It was one week ago today that I had my first chemo treatment of Cytoxan and Taxotere. I must say that this week has been a lot easier than I expected it to be. I have not had many side effects this week. As of today I feel normal. I am sure this must be dangerous for me, because chemo lowers your immune system. At least when I was feeling tired I would constantly be washing my hands so I wouldn't get sick. Now that I feel good it is easy for me to forget to purell my hands after touching door handles or shaking someones hand.

Todays side effects have been very minimal. I continue to have an itchy back and scalp. As the day goes on I notice my body starts to ache more and more. Last night it was very difficult to sleep. I was in a lot of pain and found it hard to lay still. The pain was in my back and stomach area. I was very happy to find the pain completely gone when I woke up this morning. Right now it is early evening and I can feel the pain in my back coming on. I have a softball game tonight at 9pm and am trying to rest so I can play.

Another thing I have noticed is that I have quite an appetite. I am eating very well and often. My normal calorie range is 1650 and this week I have gone over that amount frequently. The strange thing about this is that even though I am overeating I am losing weight. These cells that are dying from the chemo must be very fattening cells!! I  My goal weight is 125 pounds so I will be happy if I lose another couple of pounds. I am just afraid of losing so much weight that I start looking sickly.

One thing that could be a factor in the lack of side effects and the weight lose is the fact that I have been drinking so much water. I had read that some people were getting dehydrated and constipated from Cytoxan and Taxotere, and the steriods they make you take. I have not had a problem with dehydration or constipation. But I have been drinking  a gallon of water every day. The first day it is hard to drink so much water. It makes you have to urinate so frequently. But if you drink that much every day you will notice that you don't go quite as often. And you will not need laxatives if you just drink enough water on a daily basis. Just be sure not to drink the whole gallon at one time. Drinking so much water at once is dangerous and could be hazardous to your health.

The complete cycle of the Cytoxan and Taxotere treatment is 21 days. It takes that long for the body to repair itself from drugs. Since I am having such minimal side effects I will stop updating you daily, but at the end of the 21st day I will update with a post showing day-by-day side effects. I am very interested to see if and when I lose my hair. I have read that it usually starts falling out by day 13. Maybe I won't lose my hair since my other side effects are so small. Wishful thinking? I'm not real worried about it, I've got a wig ready to go.


Please feel welcome to comment or ask any questions. I am writing this blog for you, so that you can learn from my experience.




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Morning Weight: 127      Calories Consumed Today: 1800




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