One down, five to go

[Guest guest]

Had my first chemo appointment yesterday. Glad to have done that

because as you all said...it's not as bad as you think it might be.

Had a combination of Taxotere, Cytoxan and Adriamycin with a little

Dexamethazone thrown in for good measure. Having a bit of a problem

sleeping. I think the Daxamethazone is making me somewhat hyper.

They gave me a prescription for a sleeping pill, but I hate the

thought of taking yet another drug. The anti-nausea meds seem to be

working (knock on wood).

I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving. Your posts truly

reminded me of all the blessings I have been given. Strange as it

may sound, the cancer has even been somewhat of a blessing. It has

taught me that I need to slow down and really start taking care of

myself. I can't do it all and it was a good wake-up call to remind

me not to. I enjoy the little things in life that I kept saying I

can enjoy later. The sky is bluer, the birds sing sweeter and that

first cup of coffee in the morning is really enjoyable! I focus,

really, really focus on the little conversations with my family and

friends. I smile more, shed a couple tears here and there, and laugh

a lot at the irony of the whole thing. I don't really care if my

hair is perfect anymore...it will be gone in the next two weeks

anyway. In some respect I am more comfortable with myself. I'm okay

with the diagnosis and I'm confident that I will beat this disease.

When I'm tired, so will the cancer be tired. It's a win-win

situation. I'm learning to be really creative tying scarfs around my

head. All my mom's old funky pins look really great on the two hats

I found.

Cancer is a journey and a quest. I'm going to make my quest one of

courage, dignity, humor and a lot of laughter and prayers. You all

take care and stay strong. You are all important to me!

Hugs,

Joy