6 days POST treatment!

I feel great! I have energy to get stuff done and help around the house again and it feels great! we got so much done this weekend, dump, gutters cleaned, fixed our fence so the neighbors dog can't get in our backyard, fixed the other fence so it wont lean, got a lot of the inside of the house cleaned up, we got our cabinets for the laundry room but we just need to put them up than I will be able to finish up they office/playroom swap. I do however wish that the weather was nicer to get some yard stuff done, oh well.

What else….

Melanie is just about potty trained! One day she must have decided that she didn’t want to wear diapers or be reminded to use the potty. she has been doing great! She only wears a diaper for nap times and bedtime. She occasionally has an accident but it is really only when she gets into a movie or distracted playing.

Allison is getting so big! She loves to be the center of attention, she is just a nut. She still isn’t really talking but I am not concerned she understands so much of what you say to her. Chelsie, Ben and Marissa came over for dinner Saturday and Melanie had asked to watch Veggie tales and we all swear Allison screamed “Veggie Tales!” so I really think she knows more then she is letting on to.

Vince is doing well. I think he is finally glad to see me feeling better. He is just about finished with school and will be graduating in May with his Bachelors in psychology. He acts like it isn’t that big of a deal but I am very proud of him after everything that has gone on in the last 3 years especially this year I can only imagine how hard it was for him to stay focused!

Well I that am it for now I need to get to bed since it is about 10pm and we have to get up about 4-430am to start another work week!

Light The Night Walk 2009

Light The Night Walk is The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society's evening walk and fundraising event. It is the nation's night to pay tribute and bring hope to thousands of people battling blood cancers and to commemorate loved ones lost.
When - September 26th, 2009 – More details to come
Where – Green Lake
Please join us for the 2009 Light the Night Walk. This year we will again be walking in honor of Melissa – this time as a SURVIVOR!


Our goal as a team is to raise $5000 in donations in honor of Melissa.

Please visit the website to either sign up to walk with the team or show your support with a donation.

http://pages.lightthenight.org/wa/SeattleL09/MelissaPowell

Hope you can join us. And thank you for all of your thoughts and prayers during this past year.

Getting back to “normal”

Really what is normal? The last few years I haven’t been able to feel normal or have my body to myself!
Pregnant from September 2005-June 2006
Breastfeeding June 2006 – September 2006
Pregnant form February 2007-November 2007
Breastfeeding from November 2007-August 2008
Diagnosis of cancer and treatment from August 2008-March 2009

So in all I really don’t remember what it will be like to be “normal”

I have been feeling great! I am only taking prednisone for the Pneumonitis which we are in the process of weaning me off of now. I am still going to be followed with Dr. T a little longer because of the Pneumonitis, normally they don’t see it flare up until 1 month to 2 months post treatment. I see Dr. T on April 9th for a check in.

I am getting my port out next Friday April 3rd and then I see Dr. M on Monday April 6th.

3 more to go!

Dr. T and I both agreed that we will continue with the treatment plan and go until Tuesday instead of stopping today. He says that my lung is sounding better and is clearing up. We are starting to lessen the amount of steroids that I am taking, since you can't just stop you have to wean off of them. I gained back 1 pound.

So I am going to walk everyone through my radiation process and as I promised I got some pictures.

I enter and I change in to a gown and wait in the lobby until they call the phone and announce over head to come on back. I go back and lay on this blue pillow looking thing that has been formed to my body to help and make sure that I am in the same position every time. I lay down and they adjust and move me until I am just right.



The whole process takes all of about 5-10 mins depending on how long it takes to position me. Then I am done. On Dr. days I go back and wait in the lobby until the nurse comes and gets me and that is it. Not too much to it.

I am feeling much better today. I am still having some coughing episodes at night, so last night I tried to sleep some what elevated since when I lay flat that seems to be where it starts to act up. Was able to eat dinner again with the family and that was nice.

Melanie last night when I got home was watching Ariel’s beginning so I went in to lay down with her and watch it. she asked me "mommy are you still sick?" I said "I am getting better" and she thinks for a second "someday you will be better and not sick anymore" it is so hard to have to explain this to her but I think she is starting to get it that I wont be sick forever.

Well I have had a tough week- 16 done 4 to go

Thursday my cough reaching a breaking point chest hurt, couldn’t sleep, just in all exhausted

Friday stayed home and watched sex and the city and slept all day

Saturday doing a little better tried to go see a friend dance but when I finally made it up the wheelchair ramp at the Seattle Center with the double stroller I couldn't stop my coughing and I couldn't stay.

Sunday was going so much better I was able to eat a bowel of cereal and we were going to go to church but due to the snow we headed back home and went to walmart and stop to get lunch. Well we went home to eat our chow main noodles and it felt as if I had some stuck in my throat and we headed to the ER to make sure there was not anything there but I had just scratched it really bad.

Monday went in to work for part of the day and in between checking emails I was sleeping so we left and went to radiation early and to check in with Dr. T. because of the cough did my weight check and lost 5 pounds since Friday they decided I needed IV fluids and sent me to Swedish in the mean time sleeping between everything, waiting for the Dr. T, waiting for radiation to begin, waiting on the table for the radiation which I can't move I have to stay in one spot, then on the way to the hospital and then during fluids needless to say the whole day sleeping. Dr. T feels that my cough is a side effect of the radiation it is called radiation pneumonitis. Pneumonitis mimics a pneumonia but is not treated the same. Pneumonitis is treated with steroids and pneumonias are treated with antibiotics.

Tuesday we started the third and final stage of the treatment plan. Now we are just targeting the mass that is still in my chest so they are no longer radiating my throat, my armpit, left lungs and heart. My lung and heart my still be getting a little radiation due to the location of the mass but they are not focusing on it.

So things are looking better I am able to eat a little more and my throat is not so sore anymore. I can finally swallow water with out it hurting. My energy is getting better since I am able to get a little more foods down. In the last week I lost all of the 10 pounds that I gained back since treatment as started

I am going to get some pictures of the machine that they use to administer the radiation so that everyone has an idea of what it is like.

I see Dr. T again today to check in on the cough. At the beginning of my treatment he consulted a Dr. at Harvard and just heard back from him. This Dr. feels with how aggressive we have been treating this he said that to him he would feel comfortable about stopping my treatments this Friday. Dr. T is not sure that we are going to do that, I am not sure that I want to either I would rather be sure that we get this and take care of it. Really what is 2 more days that I was planning on having to do anyways?

So here is a list of side effects that I having
Sore throat
Fatigue
Cough

A list of medications
*Benzonatate 1 pill 3 times a day – for cough
*Prednisone- steroid- 1 pill 3 times a day – for cough
*Omeprazole – prilosac – 1 pill 1 a day- for acid reflex to help ease the damage to my throat
*Fluconazole – antifungal- 1 pill 1 a day – because of the steroids there is a chance that an infection can start because the steroids will cause the bacteria to multiple and with the scratch in my throat there is a higher chance.
* Magic mouthwash - what this mouthwash consist of is Benadryl, Maalox, and lidocaine. What this is for is to help with swallowing when eating. So I am supposed to drink and teaspoon right before eating and the lidocaine numbs my throat so that it doesn’t feel like it is getting scratched but what happens when I take it is that I can swallow it fine but once it starts to numb it starts to make me having the feeling that I need to throw up so I am not able to take it. They think I am having a reaction to it. No biggy anymore since my throat is getting better just would have been nice to be able to eat.

Well I think that is everything that I have to report on today. Like I said I will try and get a picture today of the machine that is used and will walk you through what it is that I do daily when I go in.

All is go well- 9 down 11 to go

So I met with Dr. M yesterday (my oncologist) he was able to put our minds at ease about some of the long term side effects that I face, mainly the cardiac issues. He said that unless I was trying for the Olympics I may not even know that they radiation will cause some scar tissue to build up but the only time that I would really feel it is if I was training really hard. He and his Nurse J. were also able to help with a couple of questions that I had regarding breastfeeding if we were to go on to have another baby since Dr. T really didn’t have answer. Nurse J. has a friend that is a radiation nurse and so she called her to ask what outcomes they have had with other patients and they said that it will be unlikely that I will be able to breastfeed on my left side but I could still on my right, great just what I want to be uneven again! Well I do have some time to think about that though. Who know maybe I will be different and wont have any issues.

I get to schedule a time to have my port removed!! I can’t wait!! My next appointment with Dr. M is on April 6th so I am going to try and get in that same day to have it removed!!

I will be scheduled for another PET scan in about 2 months. At my next appointment we will get it scheduled.

So on to the radiation part:
so I started part 2 yesterday where instead of focusing the radiation on just about my whole left side it will be more narrowed down to just the mass, a small part of my heart and part of my throat.

Side effects that I am having so far
Pain in my throat and lower esophagus
A dry cough, when I cough there seems to be a taste of blood but I haven’t noticed that here have been any so far.
My skin I a couple of spots feel tender but have not turned red or showed signs of irritation.

Well I think that is it for now. I meet with Dr. T today after radiation (see him every Tuesday)

How could He?

For so many months I have been angry, angry at God and why I had to get cancer. How it isn’t fair and how can God create such beautiful things like my little girls and then at the same time something as ugly as cancer. I know everyone says “I never thought that it would happen to me!” it is more, why did it happen to me when it did? Why when my girls are so young and I have to try and explain “mommy needs that on so that when she goes to the doctor the doctor knows where to give mommy medicine” while they try and peel the stickers off my chest that are there so they know I am in the same position everyday or mommy has to have the owie so that she can get better. Melanie has spent most of the last 1.5 years hearing “mommy can’t play like that right now” either because when I was pregnant with Allison every time I would play with her on the ground it would only last about a minute before the contractions would start at about 7 months. The most recently mommy doesn’t feel good, mommy has an owie, owies from my lymph node surgery, my bone marrow test and my port placement. Now that I am almost done and fell great I love to run through the house with the girls playing hide and seek, mommy’s gonna get you, come find mommy. This is the way that it should have been the whole time. So back to the being angry at God, it is time to make a truce with Him it could have been worse I could have been sicker during chemo or starting to get sores from the radiation. I could still be classified as an unfavorable candidate, but no I have made it through treatment feeling great for the most part I was able to still work through it all and still be mom.

8 down 12 to go

Sorry that it has been so long in-between post, but we have totally lost internet at home, but I am working today for a fire watch and figured it is a good time to post an update. So I have had 8 radiation treatments so far. They seem to be going well I haven't had any skin redness or nausea. I am starting to get some heartburn which in compared to pregnancy has been nothing. My hair is growing back here is a picture (Grandma A. I hear you were requesting one) excuse the picture no makeup and I am working....

Hmm what else.... oh so we have COMPLETED our new room! Well I still need a door, trim, and the bathroom needs to be hooked up fully but we have moved into it!
Here is a slideshow of all the pictures of working on the house!

Photobucket Album

Click on the picture and then when it takes you to photobucket select the slideshow album.There are a lot of pictures.