what I did to my hair (this was before we buzzed it) and I pulled a few strands and said, “Nothing, just wanted to keep it out of my face.” I’m not sure what I’ll do next time, I won’t have any strands to pull. Maybe I should only visit him when I have my wig? As long as he doesn’t pop in at the house when I don’t have anything on.

Well, I guess that’s about all there is today. Just tired & bald. Mouth is getting a bit tender, but hopefully, thanks to my dear Daughter-in-law, it won’t be so bad if the sores do get serious. Just trying to keep my chin up and my feet one in front of the other is enough for today. Too much work for anything else

Have some fun for me, will ya, someone? I’m gonna take a nap!

Hi, Everybody!

Well, things didn’t go quite as planned over the last week as we’d all hoped. As Marcus said, my blood counts went down so low I was just sheerly exhausted all week. I couldn’t go anywhere besides the DR & hospital, and had been given a box of masks by the ER room to wear when I did go out. I did a lot of sleeping, and was only on here long enough to answer a few live help questions, and PMs and back to the chair I went.

I had my second treatment on Monday. And expect my hair to start falling out soon. They say the average person loses it about 18 days after 1st chemo. We will see shortly

I was going today to look at wigs, and probably get one, but the fitter isn’t in, so we changed the day to tomorrow. The insurance does pay for one, so my DiL and a good friend who is a beautician that knows wigs well, will be going with me to see what we find. I’d like something that looks natural one me. My sister got one that looks so natural on her, that some people didn’t realize she’d lost her hair when she first saw them after losing it and getting the wig. I hope I can be as lucky!

I’m having a little trouble with lymphadema (that’s excess fluid carried into the body, then normally retrieved by the lymphatic system) but it’s being a bit different than for most people. For most, it is the fluid that goes down into the arm and can’t then all be brought back up, because of the lymph nodes removed from the breast and armpit area. For me, it is building up in my upper chest and neck areas. My upper neck down, has more swelling and fluid retention than it should and while it doesn’t hurt as bad, it’s still a bit uncomfortable. Seems I always have to do things a little bit different!!!

I did come home from my chemo treatment on Monday and sleep a near comatose sleep for about 4 hours, then of course, was up half the night! I had more appts on Tuesday & Wednesday, and so was VERY tired last night. I ate a bit over a half bowl of soup, and went to bed at 5:30. I woke once to go to the bathroom, and then slept right on until 5:30 this AM. I would have hoped that meant I’d be better rested for the day, but it doesn’t seem to have helped!!! I’m just exhausted. I fixed a frozen breakfast for lunch, and am drinking a nice bottle of green tea. Krogers had it on sale the last two weeks, and green tea is supposed to be good for several reasons, so since it tastes good, and is diet sweetened, it’s a good thing for me.

I got a printer from a very wonderful gal on our bookswapping site that said it was just an extra she had sitting in the garage and she had only used it a very little, so I was welcome to it! How delightful to print my pages in color. I had scrunched the inspirational “You are Blessed” page I sent you a week or so ago, into 2 pages, but it just didn’t look very nice in B&W only. So, it was one of the first things I printed. Oh, my how it sparks up the book.

At my chemo session this week, I met with all my support people, and they each had things for me. The research nurse talked about my blood counts and said she would probably see if the DR wanted to have me come in for a mid session blood workup, since I had dropped so low. But that my counts were up enough that I didn’t have to have any blood units to be able to get my treatment.

The nutritionist and naturapathic, both had some good recipes for me, including an immune system soup recipe & several smoothies to add some protein powder to. The naturaphathic also recommended an amino acid that should give my digestive system a boost, and I do believe it is helping, tho I do have some constipation from the treatment, I think once that gets cleared, this will hopefully get my IBS under control. I haven’t felt any episodes from it since I started taking it on Monday, and that’s good, I usually don’t eat anything at all without having to run to the bathroom (sorry for the graphic details :)  She says this will also help in my mouth too, to prevent the blisters I got last week.

Oh, I didn’t tell you about those, did I? Man, talk about a triple pain from who knows where! They told me in my initial training for the chemo to take special care with my mouth because I might get blisters and sores, and to brush more and use an antiseptic mouth wash. Well, the gal didn’t exactly give me all the details, and I didn’t get the paperwork read on that section, so I didn’t get the part to NOT use any commercial mouthwashes from the store, since they all contain alcohol, and when I went to the store, the only mouthwash that said ‘antiseptic’ was Listerine! You can’t imagine how painful that stuff is when your mouth is full of blisters! Oh, my Lord!

I was going to talk to my DiL in Florida, but I didn’t want to bother her. She’s a Dental Hygenist, and has access to all kinds of things for me. I did finally call and talk to her, and she was upset that I hadn’t told Todd how bad it was. She said first thing the next morning she was going to buy me some special mouthwash, toothpaste, and a spray for my dry mouth. They should be here in a day or two now. Maybe I’ll get lucky and won’t even get the blisters this time, but if they do come with every treatment, at least I will be able to treat my mouth much better than asaulting it with Listerine! They all told me an antiseptic mouthwash can be as simple as salt water!!! D’oh! me! I knew that Amazing how dumb my brain has gotten lately!

I just checked mail and my care package arrived full of goodies for my mouth to keep it clean and safe, and happy should it break out again! Bless my darling son, for finding such a precious woman to be his sole mate!

Well, I’ve got a comfortable tummy, fluids to relax with, and a book that is getting to the good part of the plot. I have no more errands or appts today, so I think I’ll step over to the easy chair and just relax for a while.

I want to take a moment to pray for Lester and Marilyn, and their families. Some friends I know again, from the book swapping site. Lester had a stroke, and is in a coma, and probably will not recover. They have both been very supportive of me in these past few weeks and while I’m very sad for the coming loss to Marilyn and the families, when the Lord is ready for Lester, I believe that Lester is ready to go home. And home is a good place to be. God bless you, Lester, and may you be in His sweet arms soon. Marilyn, I pray for the strength that Lester expects of you to carry on as you have in the past. It will take some getting used to, but remember, you will be reunited with him, when the Lord has assigned His last task for you, too.

Trusting in the Lord to take care of all of us, may he grant you each the special need that you have from Him today. Whether it be wisdom, courage, compassion, trust, strength, faith, love, care, healing, mercy, forgivness, or just hope, may it be granted in abundance and in His will and in His time. Remember, all of our lives are built around a grand scheme of things, that the Lord has carefully laid out. And if we are just receptive to his guidance and directions, even the pain and trials that we go thru are for purposes. The devil may wage his war with the Lord for our souls, but God is always in control, even when we forget to let him have the steering wheel.

In this bout with cancer, it has been my firm belief that my complete submission to God’s will has been my biggest blessing. I have from day one of this whole event, had nothing but faith in His planning and guidance. Altho a few times, I wondered if he was going to be able to do anything with the insurance company, even that was worked out and carried according to His wishes, not those of man. He has blessed me in so many ways, I’ve met so many people, and had so many people caring for me during this time, it is truly been a curse with more silver linings than I would have ever thought possible. I don’t wish it upon anyone, but if you have to have something really bad happen to you, I pray that you will be able to trust in His guidance and let him take control. I know I plan to do a lot more of that with the smaller things in my life. I’ve found it to be such a blessing to know that He is taking care of me, that I wonder why I worry about so many things. Maybe this is the start of a new me? Who knows

God bless and keep each of you close to His heart, and know that I appreciate every prayer that goes up in my behalf. You are all so wonderful to care about me and it greatly inspires me to be a better person to live up to being cared for so much.

Have a great day, while I go have a great nap
Sherry

From Marcus

Sherry has been very tired this week. Saturday she started to run a fever, by sunday morning it was 101.9. I insisted that we call the Cancer Center. They told her go to the ER. The Dr. there tried everything she could to keep here over night at least, but her oncologist said to release her. Also told her to wear a mask if she went anywhere. She told me to bring her back if she even looked funny. She also called on monday morning to see if all was ok. It is nice to know that the ER Dr. cared enough to follow up with her

Her Dr. called and had her come in to do some additional lab work on Monday afternoon. Her white cell count was extremely low, and red cell count had also dropped significantly. She also had lost 7 pounds in a week. They were unhappy about that, told her she must eat more so she doesn’t lose any more. They told her she isn’t to worry about her sugar levels but to take more insulin if she needs to.

God Bless, Marcus

Hi, Everyone!

Many thanks to my husband for giving you an update, he’s so thoughtful and helpful. And a great date book!! What would I do without him!

Anyway, I did get a nice full update done this am, but it was time to go by the time I got it finished, and had no time left to even post it. So, here’s this mornings up date onhow things are going for now….

Well, I’m sure you are all anxious to know how yesterday went and how I’m doing today. Yesterday went really, really well! And today I’m slightly nauseous but not too bad. We’ll see how them meds do when they kick in.

I put the numbing med on like it was supposed to be done for my port, and never even felt the stick. That was SO great!!! No pressure nothing. I was really glad for that! If you ever have to have a port or know of someone that does, be sure to tell them to ask for the lidacaine ointment and proper instructions on using it! Makes the world of difference! Oh, my you wouldn’t believe!

Anyway, the chemo, went really well. With all the other things that go along with it, you are there for nearly 6 hours. But they feed you a nice lunch, so that’s a bonus There’s also lots of snacks, pretzels and other things, along with coffee, tea, water flavorings, and sodas. Really nice selections. So that’s good too.

First you have a blood draw to make sure your blood levels are high enough. My hemoglobin is a bit low, and I’ll probably have to have a consultation with the DR next week or so on bringing that up. I’ve always had a problem with it being low. And once the chemo starts attacking it, I will go below safe levels pretty fast. I eat lots of protein, meat & green veggies, so may need to either go on a med enhancer or just find something stronger to eat that boosts red blood cells more intensely.

Then you go talk to the Physicians assistant and DR if needed, she checks your blood and discusses any other test results you’ve had. I didn’t see him this week, I think he’s out on vacation. But, if not before, I’m sure we will talk about my blood count next week.

We go back to the infusion lab, where they hook up the saline drip, and a couple bags of one chemical concoction. A little later they bring another to infuse directly into the line with huge syringes. They want it in faster, for whatever reason Then they change to a third chemical concoction. I could tell you all about what’s in them, but that’s boring, just know it suff that will burn the crap out of your skin if it gets on you, so think what it might be doing to my veins and my organs as it gets processed. And we wonder why we get sick from the stuff! Hahahaha

During my infusions, I spent time with the Mind & Body gal who taught us (Marcus too) a little about using music and deep relaxation for pain, insomnia, anxiety, etc. I listen to a lot of soothing, easy listening music, but no one has ever really talked about the physical techniques of preparing your body to be more receptive to the music and flow along with the relaxation. It was really nice, and since I didn’t sleep all night Sunday (just a thing of mine, even when going on a trip, I never sleep the night before, I’m always still getting ready I actually did fall asleep, but not before I really fell the heaviness and soothingness effecting my body as I thought about it and tried to go to a warm loving peaceful place in my mind.

She asked if we got to a good place, and I told her it was kind of weird, I know I was someplace else, and it was full of colors, peaceful and beautiful, but that’s as much a I could describe of where it was. Maybe it wasn’t a place, just a state, or just some beautiful peace that God gave me, because it was certainly nothing on this earth. I do know there was water, but not sure if it was a beach or stream or something else. Interesting. Maybe I was just hallucinating! Hahahahah great hallucination if it was I’ll take it anytime!

Then I talked a bit with the nutritionist about my hemoglobin, then the clinical trials nurse about the study. Had some lunch, and read a bit. Then a gal came in and was looking thru the hats and scarves they had in a basket there on the desk. I decided to join her and talk to her, since no one had mentioned them to me before. They are all really nicely made, and I was so pleased with the choices! The turbans were mostly too small for me, but they were really nice, with some beadwork on the little roll piece in the middle of the front. I did find one that fits, but no beadwork. But it’s not like that is a problem. I used to make jewelry, and still have a couple thousand dollars worth of beads and supplies upstairs! I’ve got some beautiful amethyst stones that if I can find some smaller ones, they will look great! It’s a very lovely lavender. Plus I got a couple different varieties and colors of tie around ones. They are really nice too. I had been given some hats already, and unless I just don’t know how to wear them, they really didn’t impress me at all, and I was quite depressed about them. The one nurse said they worked with the group that makes their scarves & hats before they got their’s looking so good and now everybody loves them!

I called my kids last night to tell them how it went after supper, but I was trying so hard to fall asleep, they kept asking me what I’d just said? And I had to tell them I didn’t know, I had no clue! Hahahah then they’d tell me I was starting to slur again, and I’d perk up a bit for a little more. Finally, each of them said they had enough and I should just go to sleep! Hahahaha and I did fairly early last night, but not before I had a little treat of a tiny container of ice cream from my Dad. Being from him made it extra special.

He doesn’t know what I’m going thru, he has dementia and we all felt it better if my sister and I were just “sick” not telling him any more than that. This weekend is the first I’ve seen him in over a year because I was the one that put him in the nursing home in the first place, and he was really mad at me for it. It didn’t help that two of my sisters told him a bunch of lies and no one else would say it was because the doctor insisted, just that Sherry was the only one that could get him out, and they didn’t know why he was there! No balls, tell him he’s sick and the DR said he has to stay people! But, no, they’d rather let me be the bad guy, so he was mad at me for a long time, and I just didn’t wan to risk upsetting him, because I also knew how much it would upset me. But with no idea what this chemo might do to me, I just knew I had to go out to see him.

It was a good visit, and then the next day, he and his girlfriend stopped by and he stayed for a long time, and he asked if I would come out once a week and bring him to my house to stay for a few hours. Neither of the other girls that are close come out to see him, and all his siblings have either stopped or slowed way down. I’m going to spend some time seeing if I can’t get him involved in some of the activities out there. He doesn’t do anything except sit in his room.

Well, the meds seem to be calming my stomach down, they said I should wait at least 45 min after taking them before eating. So, I’ll go give it a try and see if it is successful! I have some appts today and tomorrow, but not too long ones, and then resting for the rest of each day and all day Thurs & Friday

Seems like all the prayers that have been pouring in for me are really keeping me on the good side of the treatments. And I thank you all for thinking of me and writing me periodically. It’s really funny how there must be a spiritual influence on how many letters or PMs I get a day. Just enough to keep my spirits up, but not so many that I’m over whelmed. So, if you’ve wanted to drop me a line, and haven’t because you thought I was getting to many, please take a minute and do so. I love hearing back from you all, even if it’s just a short note. If the spirit nudges you, listen, you might just have the words I need today, to make it thru.

May each of you have a splendid day, and feel as well for your circumstances as I do. We each have our own burdens to carry, and while not everyone shares them, I know you have them. For every person that I talked to or hear from, I say a return prayer, that God is blessing you in the manner that He has been taking care of me, and that you are open to His arms a gifts to your life. Even if we don’t recognize them as gifts, if the come from God, they come with a purpose and reason in the great tapestry of life. Find the meaning for everything that happens in your life. He lets nothing come to us or thru us without there being a related event directly or indirectly affected by that event. Look around you and see who you can help with your experiences or troubles or knowledge. Give a smile, and inspiration, or even just a hello. You might just make the brightest spot in their day, and all the difference in the world to them.

God Bless and keep each of you, and know that I appreciate the friendship and sharing from each one of you. If you find something funny, inspirational, or just good reading, or the internet or somewhere else, please feel free to send it to me. I’d love to have it. I’d like my meditation book to be full. The nurses enjoyed looking at what I have so far, and thought my map was the most awesome thing they’s ever seen anyone do! Thank you each for being part of my life at this time.

Love and hugs to all, Sherry!!

Oh, and if you have something that emails send it to sherry@nislycreations.com If it’s needs snail mail send it to

SHERRY L. NISLY
318 S 10TH ST
GOSHEN IN 46528-3514

From Marcus:

Sherrys Chemo went well today. It took a lot longer then expected. She wanted to update for herself, but was very tired afterward. She took a nap soon after we got home. woke up to eat and talk to our kids. then another nap while trying to do a few things at her ‘puter. finally went to bed. We will see what tomorrow brings as she has 2 more appointments at the hospital.

Thanks to all for your continued support, Marcus

Hi, Everybody!

Well, time to get my big girl hat and boots on and get ready for chemo. I start on Monday. I went this week to a training session, where they made sure I was aware of all the possible side-effects, and what to do about some of them. Things to watch out for and such.

They gave me a tour of the area. They showed me where the coffee pots are Very important when you have to go early in the AM (they also have several choices of tea for Marcus) plus there are snacks and some of those little packets of water flavorings. And they have portable CD players with quite a stack of CDs. I have some music already selected for myself, but now I won’t have to drag along a player. That’s helpful.

I have to go in early to get my blood tested, to make sure my hemoglobin is high enough to withstand the chemo, then I get a shot that’s supposed to help with the nausea (let’s keep our fingers crossed on that one too!), then a short visit with the DR and then on to the Infusion room for the next 2-4 hours.

I go back the next day for a shot that will help my system rebuild by white blood cells, and if my red cell count gets too low, then I have to go on a special diet. I’ve heard that red meat is not tolerated well by the digestive system during chemo, so I’m having steak for dinner tomorrow!! And then I’ll probably leave it alone for the next several months. No sense aggravating an already rough situation with a known agitant.

I don’t think I’ve updated since I made my definite decision to take part in the clinical trial. I weighed all the possible side-effects that were already listed with the drugs I’ll already be taking, and there are only a couple extras. And while it could increase the risks of some of the duplicated side-effects, I really think it is a good choice. With my history, I know that I’m probably in a higher risk for having the cancer return, even tho they have really cut those total odds tremendously, it still is a possibility. So I really feel I have to do the extra step to ensure I’ve done all I can to safeguard against it.

I was going to have a genetic study done to see if I definitely carry the gene mutation identified for breast cancer, which would give a heads up for all the other females in my family, but unfortunately, with the state insurance I have, they don’t pay for out of state costs. Although they did offer me a “5 easy payment plan” several times while I continued to tell her I couldn’t possibly afford the $3800+ test! Some people just don’t listen well hahahaha

The dietician and the diabetic counselor really helped me a lot with my insulin and diet. I think I need a little more tweaking and help, but they are both very knowledgeable and willing to help me get things under control.

I really hate doing this stuff. It feels like I do nothing but focus my life around my sugar and the cancer. I’ve spent so many days and hours in meetings, conferences, reading papers given to me, finding more info online. Only to then spend the remaining time testing my sugar, giving insulin, eating, testing sugar again, resting/reading/listening, testing sugar again, eating, taking insulin, testing sugar, and taking more insulin!!! Geesh, and beginning next week, I add some more injections and time at the hospital! Anybody want to volunteer just to keep track of my schedule for me?

I started lymphedema therapy last week, and will meet with her to make sure I’m doing enough and proper exercises to keep ahead of that (oh, yeah, I forgot to add in my schedule above, that I try to walk a little every day, and do a session of stretching exercises so that I can keep the lymphedema down, and the body waking up! Whoever takes over my date book, needs to remind me to do those every day too! So, don’t think you are signing up for an easy job if you want to be my schedule keeper! Poor Marcus has his hands full, constantly reminding me of things. That reminds me, he slept thru supper, I just had some salmon salad. Yummy. But, that means even tho I remembered to test my sugar BEFORE supper, I didn’t test after, AND I didn’t take my meds!!! Geesh, I think I lost my brain somewhere, anybody find a stray one???

I have to tell you a good funny situation before I go. We decided that since after next week I may not feel like or care to eat many things, I should enjoy some special dinners this weekend, so we went out to a Chinese restaurant the other night, and to Olive Garden for lunch today. I’m not sure what the waitress said but Eric was encouraging me to eat what I wanted and not be concerned with cost or diet. Today was to be a special meal for me, and the waitress said, “Oh, what did you do to deserve a special day?” Well, I looked at each of the others, and we just couldn’t help but start giggling. Which of course puzzled her.

I told her before explaining, that she should not feel bad, because we love to get a laugh in anywhere we can, and then told her what I did to deserve the day was got cancer. We really did rush and pour out to her to not feel bad, tho you know she was very sorry, but I told her that I really did appreciate the humor in it, and that it was just too ironic to pass up. She said as long as it brings a smile to my face, she was glad to have made the blunder. I told her I was going to put it into my inspiration book, that I’ve found another silver lining to getting cancer. “I’m eating really good this weekend if nothing else!!!” hahahahaha

So, anytime any of you start feeling sorry for me, remember–before, during, and I’m sure for a while afterwards, I will get little and great perks here and there that will fill in those little gaps that make this a rough road to hoe!

Keep smiling with me, and even try to find something funny or inspirational for me to think about. I’ll add it to my book that I will be taking to my chemo treatments and reading during the week when I just don’t feel like reading anything else.

Well, I’m off to bed. I took a nap too late in the day, so am just now getting tired. And don’t worry, I’ll take my meds first

Blessings to all, and have a super weekend!

Sherry

Today Pam thought she would send an online flash Irish Blessing:

http://www.e-water.net/viewflash.php?flash=irishblessing_en
Thinking Good Thoughts for Your Recovery, Pam

Thank you, Pam. That one and all the others were very beautiful. I appreciate the link. Those are full of beautiful music, words, and pictures. I wish I owned more Irish/Celtic music. I have a lot of good listening music from Yanni and various other NewAge musicians, plus a lot of instrumentals & classicals. But, I’m lacking in the Irish/Celtic music area.

Sherry

Here’s a little more clarification on my treatment plan. I still have 3 drugs of chemo. The study would add a fourth, not replace the regular chemo. I don’t have much choice about taking the 3 drugs. Those are pretty much a given, if I’m going to be sure it doesn’t come back. The fourth drug, while having a coupld side-effects that are not listed in the first 3, also carries the probability of improving my chances of the cancer NOT coming back. Also, the 4th drug is taken at the same time as one of the others so it doesn’t increase treatment time, unless I’m in the group given the opportunity to continue.

I will still have the 4 initial treatments spaced 2 wks apart, for the first 6 wks. Then begin a regime of 12 treatments with or without the trial drug of 1 treatment every 7 days for 12 weeks. So, I’m in for about 18 weeks, regardless. Then if I’m in the study, and am in the one group, then I would be given the opportunity to continue with the new drug 10 times 21 days apart (I believe it is in pill form) if I choose.

I think there are only a couple side-effects that are not listed on at least one of the other 3 drugs. One is a possibility of diabetic neuropathy developing in my hands or feet, but as soon as it is noticed, if we stop the drug, it is reversable. Also, this is mildly a side-effect if one of the chemo drugs, so, its likely to happen anyway, but not as severe.

As everybody knows, the chemo will decrease both my white & red blood cells, but with the trial drug, the decrease in white cels will possibly be 24% vs. the normal 16% without the extra drug.

Blood clots is an additional risk with the trial drug. It is more of a risk to those age 65+ where they’ve seen an increase from 2.9% with chemo alone to 8.5% in this age group with this trial drug.

Both, with or without the added drug, I risk getting Leukemia, damage to the esophogus & stomach lining, heart damage (I’m taking an echogram Wed for base monitoring) including higher or lower blood pressure, palpatations or irregular heartbeats, and some others.

With or without the trial drug, I stand a risk of internal bleeding, in both the stomach and the intestines, but the risk is higher with the trial drug. But, these were seen primarily in the use of the drug with patients that had colorectal cancers and were receiving higher doses. Also the higher risk of lung damage or bleeding was seen in the lung cancer patients, again using higher doses.

This is the first trial, I believe where it is being used in lighter doses on a lower level of cancer. It has proved itself in stage IV breast cancer increasing the length of time before progression continued, and increased remission rates. The same types of usage has been done with higher stages of lung and colorectal cancers. But, this is the first time it is being used on those that have a good chance of total remission without the drug already. The hope is that this will bring those with early stages of breast cancer into an even higher level of survival rate, without as many side-effects because of the lesser doses.

With all the other side-effects considered, and only the possibility of higher percentages of a couple of them (meaning I might/probably have those problems anyway, it will just be to a higher degree or a higher possibility with the trial drug) I guess I’m not as inclined to be anymore afraid of the additional drug as I would be if I was taking it alone. The standard chemo cocktail already contains enough side-effects to knock down healthy (other than the cancer), vigorous individuals, so what’s a little more?

I might get lucky and really be assured of never having the cancer come back (of course, I run that possible benefit even without the added drug). And I might get lucky and only serve as a counter-balance by receiving only the placebo medicine.

It can lengthen my treatment time, if I’m in the right group, and chose to continue, but I would also have the option of saying, I’ve tested the extra drug enough. I’m ready to quit, with no problems. So, the length of treatments doesn’t have to be increased at all.

Wednesday I will have a chance to ask the DR how much he considered my present and previous health factors before offering me this study, and obviously if he feels truly they pose no extra risk to me. I am obese, lead a sedentary lifestyle, diabetic, have Fibromyalgia, and have a disease called Sarcoidosis, which is an auto-immune disease already, but it seems to be under control again with a mild dose of Prednisone. Or if he just recommended the study with a cursor glance that I didn’t have any major serious things that might effect the study and based his decision primarily on the fact that my higher risk cancer makes me a candidate.

I think that’s about all I can share on this study at this point, and after talking to the DR on Wednesday, and find that he has no problems with my existing health being a problem, I will probably go ahead and participate. I’ve been back and forth on this probably a dozen times, but I think with the time I’ve sat and looked at what I’m already going to receive, risks, possibilities, side-effects, and the few increased or additionals, it doen’t matter much more than the difference between the Atlantic and the Pacific. They are both huge, and once you get that big, you are way past being a lake, so why worry now!???!

Please pray that I am making God’s choice and that this is what he feels is best for me. He’s kinda hard to read sometimes, so maybe if everybody asks, and the question is really loud, He will answer really loud!??!!

Blessings to all of you, and may you have a wonderful day! I’m going to get aspirated again, so I’ll feel better later hahahaha
–Sherry