Zero Day plus Two

 

So it's three days since they put the Melphalan into me, and it is - as expected - hitting other parts of me as well as my myeloma. In fact just looking at my photo, I wonder if it is making my beard whiter. Santa Claus here I come!

There are various common side-effects and I certainly have at least two of them. The first one is a pervasive fatigue or tiredness. I reckon over the last 24 hours I slept at least 12 of them, probably more. This is not like me. When I was first being treated for myeloma, I was on steroids and was waking up quite regularly at 4 in the morning, with loads of energy. Five months later and it is quite a change. 

I now wake normally about 8:30 or 9:00, and had to set double alarms to get to my early 8:30 appointment today. And when I got back at about 11:00 I went to bed for another hour and half, only to be woken when my sister Cathrine arrived. I knew I could powernap, but an hour and a half mid morning is not normal. 

It was really nice to have a socially-distanced chat and cups of tea with Cathrine, but it didn't make food any more appetising, which is the other side-effect that has hit me hard. They say you often feel nauseous or actually vomit as a side-effect, but this is something different. It's a though you feel you would be sick if you eat anything, without actually being nauseous. As with sleep, this is not the normal me. I am - and I have witnesses who will back this up - a trencherman, and I will lick my platter clean with a huge variety of contents. So to be such a plate-dodger now is very odd. I hope it will eventually mean I lose a few kilos in here, but I have to get something into me.

I found four things I could eat today: toast and some banana for breakfast, and some fruit jelly sweets and melon at lunchtime. But it's now six and I need to think of something I can get into me this evening. 

When I go up to the unit each day, the process is the same. The first thing is that they take bloods and then I have to wait for about two hours till they get the results back and tell me how I'm doing. Today, like the other days, was fairly normal, well normal give the presence of chemo drugs. So many blood cells are taking a dive, but it is still what they expect and nothing that will see me pulled back onto the ward. Which is how I would like it. The other nice thing they did today was the very kind nurse replaced the dressing on my PICC line, which had become very itchy. Much better now, so now I will be able to sleep even more!