Saturday

Well, the nurses warned me that Saturday would be rough. The second day after chemotherapy is when the full effects are supposed to land like a ton of bricks. Well, let me tell you, they weren't joking. I woke up feeling like I had just been run over by a truck. Even with the anti-nausea medication I was on, the combined effects of the chemo and the massive dose of prednizone were a two sided attack on my stomach. I dragged myself out of bed so that I could watch "Thundercats" and "The Legend of Korra" with my wife and son.

By the time Korra was over, I felt like crap and retreated back to the bedroom, wondering how much longer I could last. Breakfast so far had been a bowl of reheated noodles and a few cups of fruit juice cut half with water. Lying in bed, I remembered that bananas usually settled my stomach, and the potassium couldn't hurt. It was a mental exercise to make myself eat. My stomach sure as hell wasn't interested in adding anything to its content, and my mind just couldn't decide if I was hungry or full, a direct side effect of the prednizone.

Startlingly, half an hour later, the worst of the stomach aches and the raging headache subsided enough that I was able to get up, and actually start to do some housework. I started with the kitchen, and after half an hour of that, I wrangled my son to help out.

That lasted about an hour before the fatigue set in and I crashed. I wish the rest of the day had gone better, but the sore stomach and the unpredictable/unstable appetite had me on the ropes most of the afternoon.

I was level enough to watch the Preakness race, and that was actually very exciting. But not long after I just felt like death warmed over and retreated for another nap.

Dinner was hamburgers, partly at my request because I knew I was light on protein today. In retrospect I think it was too much too fast, because I'd been fighting a bad stomachache all afternoon.

I guess the end note for today is that chemotherapy is not a foe to be battled lightly.

Frankly, it's hell.