Cycle 3 is over TODAY!!!

This one went exceptionally well. They gave me better meds that led to an emesis score of “0”! And if you don’t know what “emesis” is, build your vocab & look it up :-). No big side effects, just very sleepy. But, made a few strides this week:

1. Monday was “THE DAY”…finally the head shaving occurred & it was dealt with style & hygiene by my new barber, Amit! Might I say that I look pretty Hot! It’s a beautiful smooth head. It’s quite tempting to just rub it all the time…but believe it or not, hair’s already starting to grow again. Go figure, it’s Bangali hair, it does not stay hidden for long.

2. I finally had enough counts to get out of home this week. Went to the hospital on Monday (NOT as a patient, but rather as a provider for a class…hey it doesn’t matter if I’m an inactive provider, I was still there, & I learned, & that’s all that matters!). Also gotta meet most of my favorite colleagues, albeit, it was a short visit! I do miss working though…nothing like working in medicine!

3. I had enough energy to run a few errands after my chemo yesterday, and after a nice long nap, even made it to JK, purposefully after all the services were over! Too bad I missed the rumor mill…would’ve loved to know what people are saying about me. Apparently, someone got my name confused with another person & told others that she had cancer (who knows if this girl even exists, although, it is quite a common name). Boy, if she really exists, she’ll be surprised to learn about her diagnosis…ouch! I did get a few stares, but was unable to determine if they were out of pity or just to confirm that ‘yes, she’s the one’…not really a bother, I guess it comes with the territory! It was certainly worth it to catch up with friends, and of course the reason for which we go to JK!

As strong as I’ve been throughout this process, I momentarily thought the world was over when ice cream tasted bitter yesterday :-(. ICE-CREAM & BITTER in the same sentence, now that’s a first. So, I had pistachio home-made ice cream today, & my world was again filled with HAPPINESS – doesn’t take much, does it?

So, I too fell prey to receiving a medicine that I have worked quite closely with, even prior to PA school when I had the opportunity to work in a Heart Failure program, not that I have heart failure by any means. It was an awkward moment, but I asked for it, and I told the nurse that the dose is too much for me, & she realized it after giving it to me :-). Well, at least my experience is coming quite handy. It’s amazing how much I’ve learned about medicine & patient care in the last 2 months that I didn’t learn while I was practicing. But this experience will so make me a better PA. I’ve become my own provider at times, treating myself, catching things early enough to prevent serious damage; I am my own nurse; I am my own social worker! I did decide though to delegate the positions of nutritionist & massage therapist to family members :-). It keeps the practice of medicine alive in my mind at least, more than just cardiology, more than just diagnosis & treatment…but the whole nine yards! Hopefully, I’ll have much more to offer when I’m ready to work again!

I’m still getting calls almost on a daily basis with new friends & acquaintances finding out, so the fire is still spreading! Spoke to my surgical preceptor from my 2nd year in PA school, and hands down he totally recommended the surgeon who’ll do my surgery. “He’s the man in the entire nation” he said, which I already knew, but it’s always comforting to hear that again from friends who’ve actually trained with him. Emory has done close to – oh say somewhere in the single digits – with this kinda surgery. My surgeon has done 5000+! There is no question where I’m having this surgery…thanks to my oncologist who found him & all the other resources that have gotten me thus far. And like my oncologist says, “other than being in an oncologic predicament, Amynah, you’re quite lucky!” And that I AM!

With the next cycle, I’m having a couple dear friends visit from Kansas & Oklahoma! Perhaps, they should write the next blog as their experience…Becca & Leslie, you’re on the spotlight…and please add in lil Joseph’s language too :-).

This one was more content related than the last blog. I think it’s because I’m still sleepy, but I’m tired of sleeping. I’m looking forward to the weekend, because my oncologist has given me permission to enjoy the festivities (within reason of course!).
BTW, I have had a few people say that others were interested in reading my blog. Please fwd their names to me so that I can invite them b/c this is not an open blog for all.