Chemo Round 1 Update

[A note from Jannae: Thank you to all who have reached out and subscribed to stay updated with Dad’s journey – there are so many of you, not just across the US but in Japan and the Philippines, and we are so blessed to see how much of a community Dad has. I had a dream the other day that this even reached Zac Efron! (I woke up before I could figure out how he learned about this blog though…)

Dad finished his first round of chemo last night. He still does not have an appetite, so his discharge, originally scheduled for today, has been delayed until he can eat. We ask for prayers that he will be able to eat even little bites to get his strength back up.]

Thank you for coming along with my journey wherever it may lead. I am truly amazed at how God’s hand has used people as His instruments of love and mercy. I am amazed that from the point of hospital admissions to the first chemo treatment, it is such an abbreviated schedule – one without God’s hand would have been impossible. There are many unknowns in the future, but this I know – I trust in the Lord.

There have been funny moments and not-so-funny moments during my hospital stay – from my prepping for chemo to my current condition. One funny moment was when the nurses were setting up an over-the-door chemo triage packet. My nurse at the time was vertically challenged and unfamiliar with the setup. She grabbed the assistance of a much taller nurse but both were still struggling to find where to hook the packet to the door. Turns out, they were missing over the door hooks! The nurse quickly grabbed four of them! (A bag only needs two.) My comment was, “How many nurses does it take to hang a triage bag?” to which one of them replied, “In my defense, this is my first time setting it up!”

Another funny moment was when one of the nurses (Christina) was checking to see if my legs were swollen. In removing the blanket and exposing my feet, she commented on my toenails and how beautiful and pretty they were. [Jannae aside: Dad asked if he should take a photo of his toenails to include here, but Taylor said no feet pictures.] I mentioned I do like to take care of my fingernails and toenails, and she mentioned that people my age don’t get pedicures and don’t take care of their feet.

Yesterday I also got to regale some Disney stories to Robert, a PCA, after he mentioned he had a relative/friend who had a Disney internship with the college program. What started this conversation was that he said I was one of his best patients – not demanding and not entitled so I said I work for Disney and where I worked, we came across a lot of entitled people.

One of my nurses, Taylor, said I was a 1 patient on a scale of 1-5, with 1 being the best. She wondered why I asked that, and I relayed the story about Robert. [Jannae aside: Nurse Taylor’s mom’s name is also Pam! How funny. Dad really liked that coincidence.]

The first half of my chemo treatment wasn’t too bad. It was all new and I didn’t know what to expect, what pain I would be feeling, and what I would feel. The first part was manageable; I had some bouts with nausea, but the second half was no joke – it was ten times worse, and I was extremely tired, had no appetite, and was unable to get up and move my limbs. I had discussed appetite stimulant medication but the side effects were undesirable because it causes nausea and sedation, and I didn’t want more of that. Food fragrances during the second half also caused some nausea that I couldn’t maintain.

Since the chemo is still in my body, I am still experiencing more intensely the nausea and low energy level. It looks like I won’t be discharged today because I haven’t been eating, and I might still have an infection.