One More Step

This is a rather gorgeous morning this morning, as I sit and look at it over my laptop.  There is a spray plane noisily spraying the field north of us.  When I poked my nose out at 5 am as Lynette left to de-tassel, I didn't say anything to her about the weather.  What is cool and lovely to me, will be wet and cold in the middle of the cornfield until about 11 when it will be stifling....and still wet. 

I am learning so much about how my body works and a lot of other things in this ordeal.  I am finally feeling well enough to type (with tylenol).  Even typing hurt my chest muscles yesterday.  I really should be doing office work.  

Friday I had the bone scan.  I rather dropped the ball on that one, and didn't ask enough questions.  I was injected with radioactive stuff and told to come back in three hours and then had a full body scan.  I want to call to day and get the results.  I didn't know it was going to be a radioactive injection.  There is a little room down in radiology marked with signs, and one man that handles the radioactive material.  He was the first one who I haven't been really impressed with his bedside manner.  He was joking around and I didn't think joking about radioactive stuff, nor anything else was necessary or appropriate.  I think he is the one who will administer the radioactive sugar injection for the PET scan.  It sounded like he was the only one who handles the radioactive material.  

I got the injection in my vein with a heavy walled square syringe, anything he used looked well ....like heavily protected stuff would be in it and he filled the syringe behind a clear shield.  

Then the scan was just a scan.  Lying down on a table with some sort of thing (it was flat) that slowly moved the length of my body.  It's closest to the face, about an inch, but soon moved past that.

Monday then, we were at the hospital at 6 am to be admitted to out-patient surgery.  There is the neatest little set up for surgery.  There is a little waiting room and dressing/bathroom connected to the prep/recovery room.  I had the heart monitor pads and the IV put in before Jim could see me, then we had to wait an hour for my 7:30 surgery time.  

I've discovered that my veins really aren't that easy to find for IV's.  I mentioned to the nurse who put mine in that while I was in the hospital they warmed my arm, and it went in easy.  So, she wrapped my arm in a warm blanket, and put the IV in my wrist.  Slick, and the first time, too!

I was just sedated for this surgery and since I hadn't slept well the night before, I was tired and ready to be out.  The procedure really is a quick one, which two incisions being made. One to thread a long silicone tube into a big vein in my chest, rather like a heart catheter and another slightly larger one to put the port in.  It is completely inside my skin, there is nothing to show on the outside except a slightly raised spot. (At least, I guess so, I'm still bandaged and I'm not touching anything right now.) The port is a little larger than a quarter with a self-healing rubber top that can be pierced with a needle.  So, I will still be poked through the skin, through the rubber, and the medicine, fluid, and chemo will be put in that way.   

The port will be removed when I don't need it anymore.

I really think it will be easier on me this way.  They are putting some pretty powerful stuff in me and even though chemo is every three weeks, it is three days that week, and it may be that I will need extra fluid or blood in-between times.  

I just seem to be going on without thinking too much of some of these procedures.  It is still very hard for me to imagine what my body is going to have to go through.  What I'm putting it through, but right now, there isn't any other way.  I believe I am doing the right thing, in spite of the doubts and fears.

So, even though I'm recovering, (again!) I can get some office work done, and feed myself, no strenuous work for the rest of the week!

It does get boring at times.