If He brings you to it...

...He will bring you through it. ~ Author Unknown


Yay!! Phase 2 is over at the end of this week! :) I'm happy. My counts have stayed up really high all this week and I haven't needed to have a hemoglobin transfusion yet (praise God!). Next week I will have off and then phase 3 will start. For the 1st week of phase 3 I will be at home taking oral chemo. After that I will be admitted at the hospital for 4 days in and then 9 days at home, 4 days in, 9 days at home etc. for a total of 9 weeks. :/ Let me tell you, I'm NOT looking forward to the hospital food. It's gross and disgusting. Last time I was there, I ordered turkey w/gravy and when it came to my room I had no idea what it was. I thought it was pancakes with syrup. After smelling it I realized that it was a perfectly round piece of flattened, processed turkey. ughh. 
The doctors expected my counts to go down, but everyone prayed that they would stay up and they did. :) I will probably be able to go to church on Sunday again. :)


A vacation is what you take when you can no longer take what you've been taking.  ~Earl Wilson

It's not easy taking my problems one at a time...

...when they refuse to get in line :)


I had one whole week of freedom and now it is back to the grindstone. Yesterday I had my full day at the hospital. Missing one day of school doesn't really matter because I learn lots of things at the hospital that will help me in later years of school. For example: I learnt how to find the surface area of a person. :) You multiply their weight in kg, times their height in cm, divided by 3600, times the square root of the answer. Before my cancer I never even knew what chemotherapy was. :) I knew that it was treatment people took when they had cancer but I never gave any thought to what it actually is. I've learnt so much about the different medications and the millions and millions of side effects to each drug, ports, central lines, VAD's, IV's, all the different kinds of blood cells, and MUCH more. The funny thing is, is that I haven't just learnt, studied, and memorized it all from a textbook, I'm actually living it in my daily life. It's kind of scary. Last year I never even imagined that this is what my life would be like. Now I wonder what God will have for me next year...

People ask me how I'm feeling and I say "fine" or "good". Of course the only time I ever see people is on the weekends and that's when I'm always feeling my best. I have a feeling that I don't get half as sick as other kids. Sometimes I feel pretty nauseous and I do get a few headaches. I've been having lots of early mornings and late nights. The late nights haven't exactly been a good idea since it is cold/flu season now. I have a bit of cold and I am trying my hardest to get rid of it so that I don't get an infection or a fever. I'm really praying that this doesn't happen. 

It is foolish to tear one's hair in grief, as though sorrow would be made less by baldness.  ~Cicero


:D

:D

My week was supposed to be full of chemo but that has changed. I now have a free week to party..not. The Dr.'s decided to postpone chemo a week because my blood work yesterday showed that my neutrophils (the most common type of white blood cell..essential for fighting disease) and my platelets were too low. This means that I'm not allowed to be around any sick people because my body won't be able to fight back. If they are still not high enough next Monday then it will be postponed again. Even though it is nice to get a bit of a break it means that my chemo treatments will end later. My hemogoblins decided to revive themselves and they are now multiplying slowly but surely. God is good.
 Right now I'm feeling really well and my hands are itching to get back to the piano again. Even though I'm not having lessons I'm going to pick a piece so that I can learn it in the next couple months. I'm excited.
:D

phase 2

Phase 2 has begun. I've already been through a week of it and overall I wouldn't call it a horrible week. Although it did have its bad moments.


 I've been having a little more nausea than in  Phase 1. So that hasn't been much fun...and on Thursday my "hemogoblins" were quite low so I had to get a blood transfusion. The doctors are really expecting my counts to be dropping and dropping fast. Especially this week. I got blood work done today and I will need another transfusion tomorrow. Apparently, the one chemo drug that I'm getting really destroys the blood cells.


I will soon need to be quarantined from the world. :( The white blood cells are the infection fighting cells and mine are getting quite low. Once it gets below a certain number I have to stay away from large crowds and sick people. It's really dangerous to be out among the public when you have nothing in your body to fight against all the germs. 


Monday was a really good day. I actually felt normal except for a slight headache. Since it was Labor Day I spent the day at Cultus Lake with the whole family. My one brother and his family weren't able to come but everyone else was there. I soaked up the sun, read a good book, went in the water, and tried to tan my white bald head. I don't know if it worked but I tried. It was fun. 


School started yesterday. Even though I didn't get home from Children's till 3 and my focusing level wasn't at its highest I did get some math, science, and reading done.


That's all for now...I was gone all morning so now it's time to get some school done again. Ciao.