Sorry For The Delay

It's been a while since I posted an update about Nin's badassery.  Sorry not sorry.  We've been too busy partying hard in between chemo treatments to type words.  You're probably thinking, "How hard can you party after chemo?"  I'll let our camping/dance party in the dirt video answer that question for you.

Or as I'd say, along with everybody else, in a business email, "Sorry for the delay."

Nin has now completed 4 of her 12 rounds of chemo.  I actually don't know if the term "rounds" is correct.  As far as I know it could be called rounds, doses, acid trips, cycles, infusions, walk abouts, or gentrifications.  I don't think anybody really knows the correct term, and they probably never will. #Mysteries.

Overall, Nin has been doing pretty great.  She got a little greedy after this last dose, which was on a Wednesday, and thought she could attend a work retreat meeting/kayaking on the lake with co-workers day.  Not the best decision. She was worked the next day.

Besides exhaustion, exactly like the anti-drug commercial girl above, Nin has weathered the potential side effects very well.  We're still wrapping her wrists and ankles in ice packs during her chemo infusions of the drug "Taxol" or officially "Paclitaxel" for you medical nerds out there. 

This restricts blood flow, and thereby chemo drugs flowing through her veins, to her extremities. This will hopefully prevent neuropathy, which is the loss of feeling in the fingers and toes.

Obviously, she makes even this look glamorous. I'm afraid that people see her on social media and will think "Oh man, cancer treatment looks so fabulous, I want to try it."  We know it's tempting but don't do it.  Not worth it.

One small thing that has been bugging Nin is the tissue on her gums becoming sensitive and basically falling off.  It's not like she sheds her gum skin like a snake though.  Unless that's what you're imagining.  If you are, keep imagining that.  You do you.  Don't let anybody tell you who to be.

When Nin's gums first started to bother her, she thought it might just be a popcorn kernel stuck under her gum line.  Or "subgingivally" for you dental nerds.  Man, lots of nerds in the house tonight.  Sorry cool kids.

We all went to see "Nana", my mom who is a "gentle" hygienist (according to a little neighbor boy years ago), at work.  I'm not great with grammar or "Englishing" but I just used parentheses inside of a set of commas indicating a nonessential phrase.  Like this: "(___)".  I'm no Leo but I'm pretty sure that is the literary version of Inception.

Guys, I'm sorry. It's taken me four paragraphs to explain that Nin went to the Dentist. I'm out of control.

Make that five paragraphs. Nana didn't find any popcorn in Nin's gums but she gently scraped off some plaque while being very careful to not make Nin's gums bleed.

A lot of people don't understand why I'm so uptight about Nin doing something that could make her bleed, like cutting herself, falling down, or getting shot, as a few examples.  It's a condition called hemophilia...probably, and it is a result of the chemo drugs making some patient's bodies unable to clot blood.  Luckily that hasn't happened for Nin.  In some cases even small things could lead to Emergency Room visits like bleeding gums from brushing your teeth, nose bleeds, and even hang-nails that just can't stop, won't stop, bleeding.

Another concern is anemia. Chemotherapy attacks and kills cancer cells but it also attacks red blood cells.  This lack of blood cells can cause fatigue and feeling cooler than normal. Nin couldn't get warm the other night and it wasn't even cold.  She bundled up like ET and I piled blankets on her until she warmed up.

Just another fun side effect.

Overall, Nin is killing it. She goes back in for another "gentrification" on Wednesday.  Keep the prayers coming that she continues to do well and doesn't feel tempted to be a bonehead and go kayaking the day after.

On a final note of culinary inspiration, and in preparation for the new IT movie that we will absolutely never watch, this makes Nin laugh any time she sees it.  Because it's her.