Hi Friends,My body's recovery and renewal is here evidenced in new nail growth. The old growth is ridged and yellow, the new is mostly smooth. What's interesting is that you can see several rings of colour, each one representing a dose of taxol. So glad that's all done.
Speaking of being done with treatment, my friend and colleague Karen Fredrickson finished her last round of chemo today in Kingston. I hope her recovery is going well tonight.
My physio is coming along pretty well, and I'm now practicing putting my arm up into an imaginary radiation cuff. I won't know until Monday if what I remember of the cuff is accurate, but I'm much more stretched out than I was several weeks ago and I think I'll be ok.
I now have more fluid under my right arm which has resulted in a hard ridge under that arm (it's covered in scar tissue). I'm not sure why that arm is having a rough go given that only two nodes were removed, but there it is. If it doesn't go down, it will eventually be drained. Fortunately, the fluid on the left side continues to go down, and that's what's most important given that the radiation is about to begin on that side.
But all of this seems minor given what's happening in Egypt today. Absolutely incredible.
Love,
Kip
Dear Kip,
ReplyDeleteThings are happening aren't they? Hard to keep up! Judy called me at work yesterday to say, "He resigned." There's a teach-in on campus about Egypt next week. Hope I can go to it.
Things are incredibly busy at the university-- first day of auditions, tomorrow I have a lecture for QUILL, not ready for it, Moodle takes way too much time, so do all these bloody PeopleSoft workshops-- when I meditate it is all I can do to follow my breath and calm down a bit.
I was at an off-campus afternoon meeting on Friday, fell asleep so soundly that I had to go home-- missed the big Broadway bash-- were you able to get the live stream? It was a full house but not a sold-out house. A good show.
So coming back to your blog and seeing how life is going on day-by-day reminds me of what is important, and it is not Moodle or PeopleSoft or Queen's U. It is knowing that Karen has made it through her last treatment. It is seeing that new healthy pink growth on your finger nails.
Nails, hair, physio, longer posts-- you are getting better.
From what I'm hearing from others and new research reports, the fluid is a problem whenever lymph nodes are removed-- even if it is only two. No reason will take it away, it just is. Going through it step by step. You are most graceful and generous and your health improves.
And maybe there will be a better life for people in Egypt.
Blessings to you. Will be practicing taking and giving on Monday. Taking away all the suffering of radiation, all the suffering that leads to radiation, black smoke. Giving you love, health and comfort, clear light.
Love,
Roberta