Chemo: Round 2

Well, Round 2 has come and gone and that means I'm halfway through my chemo regimen. Yay! This round went pretty much just like the first one as far as infusions go. I got my Benadryl and Zantac ahead of time to counter act the allergy that I have to the Taxotere and didn't have any issues. I had a few more visitors this time and the nurses were accommodating, which was great. My friend Amy came to see me and I also got a special visit from her parents. Her dad has recently gone through treatment to fight leukemia and is in remission. Praise God for that! Her parents, Regina and Sammy, are just wonderful and I am honored to have their support and their daughter in my life. My mom and Ben were also there, as always. They never leave my side and I can't express the way it makes me feel to know they are forever in my corner. Ben's boss has been so understanding and is so great to let him off to be with me when I need him. Two of our neighbors stepped in and took care of our girls while I was at treatment. One got Alaina to and from school and even took the time to do a craft with her, while the other loved on Madeline and took her on a walk, all while caring for their own kiddos. I'm surrounded by some Supermoms! I'm overwhelmed and forever grateful for the support and encouragement that we have both received from work, family, friends, strangers, etc. It is just amazing!

Praise report: I met with my oncologist while I was in the infusion clinic and she said she would not be concerned if we didn't see any changes until I came back for my 3rd treatment. She felt my tumor and said it is already showing positive progress, which means it is SHRINKING!! Thank you, Jesus!

So far, I'm experiencing the loss of taste buds again and am a little more tired than I was Round 1, but overall, I'm doing pretty well. I have been more emotional this time around and have broken down a few times unexpectedly. I know my hormones are out of whack and with that, on top of treatment, it catches up to me occasionally. The devil is trying his best to attack my thoughts again and to remind me of what cancer CAN do to me, my family, and my body. I am fighting back with scripture to remind him that his words are not going to win!

"Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes." Ephesians 6:11

Over the past couple weeks, God has placed a few people on my heart and has reminded me of how precious life really is. Sometimes, with those reminders, comes fear and heartbreak. I am trying to stay in His Word and focus on His promises. Cancer is so real and it is more present than I ever allowed myself to acknowledge. This past week, a friend from high school reached out to tell me her best friend was just diagnosed with breast cancer as well. I immediately asked for her number because I had to reach out and introduce myself, as many others did for me when I was diagnosed. "K" is 32, the same age I was when I received my news. She is scared. She is anxious. She is shocked. I've been there and I know exactly what she's going through. We have become instant friends and have vowed to fight this battle together. We are meeting for dinner tomorrow to chat before she meets with her team of doctors at UAB. I am so ready to hug her and watch her defeat cancer with grace. I know God has placed her in my life for a reason and for that, I'm grateful.

The morning after I was "introduced" to "K", I opened up my Bible to this:

"Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God." 2 Corinthians 1:3-4

I would also like to ask you guys to pray for Megan Zipperer. Her story has just completely broken my heart and I think about her constantly. I don't know her, but she is facing a very difficult battle with terminal cancer. I have attached the link below to her page and would love it if you guys would read her story and pray for her, her husband, and her 3 precious babies.

https://www.facebook.com/weareteammeg/

Specific Prayer Requests:

Peace and guidance for "K" and her family as she meets with her doctors this week
A miracle for Megan and comfort for her and her family as they face this trial
Continued strength for my body to fight this disease

Thank you all so much for reading. Your prayers are felt DAILY and they are being answered one by one. I appreciate each of you so much. God is good and my army is strong!

With love,
Heather

Hair Loss

I am making this a separate post because I have a lot of pictures that I want to share. When I discussed hair loss with my doctor, I was told that it can start anywhere from 10-21 days from your first treatment. As I've explained before, I had a lot of stress about losing my hair, how it would affect the girls, how I would look, etc. I have to say, this has not been anywhere near as difficult as I expected. I am daily reminded of the beauty that God placed INSIDE of me and that has really helped me approach my outward appearance.

One of my small groups from earlier this year decided to throw me a hat and scarf party to load my closet up with a variety of headpiece choices for the winter. These girls mean the world to me and have blessed me in ways I cannot put into words. Although I still had my hair for the party, it was still a lot of fun to open the hats and play dress up. Below are a few pictures from the event!

We went back to the beach for vacation and around day 12 (after treatment), my hair started thinning. I decided to just let it slowly come out and see how I felt, knowing that I would shave it as soon as it became noticeable. It was honestly one of the most fascinating things to experience. My friend Aaron reminded me that with each strand that came out, to think of it as being one step closer to beating this disease, so that's how I viewed it. Each day, more and more would slowly fall out, but it was manageable. I didn't look bald yet and still had enough hair to wear it down and look/feel normal. On day 17 (after treatment) I got out of the shower and my hair was matted. I just did not anticipate being able to get the knots out, so I called in my stylist team (Ben, Mom, my sister in law, Melanie, and the girls)! I made a braid on each side of my hair and let Alaina and Madeline each cut one out for my memory box. My friend Lisa suggested this and I'm so glad she did. Mom did a little trimming then Ben handled the shaving. It was fun, liberating, and I feel great. Below are some pictures!

And just like that....I'm bald :)

With love,
Heather

Chemo: Round 1

Whew! I didn't realize how much time had passed since my last update. I have been spending some great quality time with my husband, kids, family, and friends, and just haven't had time to blog. I am going to try to get better! I will do my best to document as much as I can remember from the past month and will split into a couple different blogs to keep from rambling too much. Please forgive me if this post is all over the place. Chemo brain is a REAL thing!

Round 1:

Leading up to my first round, I was nervous. I didn't know what to expect and just really had a lot of lingering anxiety about how I would handle the treatment. That morning, as I nursed sweet Madeline for the last time, God covered me with a peace that only He can. My mom, Ben, and I headed to the hospital in good spirits. My sister, Carly, joined us shortly after we arrived. I have to be at treatment an hour early because labs are required in order to have a starting point for my white blood count levels and a few other baselines have to be established. I did my lab work and waited patiently for the next available chair in the infusion clinic. I had been told that they don't allow people to sit back in the treatment room with you for more than about 15 minutes at a time, so I came prepared with things to keep me busy: my Bible, adult coloring books, laptop for work, books, earphones, etc. When they called me back, they let Ben come with me for support while I got set up. Much to my surprise, they let him stay in there almost the entire time. He took a short lunch break, but was by my side the rest of the time. It was a crazy feeling to sit in a chair and know that the bags of fluid hanging around me were what could save my life. They start with a bag of Zofran for nausea and a steroid. Those took about 15 minutes each. Next up was the Taxotere which is one of my chemo drugs. My nurse explained that 20% of people have a reaction to this drug which causes tightness in the chest, a warm, flush feeling above the neck, and back pain. She said that it usually occurs within the first 15 minutes of administering the drug. We got right to the 15 minute mark and my chest tightened up. I thought maybe I was subliminally feeling the effects since she had warned me, but then my head got hot. Ben got the nurse and as she walked up, the back pain hit me. Looks like I'm one of the 20%! She stopped treatment and explained that she was going to give me a dose of Benadryl and Zantac before re-administering the drug. That worked like a charm and the Benadryl knocked me out. It was the best nap I have had since before having kids! The rest of the treatment went fine. My mom and sister got to come back and chat for a few minutes each and overall everything went as well as I could have hoped. Here's a few pictures from Round 1!

I didn't experience too many side effects from Round 1. The first thing that happened was that I lost my taste buds. My mouth felt kind of dry and raw and food just didn't taste like it should. I had a few bone aches and some stomach pains, but other than that, I'd say it was very tolerable. I was able to spend the weekend after chemo at the beach with my husband and some of our best friends, so that was a real treat. I've been blessed to be surrounded by the most amazing support system and it has made all the different in the world.

This journey wouldn't be complete without you guys, who give me strength to keep fighting!

With love,
Heather