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I just had my 2nd chemo two days ago. Besides a little more obvious stomach upset, I have not felt much difference from last treatment so far except my hair is almost gone.
My hair loss started a little more than a week ago. Although I have had my hair cut to a dramatic short length last Saturday, it just could not buck the trend. I have been losing my hair faster than a tree shedding its leaves in Autumn, which left me with only two options - to use a scarf or a wig. The idea of wearing a wig didn't seem very appealing to me after scanning quite some websites. Most of the wigs just look very awful and fake:-(
Meanwhile, the wig my mom bought for me is on its way to my place - a straight hair style! As far as I remember, I have always been struggling with my curly and troublesome hair, from being teased by classmates as 'barbarian' at kindergarten to had my mom questioned by every new teacher I had during my high school years for perming my hair (yes, the high school I went to is very strict and prude: no makeup, no jewelry, no perm hair, no dating your school mates:-), etc.) All these happened because I don't have the straight and fine Asian hair like everyone else, which also makes me curious about the origin of some of my ancestors. Could they be the nomadic pastoral people of Huns who had invaded China and migrated out of the Mongolia region in the 1st century AD., or the Persian merchants came from the Silk Road and settled down in my hometown?
I guess my genealogy quest can wait. In the meantime, as it's always said, '
When God closes a door, somewhere he opens a window.' My hair loss might just give me an opportunity to try out different hairstyles, such as a straight and fine Bob hair do I have been always dreaming of:-) I can't wait for Jeffrey, my best friend from high school, to come to town on the upcoming Labor Day weekend and the wigs hunting adventure we have planned for.
Let's hope I could find a perfect one without breaking the bank:-)
I have both good news and bad news for you guys. Or from the Eastern philosophical point of view, there is no such thing as good and evil. At the end of the day, there is just ONE thing. Either good or bad, right or wrong, it all depends on your perspective. So here is the result of my PET/CT scan the doctor delivered to me today: there are malignant lymphadenopathy within my right hilar, base of the right neck, etc. besides the original findings. But all the affected nodes are contained within the right side of my upper half body, which means it's STAGE II, at least for now. From the scale of seriousness of 1 to 5, he put me in the catogery of 2, which I suppose it's not that bad.
The ugly things are the bumps and scars left on my left forehead and the bridge of my nose from last Sunday's pass-out drama. But according to Melissa, a great friend since college years who came a long way to see me this afternoon, I look pretty good and healthy. She must be exceedingly kind:-)
She also brought me some fresh crabmeat sushi (Yum!!!) and my favorite tiramisu from wholefood. We haven't seen each other for a long time due to my condition, but time just flew by between sharing the delicious sushi and the familiar girl talks as those good old days.
Meanwhile I scrambled to find a container large enough for the two huge bundles of sunflowers she bought me. I probably should not mention any favorite thing on the blog any more. I feel like a spoiled kid right now, anything I point my finger to, my friends might go far and beyond to get it for me. Or maybe I should...Let's see, what do I want for X'mas...Hahaha...
But kidding aside, the whole experience makes me realize that besides my health, the unwavering love and friendship you have shown me is the most priceless treasure in this world.
XOXO
I had my 1st major reaction of chemo yesterday. Literally, I passed out in the middle of the day after feeling a sudden urge of vomiting. The next thing I knew, I were laying on the floor with a small pool of blood in front of me. I must have hit my nose during the process. There are bruises on my forehead too.
Ironically, exactly one month after the the SVCS (Superior vena cava syndrome) brought me into Bellevue Hospital's ER and ended up with my lymphoma diagnosis, i were in the same place and went through the same old same old again. Life does have all kind of creative way to surprise me:-( Even though some friends of mine always teased me being drawn to dramatic things in life as a Scorpio, this is definitely not the theatrical act I expected.
I finally got home after midnight with the help of Auntie Suiming and her husband. They have driven all the way from Flushing to midtown Manhattan in the middle of the night and took me home to Astoria. Their kindness made me feel extremely grateful and guilty at the same time, which I hope I could return one way or another for the rest of my life.
I got quite some calls and messages from friends and family during the ordeal. I just want to use the blog to express my most heartfelt gratitude and let you know I am doing OK now. With all your love and kindness as my biggest support, I shall overcome!!!
Cheers!!!
I went through my 1st chemo yesterday at Bellevue. The day didn't start smoothly. the appointment was set at 8:00am, but I forgot to set my alarm clock the night before and ended up being 45 min. late...Oops...
The staffs there took care of me right away though. Nurse Seema was in charge of my treatment. I knew I were in good hands from the beginning. We chit chatted our way through the painful parts (Actually it's not that bad:-) ) about her hometown, Dehli, India and Indian foods, etc. There are a lot of Indian Restaurants just a few blocks away near 2nd & 3rd Ave. I happened to have a big and very satisfying lunch buffet at Copper Chimney the day before with a lof of lambs (my favorite). But according to Nurse Seema, most of the Indian Restaurants out there are not authentic, who am I to judge?
Good things they set up a mini TV with DVD player for each bed at the treatment room. I brought along the French movie Paris je t'aime (highly recommended by some friends) and a book to kill the time. But half way through the movie, I already dozed off due to the Benadryl they gave me. In between, my doctor phoned in and informed me that my bone marrow biopsy's result came back negative. One less thing to worry about, Yeah!!!
My friend Yayoiyi dropped by to accompany me home later on. Before the treatment was over, we talked about some of her potential freelance projects, which reminded me of the days I covered the NY Fashion Week and the upcoming S/S collections in Sept. There is one show in particular I long to see, Ralph Rucci, the most exquisite American couture designer in my opinion. I will keep my fingers crossed and hope that I will be healthy enough to somehow sneak into his show at the time:-)
I feel pretty ok after the treatment and finished a whole almond croissant at the hospital lobby's cafe right away. But Yayoiyi insisted on carrying most of my belongings for me. It's nice to feel like a delicate flower once in a while...Hahaha...
On my way home, I picked up quite some of favorite Greek pastries and finished the day with a nice dinner at my favorite Greek restaurant, Agnanti by Astoria Park.
It has been a great start and I hope things will keep on this way.
Two days before my 1st chemo, I went to my favorite Japanese restaurant, Natori at St. Marks Pl., with 2 foodies friends, Lulu and Susan. At the back of mind, I know this might be the last nice dinner I gonna enjoy in a long time before the side effects of chemo kick in and change my appetite upside down. Between chowing down Nato pancake (my favorite), alligator meat w/plum sauce, octopus w/ ginger sauce, etc. and drinking Kirin beer, we talked about all sort of funny things except the elephant in the room - my lymphoma. Near the end, i brought it up myself and were kind of amazed by the fact that up to this point, I have been able to look at it with some sort of cool and distant feeling. As if my mind has drifted out of my body and looked down from somewhere above upon everthing going on.
As if they have read my mind, my friends also brought me a sunflower bouquet, which always cheers me up during a rainny day. How nice!!!
On my way home with the sunflowers in my hands, I have made up a to do list for the possible extra free time ahead,
- Learn a New Language
- Learn more Photo techniques and make good use of my Canon G10
- Read the books I have started and never got a chance to finish, such as An Underground Education and 50 Great American Short Stories (judging from my writing, which seems to be a necessity, LOL), etc
- Watch more UK comedy such as Keeping Up Appearances (Poor Mrs. Bucket always cracks me up:-)
- Try out Yoga while I need to stay away from my dearest swimming pool for now:-(
- Explore the farthest galaxy and the deepest ocean (in my dream)...Hahaha...
I feel like Scarlett in Gone with the Wind, waving my fists at the sky, 'After all...tomorrow is another day.' And the sun will shine through again!
When God closes a door, somewhere he opens a window.' My hair loss might just give me an opportunity to try out different hairstyles, such as a straight and fine Bob hair do I have been always dreaming of:-) I can't wait for Jeffrey, my best friend from high school, to come to town on the upcoming Labor Day weekend and the wigs hunting adventure we have planned for.
