So, I've decided to name this pump I have to haul around twice a month Kuato, cause it's joined to me at the hip. (Bonus points if you get the reference.) So, the most serious side effect I've had so far is my blood pressure, which had gotten normal was quite elevated today. Almost to the point where they didn't want to treat. My Oncologist wants to me to schedule with my Primary care to have my Lisinopril I take daily doubled from 5mg to 10mg. PC doesn't want to take the Oncologist's recommendation without seeing me as when all of this started, I was hospitalized for blood loss so my BP actually got so low they weren't sure they were going to release me.
And to think, all of this started because my BP had gotten into the 'perfect' range and my PC was considering taking me OFF Lisinopril!
I'm a writer and you can't make this stuff up!
Fortunately, I've had a BP cuff for a while, so 'scuze me while I whip this out and do a quick measure. 153/89, Stage 1 Hypertension, according to Bloodpressureok.com. *sigh*
So I've got an 'emergency' visit with the PC to evaluate the BP and I'll be tracking it closely several times a day, to give her some numbers for it.
How about some good news? Journey into the Forbidden West is at 8420 word or 16 8.5"x11" pages. Though a New story came to me during the chemo that I have at 5 pages and 2643 words. The working title is Prerogative of the Bondsman. It's shaping up to be something very Golden Age of SciFi in the vein of (if I can be so self aggrandizing) Frank Herbert and/or Robert Heinlein. We'll see how things go.
And I got a shiney new bill for all of this Chemo. $109,258.23. Good lord that's a lot of money. If you'd like to pitch in and want to help lighten my load, you can donate at:
E. E. Nalley's Cancer Fund(link is external)
Every donation of $5 or more will get a copy of my novel, Beyond This Illusion which is not available anywhere else. For those interested, the back of the cover blurb goeth thusly:
Be Careful What You Wish For:
Jean and Sydney were a pair of ordinary young people, working drudgery jobs at a hotel, when an idle wish, spoken into the ear of someone with the power to grant it thrusts them into a world of magic, wonder and to their surprise, supernatural danger living next to our own. And they discover there are still Fairy Godmothers in the world as well as why Fairy Tales aren't wish fulfillment stories, but warnings...
If you can't donate, please don't feel bad, prayers and well wishes are always welcome! I'm in this fight to win and I can't do it without you guys.
E.
And the second reading 15 minutes later is 147/81. My body is weird. Though it was the Diastolic, the second number, that had the Oncologist worried. He wants it below 90.
Comments
Sooooooo………..
Kuato comes from the Arnold Schwarzenegger version of Total Recall - he was the leader of the resistance movement on Mars, and he was attached to another man’s torso. Hence the reference to your pump I assume.
On your BP, the diastolic reading is the resting pressure, or the pressure in-between beats of your heart. The importance of it being below 90 is that if it is high, then your heart is not resting properly.
In all honesty, I am not surprised that your BP is up. Notwithstanding the added tension of the whole cancer and cancer treatment thing, any time they are pushing fluids into your circulatory system it tends to raise your BP. That is the whole point of a diuretic - to lower your BP by removing fluids from the body.
My oncologist had me on immunotherapy rather than Chemo, and I had just the opposite issue. Several times they were forcing fluids on me prior to giving me the infusion. I normally scheduled my appointments in the morning, and was repeatedly chastised for not drinking enough resulting in slight dehydration. My normal habit in the morning is to get up, brush my teeth, take my meds with a Dixie cup of water, and then grab a cup of coffee. So usually, by the time I arrive for my appointments, I had one small cup of water and two or three cups of coffee. And as my doctor is fond of telling me, coffee is not hydrating. So I would get a unit of saline pumped into me before they even started the infusion.
Usually while sitting drinking coffee and working on my laptop, lol.
I always felt a bit like a fraud while sitting in the treatment area………. There I sat, calmly working on my laptop and talking to the nurses while drinking coffee - and all around me were people undergoing chemo who looked like they were half dead and miserable. Most of them suffering obvious hair loss, many of them nothing more than skin and bones, usually wrapped up in blankets to keep warm, and in plain discomfort.
All while I got my treatment dressed in a skirt suit as I was headed into my office when I left, my biggest issue being fatigue that would hit a few hours after the infusion.
It made me realize just how lucky I have been.
For those who have not read it, Beyond This Illusion is a wonderful story, well worth reading. But beyond that, the author is a wonderful person - a person I like to think of as a friend - and someone who has created many outstanding works. If you have not contributed, I implore you to do so. If not out of the goodness of your heart, then out of the selfish want for more stories!
Feel better E - I truly wish I could be there with you, and that I could be of more help.
D. Eden
Dum Vivimus, Vivamus
Let me clear that up
You don't have to think of yourself as a friend, Dallas, you can be certain of it. I know that feeling of fraud as well. I feel so bad for the others getting treatment when I'm there. I don't really have any symptoms. I have been very blessed in this, and I hope I can be worthy of those blessings.
I doubt it, but it's a target to aim for.
E
I'm out of my mind and into yours!
BP etc
153/89 might not really be a hypertension if you are a person who would naturally have a higher BP. For example, if you are over 6'2", or if you have very muscular and massive build. It would still borderline, though.
Also, you should measure BP after at least 10 mins rest, preferably in lying position. This is the situation for which the criteria are formulated. I guess that is why the first measurement was 153/89, but the second was 147/81.
As for writing, something swirls in my head... how to call it... electropunk? Metropolis (Fritz Lang version) like environments, electricity like in the old sci-fis - tens of kinds of, Tesla rays, peanut-sized batteries that can power an airplane for several around-world flights... Maybe much more modern concepts like virtual reality etc, adapted to that base... :)
I cannot afford to donate now, but you get a mountain of well wishes from me! Fight and beat that cancer down!
Thanks very much!
Well wishes are always welcome! And Prerogative of the Bondsman is really demanding to be written. I'm already at 24 pages and 12,445 words.
I'm out of my mind and into yours!
Money Sent
I just donated (Dana) and you are in my thoughts and prayers. I look forward to reading your story
I took my mom to her chemo 15 years ago in her losing fight with lung cancer and it took its toll on her. I thought to myself at the time that I would never do that if I was in her circumstances, but every situation is different.
Four years ago I was diagnosed with throat cancer. My doctors said I had a high chance to beat the cancer so I went through 6 chemo and 35 radiation treatments. I am now cancer free but chemo and radiation are tough.
Like you, I felt fortunate sitting in the infusion room and listening to some of the dire stories around me.
The result of my battle with cancer was the total reprioritizing of my life, and transitioning (MTF) at age 65. I am one who views the glass as half full and I think things happen for a reason. I don't think I would have ever transitioned if I hadn't had cancer and it was the best decision of my life.
Good luck in your battle and in your life!
Dana
DeeDee
Thanks, Dee!
Thanks, Dee!
Your copy is in your email!
E
I'm out of my mind and into yours!
Cancer sucks
I send a small donation.
I’ve enjoyed your stories.
My little sister-in-law died of cancer 14 years ago. I know others who died of cancer. So I count myself as lucky.
And the horrific costs add insult to the illness.
Take care of yourself and your new attachment.
All the best!
Gillian Cairns
Thanks for the kind words,
Thanks for the kind words, Gillian! Look for your thank you email to get your copy of Beyond This Illusion. I appreciate your support and generosity and no worries, I'm in the fight!
I'm out of my mind and into yours!