Nyquil is her friend!

This past week Connie has come down with a cold and a cough, probably due to the cooler weather. I finally talked her into taking some nyquil that I scrounged up in the cupboard and when she got up this morning she said she slept through the whole night. She didn't sound too stuffy when she woke up this morning, but she was still internally exhausted, nonetheless.

Since tomorrow is her first dry run radiation treatment, and Tue starts her first day of real treatment, she only attended Sacrament today and is in bed trying to rest up for it. Her treatments are only supposed to be 20 minutes from the time she arrives to the time she leaves, but we imagine just getting her undressed, radiated, then dressed again is still going to wear her out...it's best to get as much rest as possible, just in case.

And now for the Radiation...

Connie has been regaining some strength since her last chemo treatment. On Friday she had a visit with Dr. Thomson, a very tall Dr. who reminds me of a childhood friend's dad (Kendall Wahlquist/Fred Wahlquist). He came into the room and was curious wether or not we were going to go ahead with the treatment. Last time we talked he told us that she was in a grey area. We assured him that we are going to do everything to give her the best chance possible. With that he set Connie up to have a scan and to get a few tattoos. Found out that a few is 5...one on each side of her and three on her front side. Lasers use these tattoos to consistently line up where the radiation will be pointed during the treatment. There should be no variation from one treatment to the next. Treatments begin the week of 9/13 and last for 5 weeks. The 13th is a dry run, and the next 25 are live. No treatments on Sat & Sun! Side affects will be a loss of strength (but not as bad as chemo) and possible redness in the radiation area which can be helped by a number of ointments, etc.

Just an update...

Connie was really hit hard by this last treatment. She wasn't even close to making it into work yesterday and today she was able to only get to the kitchen and then take a quick shower and she was back into bed for the day totally exhausted. Here's hoping for a much better tomorrow!

GoodBye Chemo!

Last Thursday Connie endured her last chemo treatment. Her cousin, Shelly, was down from Washington and sat through it with her. Connie was given a bottle of apple cider that looks like a champagne bottle when her treatment was done from the center. She and Shelly picked up another cousin, Terri, and headed out to lunch. After that Connie headed into work for a few hours and her friend got her a beautiful flower arrangement for having finished.

She went to work on Friday after getting her final after-chemo shot and already noticed the effects taking place very early...in fact, she felt it Thursday night. Saturday we made it to Roberts for a 50% sale just before 10am, then we did a lap around the South Jordan Farmer's Market and then a quick trip to Harmons for some milk for the week-end. She spent most of the rest of Sat in bed.

Today (Sunday) we went to the Single's Ward to see Whitney (and her friend, Tawny) give their farewell speaches. Tawny went first, then a guy who's getting married in 13 days, and then a great musical interlude by Whitney (flute) and Eric Davis (piano). Then Whit got up and gave a great talk and we came home. Connie's been in bed, again, most of the day. She just wandered out to the couch for a little while so she could be more comfortable (change of body position) after she had dinner in bed. (Not as glamourous as that may sound!)

Still hanging in there

Connie is still pressing forward with her treatments...always tired from the inside out, she says. She has been able to reduce her workload at work a little bit, trying not to take on more than she can chew and trying to stay close to just 8 hours per day, rather than the 10+ hours she was trying to do earlier. She didn't go into work yesterday, but did do some laundry and dishes, which (of course) wore her out. Today she rested most of the morning and only went to Sacrament meeting. She made the comment today that she can't wait for the 19th (her last treatment) and then for the 3 weeks after that to start feeling a little better. Of course, about that time the radiation begins.

Facing Our Trials

I receive a "Daily Gems" and this one reminded me of my hero, Connie:

"Each of us will face trials and tests, and . . . it is how we react to those difficulties that will determine our success and happiness. Each of us will face adversity no matter where we are. We are taught in the scriptures that there 'must needs be . . . an opposition in all things' (2 Nephi 2:11). We will each face times of difficulty, and the question is not when we will face them but how we face them."
James B. Martino, "All Things Work Together for Good," Ensign, May 2010, 101

Getting Ready for Chemo #5 of 6

Well, nothing too new has happened over the past couple of weeks. Connie has gained enough strength to work some crazy long hours at work, but her life has mostly been going to work and coming home to sleep so she can get ready to go to work again. She still has her intermittant cough and has been taking some natural sleeping pills to help her stay asleep throughout the entire night...haven't helped a ton, but it does a little, so she will continue with that.
Tue night she will take Whitney through the temple to receive her endowments in preparation for leaving on her mission on Sept 1st. On Thur she goes in for Chemo #5.