Three's a charm! Ha. (Wk 6 / Dose 3 + 7 days)
I had my third dose last Tuesday. Everything went like clockwork. I walked up from South Lake Union through Freeway Park both to get the blood flowing and to avoid the ruckus of the Sounders Parade. I arrived on time and had stopped in the day before for blood work so I didn't have to wait an hour for results. Settled in to my treatment room with the help of a nice nurse. Chatted with the doctor. Mom showed up when I was done and took me home. We had a nibble and a chat and I felt pretty AOK. I expected everything to go pretty much as it had before -- I'd feel OK for a few days, moderately off kilter over the weekend, and pop back to normal the following Tuesday. Ha!
This weekend was OK, but not as expected. We stopped in at the school auction on Friday and then drove to my parent's cabin. I slept in a little Saturday and spent most of the day cooking and chatting with friends. There was really nothing stressful or exhausting about it. Sunday morning I hit a wall and basically sat in a chair and watched videos until afternoon. I napped on the way home and went to bed as early as possible. Monday, I woke up feeling absolutely beat. I had a slight headache and decided it was a day to call in sick. I only got out of bed to eat and slept close to 12 hours that night. Apparently a recharge is what I needed and I woke up feeling good enough to dress, go to work and drag through the day. I'm nowhere near normal and not close to how I've been other weeks, but at least I'm functional.
Is this what they mean when they say symptoms get worse over time? Is this my new normal? Will I pop back in time for a few good days before heading in a week from today? I suspect the next dose will be harder to face...time will tell.
Back to the being bald part. The weekend I lost my hair I had played tennis with a friend. It wasn't great tennis and probably wasn't the best idea, but man it felt good to be back on the court. Sure, I felt a little 'off', like I'd just jumped on a boat in a somewhat rough sea and hadn't found my legs. I played anyway. After the match, as I washed my hair it started falling out by the hand full. I started wearing a wig the following day, but still had enough hair on my head I could have gone either way. Every time I touched or brushed my hair, more would fall out. It was really disconcerting. I tried being super careful as if not rubbing my head would keep it from all falling out. Over time I got used to it. The dread turned to fascination ('why are these clumps still hanging on but everything else is gone?"). This weekend I did a major scrub and now pretty much 100% bald. Bald. Bald. Bald It bothers me less. I wear scarves when I'm home and wigs when I'm out (don't want to scare any young children). The wig is cute; I keep getting compliments on my new hair cut.
Of the two symptoms I knew I'd experience - exhaustion and baldness - I thought baldness would bother me more. Now that I'm here, the unpredictability of the exhaustion if far more frustrating than putting a mop of plastic hair on my noggin every day.
This weekend was OK, but not as expected. We stopped in at the school auction on Friday and then drove to my parent's cabin. I slept in a little Saturday and spent most of the day cooking and chatting with friends. There was really nothing stressful or exhausting about it. Sunday morning I hit a wall and basically sat in a chair and watched videos until afternoon. I napped on the way home and went to bed as early as possible. Monday, I woke up feeling absolutely beat. I had a slight headache and decided it was a day to call in sick. I only got out of bed to eat and slept close to 12 hours that night. Apparently a recharge is what I needed and I woke up feeling good enough to dress, go to work and drag through the day. I'm nowhere near normal and not close to how I've been other weeks, but at least I'm functional.
Is this what they mean when they say symptoms get worse over time? Is this my new normal? Will I pop back in time for a few good days before heading in a week from today? I suspect the next dose will be harder to face...time will tell.
Back to the being bald part. The weekend I lost my hair I had played tennis with a friend. It wasn't great tennis and probably wasn't the best idea, but man it felt good to be back on the court. Sure, I felt a little 'off', like I'd just jumped on a boat in a somewhat rough sea and hadn't found my legs. I played anyway. After the match, as I washed my hair it started falling out by the hand full. I started wearing a wig the following day, but still had enough hair on my head I could have gone either way. Every time I touched or brushed my hair, more would fall out. It was really disconcerting. I tried being super careful as if not rubbing my head would keep it from all falling out. Over time I got used to it. The dread turned to fascination ('why are these clumps still hanging on but everything else is gone?"). This weekend I did a major scrub and now pretty much 100% bald. Bald. Bald. Bald It bothers me less. I wear scarves when I'm home and wigs when I'm out (don't want to scare any young children). The wig is cute; I keep getting compliments on my new hair cut.
Of the two symptoms I knew I'd experience - exhaustion and baldness - I thought baldness would bother me more. Now that I'm here, the unpredictability of the exhaustion if far more frustrating than putting a mop of plastic hair on my noggin every day.
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