**Please note change of date...last week I mentioned that there was an upcoming event on May 14. It has been moved up to May 7th. Here is the FB link to the rest of the information. Thank you mom, Jamie, and Michelle!

https://www.facebook.com/events/1066548776741464/


Chemo Day #3!

Michelle and I had a much smoother go of it today...I think I finally got the routine down. NOT a routine I wish I ever had to learn, but if you arrive 45 minutes EARLY you actually get everywhere on time! Radiation was to start at 915 so I arrived at 830 to get registered and have my labs drawn. It was perfect timing. Chemo was quick today...for me at least...but I sleep through half of it! Dang Benadryl!

I met with Dr Craft today and told him that I guess I have been some trouble with food sticking but wasn't aware that was the problem. I hadn't figured in the time that it actually takes for the food to get to that spot in my esophagus. Smaller bites, lots of fluid, etc...ok ok I get it.

No meeting with Dr. Kosuri today. I will meet with her again next Monday. The RN did tell me before she started the chemo infusion that my labs all looked good still.

So that's it...half way through chemo and 10 radiation down, 18 to go! Dr. Craft said we are in the "thick of it now"...great...

A little update on the rest of the household!
Jack recently had his Blue and Gold Banquet for Boy Scouts! I have to get his belt so that we can put all the slides on it still but he has had a lot of fun! He has a camping trip May 14th if anyone knows how to camp! :) The Birk's are not campers, yet. Maybe Jack will help us change our views on icky bugs and sweating while you sleep. ??

Audrey has started her dance competition season! They did an amazing job at the first comp, getting all PLATINUM and even 1st overall for one number! We are at a crossroads in her dance career of her loving her studio and me not being able/willing to make the hour long round trip to get her there! Please pray we make the right decision and that we both have comfort in the decision made.

Shelby is over halfway through her freshman year! It's impossible to believe she will be getting her permit in a few months! She is excited to try out for another year of Flag Corp. I know I am just as excited because it means we have finally found something she likes!!

The kids are not really acting any different right now, I think just because I don't LOOK sick yet. I'm not getting thinner or losing my hair...just sleeping more than normal. They are being more helpful when asked though which is wonderful.

Mikey has been wonderfully supportive. I told him this was a lot to take on...3 kids and cancer! He just won't go! :) He is having to take on a second job since I am not able to work as much and since he is selling the pest control business. I'm going to have to take it easy on his chore list at home I guess! LOL!

Shirts are being ordered today, please make sure you send me your check if you have not already!

Love to you all!
Reva

My BFF Jamie had a shirt made! :)

 

Chemo Day #2

 

Today was still a waiting game, but not nearly as crazy as last week! I arrived a few minutes late and ran up to get my labs drawn. This was my first time doing it by myself so I was unaware that I needed to Register down stairs first. Back downstairs we trek and waited to get registered. Jamie and I waited for at least 15 or 20 minutes I think before I finally got called. We headed back upstairs to the lab and checked in. Another 20 minutes before they called me back to access my port and draw the labs. By this point I had already missed my radiation appointment AND my radiology Dr. appointment. I really don't like how they chunk all the appointments so tightly together!

 

I met with Dr. Kosouri, my oncologist, and she seemed pleased with my treatment so far. I told her last week wasn't so bad...I was tired but not too nauseated. She asked if my hair had started falling out yet, which I said no it had not. She and Dr. Craft keep asking if I was having trouble swallowing yet...YET? Ugh. I am NOT ready to start having things get stuck and choke...My labs looked good enough to not have to meet with her next Monday. I was only down a few pounds from last week and she was pleased with that as well. She wants me to stay "surgery ready" so that I heal well.

 

Off to Chemo next...I was in a different area this time and they asked if I would be ok with the bed today. Since the Benadryl knocks me out I figured I might as well be comfy! Good thing Jamie and I talked quite a bit prior to starting the infusion because I slept through almost all of it! Twice now I have taken a bag of stuff to do and haven't taken anything out but the snacks! Ha! I did  not have the same sweaty reaction I had last week, which was nice!

 

Last was radiation...I tried to skip it all together but was told no. LOL. I did have to meet with Dr. Craft afterwards, who said to start to expect the effects of the chemo and radiation to get worse. Yay. Otherwise, nothing new.

 

So far, this evening has been good. I hope it's a sign this will be a good week!

 

Tshirt orders are due this Wednesday. I will post on FB the orders I have placed and if I have received payment. Please let me know if anything is incorrect.

 

Mark your calendars for May 14th! More info to come, but ladies get your Derby hat ready!

 

Love you all! Thank you for all the positive thoughts and prayers!

And it begins...

    Today was the first day of radiation and chemotherapy. Radiation was early...820 AM! They had explained to me last week what would happen so I felt pretty prepared and calm. They talked me through everything and even let me pick the Pandora station I wanted to listen to! I chose 80's today which I then regretted...one doesn't simply listen to 80's...one rocks out to 80's...except when you are told to lay completely still. Ha! So there I am laying with my eyes closed (gown down so they can see the marked area for the lasers) just listening to the tunes, when I am shocked to hear one of my doctors talking right next to me! I almost jumped off the table! LOL! The rest of the treatment was fast and uneventful, thank goodness!

    Mom and I went to grab breakfast since we had 45 min to kill. We then headed up to my Chemo Education with the NP. She was very nice and offered lots of help and information. She walked us to the lab where they accessed my port for the first time. THANK YOU DARLENE! She loaned me her numbing cream and I am so thankful! They drew labs, which they will do before every chemo treatment. She then walked us into the infusion room. There we hit a wall...it seems no one had had my chemo run through my insurance and received authorization. Great. We waited for almost 3 hours while they tried to call the insurance company, only to find out that they were closed for President's Day. They then called their manager and got the go ahead. OMG. They have had more than a week to get this taken care of, right?

   Michelle was a savior and brought us lunch! We took snacks, but the 3 hour delay really didn't help! Darlene came up and talked to us after her radiation treatment and brought a gift from Marla...so sweet! Thank you! The real MVP of the day was Jamie P. She picked up Jack and Audrey (Shelby didn't want to leave her cave), took them to lunch, and took Audrey to dance for me! MWAH!

   They started my pre chemo meds which included anti-nausea meds and Benadryl. They also gave a dose of Decadron. All of a sudden I started to feel dizzy. We realized it was the Benadryl and let it go. They started the Taxol and within minutes I was hot and sweating. I closed my eyes and drifted off, waking to my mom fanning me with a magazine. So hot! They weren't too concerned and continued to run the meds. The RN said I tolerated it well...ok...and then ran the second one which is Carboplastin. We were able to leave about 415. Next Monday won't be as long since I "tolerated" the Taxol and they will be able to run it faster than today. Mom and I laughed about a suggestion the NP had given. She suggested I have them give me a dose of Ativan IV with my pre chemo meds. Given my response to the Benadryl, I think mom would have been carrying me out if I had had the Ativan too! LOL!

   I came home to yummy chili from Jamie P (THANK YOU) and freezer meals from Amy G (THANKS!!!). My behind landed on the couch and well...that was it! It was an exhausting day but I felt good that I was actually taking action against this disease.

                                         Time to Show Cancer Who's Boss! This Girl!

The rest of the week is just radiation so unless something big happens I may not update until next week when I meet with the doctor. Love you all!

Membership Required

This is NOT a membership card you want! This is how I check in for my radiation every day.

Today was the planning session for my radiation treatments. They made a mold of my head, arms, and shoulders. It will help me be perfectly still and make sure they hit the same spot every time. They also made three tattoos. LOL! They mark the radiated area with permanent dots so that if I ever have to have this type of treatment again they will see where I have been treated before. It was pretty quick and easy today.

I think what has bothered me the most of all these appointments so far is that I keep learning new information that someone else has failed to tell me. The oncologist failed to mention the 6 week waiting period before surgery, the radiologist failed to mention I would meet with him every week during treatment, no one explained the port until the day of placement, etc...Jamie Pfau had a great idea though I know it would be a logistical nightmare...that you start with a TEAM meeting. There are a team of Drs and such working with you to help you get better so they should all be able to meet at a round table and give you the run down of what will happen in the next few months. There is so much to learn, even as a nurse!

My reflux seems to be bothering me more lately and that worries me. What if I hadn't gone to the Dr at all for simple reflux? How far would this had gone? I already find myself eating less and have almost given up soda trying to not stir up the acid. I hate the what ifs.

Tomorrow is my last day "off" before I am scheduled to be at the hospital EVERY day (between work and treatments) for the next 6 weeks or so. FUN :/ Chemo and radiation start Monday. Wish me luck!

How did this even happen?

I figured this would be an easier way to keep everyone up to date on the progress of my treatment...I will start at the beginning which seems FOREVER ago already but was only 12 days ago!

     Back about 6 weeks ago I went to the doctor's office after a weekend of complete nausea and upper abdominal pain. I was convinced I had an ulcer. The NP started me on Zantac in addition to the Protonics I was already on. She stated that now that I was on 2 reflux medicines, I needed to have an upper endoscopy to figure out why the reflux was getting worse.
    Endoscopy came on January 29th. I was nervous, but only because I had never had this test before. When the doctor came in to the room he made me feel like this test was unnecessary. He stated it could have  been because I had tried weaning off the Protonics back in August, or because I was taking a lot of Ibuprofen. Thankfully I had a friend, Lindsey, in the procedure room with me. She really kept me calm! I came out of my propofol sleep crying. Mike assumed it was just a reaction to the medicine, but I swear now it was because I remembered hearing Lindsey crying during the test...
     Dr. Walden came in to my recovery room and didn't beat around the bush. Obviously I don't remember every detail after the word MASS...but I did remember him saying my stomach looked good and I needed to go have a CT that day. Wow. Not at ALL what I expected! They transferred me down to the outpatient CT and I called my mom. That's not an easy call to make. "Hey Mom...I have a mass and it may be cancer."
    CT was easy and uneventful, which was good...I couldn't take much more that day! Dr. Walden hoped to have some answers by that evening and said he would call me. So I waited....and waited...tried to go to work but just couldn't stick it out...and waited.
    Finally Monday I got call a call from Dr. Walden. The CT showed the mass, a few enlarged lymph nodes near the mass, but everything else looked ok. The PET scan would be definitive and the Endoscopic Ultrasound would help with staging, but we had to also wait for pathology to get the cell type. That call came on Tuesday as I was taking Audrey to dance. I hadn't told the kids anything, and wasn't going to until I had a plan of action from the oncologist. Adenocarcinoma. Ok. I can deal with that. It's the most common of a relatively uncommon cancer in the United States, which mean these docs have treated others before me and hopefully know their stuff.
   Oncologist appointment was the kicker for me. I knew my attitude was going to be reflective of what she had to tell me, or us I should say! Jamie Pfau and my mom came with Michael and I to the appointment. The two of them took notes, since I knew I would not remember a word of what she was saying beyond "this is going to be a tough road but I don't see why this won't be cured".   

                                                     Boom. That's what I needed to hear!

    First step included having the ultrasound of the mass and biopsies of the enlarged lymph nodes nearby. I was obviously more nervous for this procedure, but Miss Lizzie did a great job before and after just by making me laugh and being positive.
   Next was PET scan and meeting with the radiation doctor. I only cried a tiny bit, because I knew what this test was for. I kept imagining peeking in the control room and being able to see EVERYTHING because I was lighting up like a Christmas tree. That would have been horrible! After the PET scan Jamie, Mike, and I went to lunch and back to the hospital for my radiation meeting. Mom met us for that as well. Jamie whipped out her trusty notebook (LOL) and took notes again. He informed us that the scan showed exactly what we already knew! One mass and a few regional lymph nodes! Yes! He instructed me to come back three days later to have my radiation "planned". That where they mark me (new tattoo!) and kind of do a practice treatment I think. Deal.
    Today was my power port placement. You'd think I'd be getting used to these NPO days already, but I'm not. I was more nervous about this since I knew absolutely squat about ports. I knew it went under the skin and was accessed for treatments but that was about it. It went smoothly and I am just sore. Thursday I go for the planning session and then treatments start on Monday!

    Mondays will  be chemo days. I will have 5 baby chemo doses just to sensitize the tumor to the radiation. Radiation will be every day Monday through Friday for 28 days. Surgery will be about 6 weeks after my last radiation because it will continue to work on shrinking the tumor. That's the scariest part. It sounds horrible and the recovery even worse! I just have to keep remembering this is all going to cure my disease and make me well!

                                                                            Hallelujah!

At first I was embarrassed that she did this, but then it started to make sense...
My best friend Jamie and my mom have set up a meal planner for the weeks of treatment. You guys are amazing. The site is TakeThemAMeal.com with my last name as the user and 0409 as the password. Plan on staying to chat for a few minutes if you come by!