"We must embrace pain and burn it as fuel for our journey." --Kenji Miyazawa

Chemo #2 has officially kicked my ass. I've been nauseated for three days straight and now that is finally tapering off, the body pains begin. Good Gods, I never knew I could hurt in those places! My docs say that bone/joint pain is common because my immune system has been complicated. Basically, my bone marrow is working in over-drive trying to replenish my White Blood Cell stores.

Fantastic...

I feel like I can't properly imagine what exactly is going on inside my body. When I imagine things, it is like watching an episode of The Magic School Bus; complete with simplified, hand-drawn cartoons and a shrinking bus.

(Photo courtesy of www.themq.com)
Anyway...nothing has helped ease the pain. I've tried long soaks in the tub, heating pads, flax seed sacks (the kind you microwave)...hell, I've even tried hot pizza. So far, that has had the best results. :) Tomorrow, I'm going to call my doc and ask if it is okay to take some pain reliever. Normally they don't want you to take Tylenol because it could mask a fever; usually the first sign of a serious infection.



What's even better than the body pain is that I am officially shedding hair like a cat. I have this habit of running my fingers through my buzz cut (because all of the little hairs feel stubby and tickle the hell out of my scalp!). Afterwards, all these little, short locks of copper red hair are left between my fingers. *sigh* You don't even want to know what the shower is like for me...I was hoping that my hair wouldn't start thinning this quickly, but I guess I have to come to terms with it one day or another, right? Looks like I'll have to dive into the temporary hair color before it is too late.

As much as I loved having my super long curly hair, I'm realizing what an f-ing pain in the ass it was. Sure, it was quite relaxing pulling my long hair over my shoulder and braiding it, but I couldn't get my fingers through it let along a comb. Sometimes, I would wash my hair and it would be still wet in places by the end of the day. Now that I have super short hair, all I do is wash it and shake it dry. That's it! Literally no hair products, no expensive conditioners, no expensive hair cuts, just short 'n sweet. Not to mention that I look professorial with a buzz cut, belted cardigan and long earrings ;)