Session 27
Today was Tuesday, a review day. I saw the nurse and declined to see the doctor. She advised me to stop taking Imodium and try Metamucil. Did I say I was taking Imodium? What’s this, I ask, “Isn’t that to make you loose?” The nurse told me that it my situation by soaking up liquid in the gut it can make you regular. I’m going to try it so we’ll see. She advised me to do lots of kegles, something I’ve had to do before so I’ll get right on to that I also learned that the effects of the radiation which are largely inflammation last about two weeks after the last treatment.
Only 6 more to go but will be another eight weeks after that before I know if all this agro actually achieved anything. I had a whole line of questioning on this subject which went right out of my head but I can ask many questions next week at my last review. Yes that’s right it’s all over next Thursday. What will I do with myself? After treatment I went to Rona and found my flange. I had to go back again and exchange it because I bought one size too large. I thought I was so smart because I used a Vernier caliper to measure the pipe. It turns out I know shit about using one. I was actually worried my flange was too big and yes my tongue is in my cheek.
Tuesday, March 30, 2010
Session 26 March 29
Session 26
Nothing too remarkable about today except that it was the quickest session yet. I was in and out in less than half an hour and it could have been quicker if I had been ready quicker. I couldn’t find an empty locker and wound up use part of someone else’s. Overall I continue to feel pretty good except for some gastric upsets. It’s embarrassing to admit but I am also having trouble controlling my bladder, inflammation of some nerves or muscles or maybe both. Also getting so piles but not too severe; enough of that.
I saw the young man at CNIB who told me I shouldn’t be parking there but he just smiled and nodded from behind his reception desk. Later in the day I began my attempt to build a more squirrel proof bird feeder with a trip down to a scarp yard to by a piece of 10 foot pipe. I didn’t find it there or at the building supply store they sent me to but the electrical supply store they sent me too had exactly what I wanted. Now all I need is a flange for the end of the pipe. That will be yet another voyage of discovery. With the weather getting warmed again and me with time that has to be taken before March 31 it’s a great time to be out of doors and playing.
Nothing too remarkable about today except that it was the quickest session yet. I was in and out in less than half an hour and it could have been quicker if I had been ready quicker. I couldn’t find an empty locker and wound up use part of someone else’s. Overall I continue to feel pretty good except for some gastric upsets. It’s embarrassing to admit but I am also having trouble controlling my bladder, inflammation of some nerves or muscles or maybe both. Also getting so piles but not too severe; enough of that.
I saw the young man at CNIB who told me I shouldn’t be parking there but he just smiled and nodded from behind his reception desk. Later in the day I began my attempt to build a more squirrel proof bird feeder with a trip down to a scarp yard to by a piece of 10 foot pipe. I didn’t find it there or at the building supply store they sent me to but the electrical supply store they sent me too had exactly what I wanted. Now all I need is a flange for the end of the pipe. That will be yet another voyage of discovery. With the weather getting warmed again and me with time that has to be taken before March 31 it’s a great time to be out of doors and playing.
Sunday, March 28, 2010
Session 25
Today I had a long lunch with my old friend Bob, who then drove me to my treatment appointment. This continues the theme from yesterday with the warmth and pleasure of friendship keeping the cancer and the radiation in perspective. Yes that's true Bob even with our gloomy conversation about the failures of the Liberal party, the fear of the Harper crew and our regaling each other with our illness stories. I arrived early and had to wait quite a long time because they were late. I didn't mind. It was Friday and I had two days off. Best of all I already knew Cherie was coming to pick me up and when she did, apologizing because traffic was bad I didn't care. I was happy just to see her.
Saturday, March 27, 2010
Session 24
Session 24 March 25
Today is Pat’s birthday and would have liked to do breakfast for him but instead I dropped Cherie at work and went for treatment. It was fast, less than an hour in and out. I headed back home but Pat was gone already. I felt down and tired and puttered around doing not much for awhile. I knew I had to clean up to go to a retirement event for Liz Janzen, a wonderful nurse retiring from long service in leadership roles at Public Health. I sat with Liz on the Board of the Woman Abuse Council of Toronto and knew her as an excellent person. Following that it was on to a restaurant to meet the rest of the family for our traditional birthday dinner out followed by cake and presents at home. After talking to Cherie on the phone I realized she was going to be up against it coming home at 6 to bake cakes (there are always 2 cakes because of my diet restrictions). I decided to surprise her by doing the baking but in the end I had to let her in on it because I didn’t know where the recipe for her excellent carrot cake was. Still I did it and I got in to it. Fatigue fell away driven out by virtue and a sense of adventure. Cherie is an excellent baker. I got it all done and everything seemed okay. I sampled mine, baker’s privilege, cleaned up, put up the birthday banner and took the car to Cherie. She dropped me at Gerrard and Coxwell for the streetcar and headed home to frost the birthday cake. It was lovely to have a half hour on the streetcar. Many people don’t like transit but for me it is privileged time. I read, I do puzzles, I listen to my IPod and I observe the other passengers. Sometimes I even have conversations. I regard the time as a gift.
The event was fun as colleagues of Liz paid tribute, often in humorous ways. I was sad that no one told of her huge contribution to WACT but I also realized that it was one a many things where she made a difference for people who were not getting equity and inclusion in society. It was also good that my daughter in law Sara was there and a friend, Linda, from ballroom dancing. In an amazing small world experience it turned out that Liz’s daughter is a friend of Sara and my sons. After that it was birthday dinner at a new east end restaurant Cherie discovered and which worked out very well. I heard an amazing story from Patrick about how he had scored the winning basket at the buzzer in the league he and Matt play in. This had happened about an hour earlier and what a birthday present. Cherie had used her extra time to pick them up at the gym and we all made it in good time with Sara driving the two of us. So complicated but it worked so well. At home my cake was approved and Patrick loved his new computer speakers and two new games for PS3. So much excellent family and friend life. It puts the radiation in perspective.
Today is Pat’s birthday and would have liked to do breakfast for him but instead I dropped Cherie at work and went for treatment. It was fast, less than an hour in and out. I headed back home but Pat was gone already. I felt down and tired and puttered around doing not much for awhile. I knew I had to clean up to go to a retirement event for Liz Janzen, a wonderful nurse retiring from long service in leadership roles at Public Health. I sat with Liz on the Board of the Woman Abuse Council of Toronto and knew her as an excellent person. Following that it was on to a restaurant to meet the rest of the family for our traditional birthday dinner out followed by cake and presents at home. After talking to Cherie on the phone I realized she was going to be up against it coming home at 6 to bake cakes (there are always 2 cakes because of my diet restrictions). I decided to surprise her by doing the baking but in the end I had to let her in on it because I didn’t know where the recipe for her excellent carrot cake was. Still I did it and I got in to it. Fatigue fell away driven out by virtue and a sense of adventure. Cherie is an excellent baker. I got it all done and everything seemed okay. I sampled mine, baker’s privilege, cleaned up, put up the birthday banner and took the car to Cherie. She dropped me at Gerrard and Coxwell for the streetcar and headed home to frost the birthday cake. It was lovely to have a half hour on the streetcar. Many people don’t like transit but for me it is privileged time. I read, I do puzzles, I listen to my IPod and I observe the other passengers. Sometimes I even have conversations. I regard the time as a gift.
The event was fun as colleagues of Liz paid tribute, often in humorous ways. I was sad that no one told of her huge contribution to WACT but I also realized that it was one a many things where she made a difference for people who were not getting equity and inclusion in society. It was also good that my daughter in law Sara was there and a friend, Linda, from ballroom dancing. In an amazing small world experience it turned out that Liz’s daughter is a friend of Sara and my sons. After that it was birthday dinner at a new east end restaurant Cherie discovered and which worked out very well. I heard an amazing story from Patrick about how he had scored the winning basket at the buzzer in the league he and Matt play in. This had happened about an hour earlier and what a birthday present. Cherie had used her extra time to pick them up at the gym and we all made it in good time with Sara driving the two of us. So complicated but it worked so well. At home my cake was approved and Patrick loved his new computer speakers and two new games for PS3. So much excellent family and friend life. It puts the radiation in perspective.
Session 23
Session 23 March 24
Today was busy in spite of ostensibly being a day off. My morning was spent on household stuff and catching up on blogs for Monday and Tuesday. Then I went shopping for Patrick's birthday present on College followed by a pleasant hour and a half in Gus and Suzi's backyard, with them of course. I headed up to my 23rd at 5 and confirmed I could not park at CNIB because the building would be closed when I came out. How inconsiderate of them. Not surprisingly for the end of the day SYN1 was running very late, not because of patients but because of system crashes. My team was apologetic but I knew it was through no fault of theirs. Naturally I was parked in the $2/half hour lot and before I got in for treatment had to make a trip to the lot to pay for earlier optimism. By the time we were done it was $16.
My therapists confirmed that this was session 23 and the change would start on Thursday. They also reminded me that even though the field of irradiation would be smaller the effect of radiation is cumulative so warned against looking for immediate relief of side effects. I got out about 7 and went to the Metro at Eglinton and Bayview for groceries, strongly wishing I had done the shop in the morning. Cherie called while I was there and we agreed on fish for supper. I got some very expensive organic salmon, but hey we’re worth it. She had the veg. ready when I got home but it was well after 8 when we ate. The weather was good and I cranked up the BBQ for the first time in a while. Still it was late; I was bone tired and had to be back at 9:20 the next morning.
Today was busy in spite of ostensibly being a day off. My morning was spent on household stuff and catching up on blogs for Monday and Tuesday. Then I went shopping for Patrick's birthday present on College followed by a pleasant hour and a half in Gus and Suzi's backyard, with them of course. I headed up to my 23rd at 5 and confirmed I could not park at CNIB because the building would be closed when I came out. How inconsiderate of them. Not surprisingly for the end of the day SYN1 was running very late, not because of patients but because of system crashes. My team was apologetic but I knew it was through no fault of theirs. Naturally I was parked in the $2/half hour lot and before I got in for treatment had to make a trip to the lot to pay for earlier optimism. By the time we were done it was $16.
My therapists confirmed that this was session 23 and the change would start on Thursday. They also reminded me that even though the field of irradiation would be smaller the effect of radiation is cumulative so warned against looking for immediate relief of side effects. I got out about 7 and went to the Metro at Eglinton and Bayview for groceries, strongly wishing I had done the shop in the morning. Cherie called while I was there and we agreed on fish for supper. I got some very expensive organic salmon, but hey we’re worth it. She had the veg. ready when I got home but it was well after 8 when we ate. The weather was good and I cranked up the BBQ for the first time in a while. Still it was late; I was bone tired and had to be back at 9:20 the next morning.
Wednesday, March 24, 2010
Session 22 (or is it 23?)
Session 22, March 23, 2010
Session 22 was a land mark appointment. On a humorous note I went in for treatment having forgotten to take off my underwear after 21 straight times of doing it. Was my unconscious at work protecting me from butt exposure? The therapists were as usual very graceful and when I apologized because they had to pull it out of the way to see my tattoos they said no big deal.
I’ve had not gas problems since blanding (new word) my diet and taking enzymes but bowel upset continues to be an issue. Here’s the big news. The worst is over. I was reminded by my doctor when I did my Tuesday review that the last 10 session are more narrowly focused on the prostate bed. The first 23 are broader and include the lymph nodes in the surrounding area. A consequence of this change is that the wall of my colon will be much left affected by the radiation. According to my doctor I should gradually experience less and les gastric upset. I do have to check in because I believe she said I had completed 23 but by my count that doesn’t happen until the next one.
Another consequence of reaching this milestone and seeing the end is in sight is that my perspective shifts to the future. In the beginning and on into the middle of treatment I was entirely preoccupied with getting through the treatment. My initial fears subsided as it became apparent both from my experience and the stories of others further along that I was unlikely to have sever side effects. Still the end seemed far away. Suddenly that is not the case. The end seems near and now I am focusing spontaneously on the impact of the radiation. Will it cure me; have no impact or something in between? I hadn’t thought about it but I know from previous experience that the weeks of waiting after the treatment before I can get a meaningful PSA result will be long and in some ways harder than the treatment.
Session 22 was a land mark appointment. On a humorous note I went in for treatment having forgotten to take off my underwear after 21 straight times of doing it. Was my unconscious at work protecting me from butt exposure? The therapists were as usual very graceful and when I apologized because they had to pull it out of the way to see my tattoos they said no big deal.
I’ve had not gas problems since blanding (new word) my diet and taking enzymes but bowel upset continues to be an issue. Here’s the big news. The worst is over. I was reminded by my doctor when I did my Tuesday review that the last 10 session are more narrowly focused on the prostate bed. The first 23 are broader and include the lymph nodes in the surrounding area. A consequence of this change is that the wall of my colon will be much left affected by the radiation. According to my doctor I should gradually experience less and les gastric upset. I do have to check in because I believe she said I had completed 23 but by my count that doesn’t happen until the next one.
Another consequence of reaching this milestone and seeing the end is in sight is that my perspective shifts to the future. In the beginning and on into the middle of treatment I was entirely preoccupied with getting through the treatment. My initial fears subsided as it became apparent both from my experience and the stories of others further along that I was unlikely to have sever side effects. Still the end seemed far away. Suddenly that is not the case. The end seems near and now I am focusing spontaneously on the impact of the radiation. Will it cure me; have no impact or something in between? I hadn’t thought about it but I know from previous experience that the weeks of waiting after the treatment before I can get a meaningful PSA result will be long and in some ways harder than the treatment.
Session 21
Session 21, March 22, 2010
Session 21 was routine although on one of the few occasions I was early they were quite late. It was annoying mostly because I started a week off and was sitting around the waiting room unequipped for waiting, i.e. no IPod and no puzzles. I was early because Matt made a call to take him to his dentist downtown, having made himself potentially late but going to the subway station without his Metro Pass and needing to go back home again. I decide to go straight on to my appointment but could easily have gone home first, Patrick had offered to go with me and I could have used the company.
Session 21 was routine although on one of the few occasions I was early they were quite late. It was annoying mostly because I started a week off and was sitting around the waiting room unequipped for waiting, i.e. no IPod and no puzzles. I was early because Matt made a call to take him to his dentist downtown, having made himself potentially late but going to the subway station without his Metro Pass and needing to go back home again. I decide to go straight on to my appointment but could easily have gone home first, Patrick had offered to go with me and I could have used the company.
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