Infusion No. 3

Welp, I lost my own hair bet. I predicted my hair would fall out over a period of 3 weeks and wow, was I WRONG! 

My hair started falling out last Monday (3/4) and by that Thursday evening (3/7) my hair was in complete state of disarray which was making me feel a lot more emotional about the whole thing. I decided I just needed to rip the band-aid and had Jeremy shave what was left.  I shed a tear or two at the first pass of the clippers but was quickly met with relief as I passed through to the next level - embracing my beautiful bald era. 

Luckily the universe blessed me with a good head shape and a cute face. 😏

On to Infusion No. 3 

Had my 3rd infusion this past Monday (3/11). Here is recap of how things typically go on infusion days:

1. Follow up exam w/ Doctor
2. Bloodwork (aka labs)
3. Pre-chemo drugs (Benedryl, steroid, pepcid, 3-day anti-nausea)
4. Chemotherapy #1 (Docetaxel)
5. Chemotherapy #2 (Carboplatin)
6. Immunotherapy (Pembro)

Follow up with the Doc went well. We agreed that it seemed like the tumor was shrinking. It was the first time since a week after the lump was found that it was not super tender and painful. All good signs that we are headed in the right direction. Next to the labs! 

If you remember, I had some additional bloodwork a week after infusion #2 to check my white blood cells (wbc). At that time my wbc count turned out to be extremely low, to the point where I had to take neutropenic measures (essentially quarantine to avoid contracting an infection that my body had no defense to fight). If my WBC couldn’t rebound naturally, I would have had to get a subcutaneous shot to stimulate my bone marrow to create more white blood cells. I’ve read this shot can make your bones hurt and cause significant fatigue. 

Good news!! Monday’s labs showed my WBCs shot up on their own (along with my red blood platelets) so, no stimulator shot and chemo could proceed as planned. My doctor said it’s possible I had a very mild virus that contributed to the dip we saw. As a precaution, I picked up some supplements to support white blood cell production - Zinc, and Folate (B-9, B-12).  I’ll keep taking those daily so I can keep those numbers up and keep living my life to the best of my ability while in treatment. On to infusion! 

I sat in the infusion room with other patients for the first time (previous sessions we were in a private room as we worked out the meds). I am hands down the youngest in the room, most everyone else in their 70s and 80s 🙃.  The rest of infusion was uneventful - just how we like it. I think this time we were there for a total of 5 hours, from 9:30am - 2:30/45pm.

As for my energy and how I am feeling three treatments in and my white blood cell count in good order - I was anxious to get back into the yoga room after laying low thanks to low wbc. I attended a yoga class on the Tuesday following infusion. I did what I could and while my energy was zapped by the end, I was so happy to be back to movement and with my studio community. It was also the soft launch of my new hair do. 

I taught my Wednesday night Barre class yesterday (3/13). The class was SO fun and everyone crushed it, myself included. I am so grateful for the empowerment and support from the BYB community as we navigate the changing landscape of treatment and side effects. 

Aside from getting back to movement, I have felt a little mentally spacey here and there - taking some extra time to align complex issues at work, or finding my keys, purse, or phone. Nothing serious, just noticing the delay and the need for a little extra processing time and giving myself the time and grace to move through it.

So, what’s next? 

Next infusion is Monday, April 1st, which will be the last infusion using the combination of chemo I’ve been on (Docetaxel + Carboplatin). After that, I will switch to a stronger type of chemotherapy called Doxorubicin or AC (Adriamycin), aka “the red devil”. I will do 4 treatments of this chemotherapy, over a period of 12 weeks (infusion once every 3 weeks). More about this chemotherapy later.

In the meantime, I will keep on with my rhythm of life as much as I can 🥰. 

But before I go…thank you, thank you, thank you to everyone who has sent gifts, meals and delivery gift cards, love notes via texts and cards, and more. The Amazon wishlist I quietly linked on the Ways to Support post wasn’t a big list - of which I was using to stash things I anticipated purchasing myself -  but most all of it has been gifted. Every day I am blown away by the love shown to myself and Jeremy. Thank you for walking alongside us through the storm. It makes all the difference. 

If you are waiting to hear back from us directly, please know we will follow up soon.

Until next time,

V♥️

Some media for ya - 

Hat girl summer coming in hot!

Hair loss progress and feelings

  

Post-shower, it had to go.

WBC rebound!