July 26th -- Bleomycin day

Today was a surprisingly tiring day! I was feeling pretty good all weekend, and then I went in for today's treatment . . .
It was pretty low key actually. i didn't have to show up at the cancer center until 9:00 AM. I had some blood drawn for blood count statistics, etc. and then met with Monica, the nurse practitioner. I told her how I had been feeling (mostly tired and constipated) and she gave me some good advice on exercise and herbal remedies. FYI, "Smooth Move" tea works well apparently and is available at Whole Foods and other such stores.
After the nurse meeting, we determined that I was looking good after the first week of treatments and that there would be no changes in the schedule in the near future. I proceeded from there into the treatment room, saw my friend Mike and was promptly plugged into my Bleomycin drip for the day. I was super-tired, but managed to have some good conversations with Norm, Mike and some new guy with a lot of enthusiasm for fishing, crawdads, and conversation. I somehow never got his name to sink in, but he made an impression on everyone in his efforts to be generous to all. Mike had good news today in that his tumor markers are in half yet again-- this is a sure sign of marching towards a solid recovery! I am keeping my fingers crossed for him and his lovely famimly in hopes that things continue to go so well!
For me, my fatigue level continued to stay pretty high throughout the day, but I did get to hang out with my great friend Brett, who came by the center to spend time with me. after the uneventful treatment was over, we grabbed a coffee and he took me home. This was great since it saved Sarah a trip back to the center to pick me up after a busy day with playdates and other kiddie stuff.
Later in the afternoon, I started to have some discomfort. I decided that going with Sarah to get some coffee might be fun, so we took Hannah and Jack over to a local coffee shop and I had a chai latte. Mistake!! I started to feel pretty nauseated right away, but chalked it up to the earlier treatment. Sarah later went to a class at the Gym with Hannah in tow, and I stayed at home with Jack. Of course, Jack was a little grumpy for a while with his food supply out of the house, but after I got that under control, I started to feel bad again . . . followed by really bad, followed by the innaugural puking episode of my chemotherapy!!
So, that happened a few times, exhausted me, and I slept well that night!
One day closer to cured!