My CT Scan

I had a CT scan on Thursday the 5th. I was originally supposed to have the scan done in December but since I was pregnant my oncologist postponed it. I believe that I have to have a scan every year to make sure that I do not have any tumors.  I will hope for the best.  I have a return appointment soon to go over the results of the scan with my doctor.  I will post then.

Sorry It Has Been So Long

Well...it has been 2 and one half weeks since the conclusion of my radiation treatments. I was so happy that day (March 12). I have NO more treatments of any type. As of the 12th, and even on into the end of that week, the only side effects that I had been aware of was that my skin appeared to be sun burned and that some of my hair was falling out from the left-bottom portion of my neck. Even though I was done with the treatments the radiation was still working in my body. It had been building up throughout my 17 visits and would continue to work for about 2 weeks after. But as soon as we left for the desert the part of my neck that no longer had any hair became VERY burned. If you see me you will see what I am talking about. It was so burned (like a major sunburn) that it was almost black. By the second week, it seemed to be healing but the discoloration was still very apparent.

So as of now my cancer is GONE. I will just have to wait, pray, wait, pray, and pray some more that the periodic scans I complete over the next 5 years all come out clean. Five years, I believe, is the amount of time you must wait to become officially cured of Hodgkin's Disease. So from now until then it is a waiting game.

The girls and I have been on Spring Break since March the 15th. We were in the desert for a week and spent the rest of the time here in town. However, our vacation has now come to an end. We go back to school/work tomorrow. Wish us luck because now there is only one vacation day left between now and the end of the school year on June 20th. That is a long time!

We went to the Pancake Breakfast held by the La Mesa Fire Department this morning and then went and bought an oven. So, YES, we have an oven that works now!!! A pretty nice one at that. I only had to wait 2 and one half years. So I went to Target and bought a bunch of new bakeware and some cake and brownie mixes. I made the brownies as soon as I got home. Now we are gonna have to get a fridge, microwave, and dishwasher to match. :-)

Radiation Symptoms Appear!

Well, yesterday was the first day that I was able to feel that there was something not quite right with my throat. Today it has been very apparent. It is hard to describe the feeling. It kindof feels like a soar lump in the back of my throat. It seems to be irritated most when I am eating. The radiation tech. told me that the irritation will get progressively worse during my 7 remaining treatments. She also said that most people end their treatment in a whisper. Then it will take about 2 weeks after my treatment for the throat issues to disappear.

At least my sinus infection seems to be clearing up - FINALLY. To give you an idea of how sick I was and how horrible I felt,

The FLU invaded our house!

I have not posted recently because the girls and I have been really sick. This all started last Wednesday.

WEDNESDAY: I got a call from Ramon at about noon. He said that the school had called him telling him that Mina needed to be picked up because she was running a fever. So I rushed over since I was on my prep and picked her up. She stayed with me in my class until school was over. I worked on my sub plans for Thursdays and finished teaching the lessons so they could know what to do for the next day.

THURSDAY: I took Mina to the doctor in the morning. We layed in bed the remainder of the day and rested. I was not feeling that well either and my cough was getting worse. It was during the night that Sophia started running a fever of 103º + degrees.

FRIDAY: By the morning it was clear that Sophia was now really sick too. So it was Mina, Sophia, and I that stayed home. Again, we stayed in bed all day. We did not get up until it was time to pick Bella up from school. I was also pretty sick by this point too. I was also running a low grade fever.

SATURDAY: Mina was starting to feel better (I think because she had a birthday party to go to today). She was motivated to be well. However, Sophia was still running her 103º + degrees fever. It was not letting up. It would o down with the Tylenol but about very 5-6 hours it would be back. I was stil not well either.

SUNDAY: to be continued....

MONDAY:

TUESDAY:

WEDNESDAY:

THURSDAY:

FRIDAY:

SATURDAY (today):

My 2 month anniversary

Today is my 2 month anniversary celebrating the completion of my chemo treatments. Too bad I am sick. Well actually both Mina and I are sick. After visiting the doctors this morning, we came home and were resting in bed the rest of the day. We are both staying home from school again tomorrow. Having a cough brings back memories of the last time I was sick. It was back in April of 2007, with my last cough, when I had the chest xray in which my tumor was found. I am not going to post very much today as I don't really feel up to it...plus I still have to take a trip to work in a bit to leave my lesson plans for tomorrow.

More RADIOACTIVITY

Well, I now have 2 radiation therapy treatments under my belt. Today I was actually counting: 1-1000, 2-1000, 3-1000, 4-1000, etc. and here is what I came up with. When they radiated my from above it took about 23 seconds, the moving of the machine took about 43 seconds, and the radiation from below me took about 11 seconds. So, I think that my numbers today are more accurate than the numbers that I posted yesterday.

Well, Marina is sick. I had to pick her up from school at about 11am as she had a fever of 103 degrees. So I am staying home with her tomorrow. I am not feeling the greatest either. I have had a cough since last Thursday and today it has been worse. We both have appointments to see the doctor tomorrow. I'll let you know what they tell us. Either way. the radiation will continue so I have that appointment as well.

"RADIOACTIVITY"

Today was my first official day of radiation therapy. It was a piece of cake and went sooooooo fast. It took them longer to place me on the table correctly than to radiate me. The machine emitted radiation from over me for about 10 seconds, it moved positions (approx. 30 seconds), and then emitted radiation from underneath me for about another 10 seconds. So do the math, 50 seconds in total. The rest of the time again, was spent on placing me on the table and my changing in and out of the fabulous gown that I keep in cubby #6. I was told that the radiation will build up in the body. It is not until about 1.5 weeks into the process that the effects will become noticable. So I still feel fine. We'll see how I am doing by next week.