Thursday, January 9, 2020
I gained three pounds this month! I know most people would not be happy with weight-gain news, but I am over the moon. Yesterday when I was at my women’s business networking event, two people commented that my face looked fuller and several others mentioned they though I looked healthier. Today the scale concurred. Thirteen months ago, I weighed 95 pounds and now I am up to 111.8. Woo hoo!
It is complicated for me to get weighed. I am unable to step on a scale and I always go places in a wheelchair which weighs a couple of hundred pounds. A regular doctor’s office (or even the hospital) is not generally equipped for paralyzed people, so I have not been weighed often since I became paralyzed, until I started chemotherapy last year. Weight is apparently an important factor when calculating how much poison gets pumped into your body.
The wound care center has a patient lift device to use for patients that are difficult to move from their chair to the bed because of mobility or weight. We did not usually use the patient lift device for me because it takes longer than a simple manual fireman lift by two people. The patient lift device however comes with a weight calculating adapter, so each time I go to wound care we do the first transfer with the patient lift device to get my current weight.
When I was doing the slash and burn chemotherapy, my wounds were not doing great and I was poisoned every three weeks, so we scheduled my wound care appointments accordingly. I would see Candice the PA on Wednesday, weight and wound care on Thursday, and chemotherapy treatment on Friday. All those appointments made for a busy week.
On my new chemotherapy treatment, I have far fewer, clean wounds and I get treatment three Fridays straight with a one Friday rest, so we have not made any effort to time wound care visits with any particular chemotherapy day. This has made it possible to have my Candice the PA’s visit on a different week than my wound care appointment, until this week. The extra week break last week pushed my appointments to the same week, so once a month I will have a Wednesday, Thursday, Friday appointment week.
Three months ago, I was weighed at 108.6 and I was thrilled. I started this round of chemotherapy 13 pounds heavier than last year. That means I was 13 pounds healthier than last year. Two months ago, I was excited to finally change my monthly weight and I was 108.5. I was so disappointed my weight did not change. I have been pumped with steroids three weeks out of four, how did I not gain any weight?
When I gain another five pounds, I will finally reach my “normal” weight ranging from 115 to 125 pounds. Perhaps I will put a little more cushion on my bootie which may help heal the wounds the chemotherapy and steroids keep attacking. I am feeling much better about my health this month from last month. I am no longer convinced I am going to die really soon.
The bowel infection must have been part of the excessive sweating that concerned me because now I only sweat a little and I am just halfway through the antibiotic supply. I still have insane dry mouth and expect to have it for another week, but the nasty virus has let me go again. All is right with the world.
My piece of advice to you is to love your extra five or ten pounds, you may look and feel better with them. I feel better knowing it will take a serious medical issue to knock these 16 pounds off me and I do not see it happening any time soon.
Until next time,
Susanne
Please check out my GoFundMe page.
I gained three pounds this month! I know most people would not be happy with weight-gain news, but I am over the moon. Yesterday when I was at my women’s business networking event, two people commented that my face looked fuller and several others mentioned they though I looked healthier. Today the scale concurred. Thirteen months ago, I weighed 95 pounds and now I am up to 111.8. Woo hoo!
It is complicated for me to get weighed. I am unable to step on a scale and I always go places in a wheelchair which weighs a couple of hundred pounds. A regular doctor’s office (or even the hospital) is not generally equipped for paralyzed people, so I have not been weighed often since I became paralyzed, until I started chemotherapy last year. Weight is apparently an important factor when calculating how much poison gets pumped into your body.
The wound care center has a patient lift device to use for patients that are difficult to move from their chair to the bed because of mobility or weight. We did not usually use the patient lift device for me because it takes longer than a simple manual fireman lift by two people. The patient lift device however comes with a weight calculating adapter, so each time I go to wound care we do the first transfer with the patient lift device to get my current weight.
When I was doing the slash and burn chemotherapy, my wounds were not doing great and I was poisoned every three weeks, so we scheduled my wound care appointments accordingly. I would see Candice the PA on Wednesday, weight and wound care on Thursday, and chemotherapy treatment on Friday. All those appointments made for a busy week.
On my new chemotherapy treatment, I have far fewer, clean wounds and I get treatment three Fridays straight with a one Friday rest, so we have not made any effort to time wound care visits with any particular chemotherapy day. This has made it possible to have my Candice the PA’s visit on a different week than my wound care appointment, until this week. The extra week break last week pushed my appointments to the same week, so once a month I will have a Wednesday, Thursday, Friday appointment week.
Three months ago, I was weighed at 108.6 and I was thrilled. I started this round of chemotherapy 13 pounds heavier than last year. That means I was 13 pounds healthier than last year. Two months ago, I was excited to finally change my monthly weight and I was 108.5. I was so disappointed my weight did not change. I have been pumped with steroids three weeks out of four, how did I not gain any weight?
When I gain another five pounds, I will finally reach my “normal” weight ranging from 115 to 125 pounds. Perhaps I will put a little more cushion on my bootie which may help heal the wounds the chemotherapy and steroids keep attacking. I am feeling much better about my health this month from last month. I am no longer convinced I am going to die really soon.
The bowel infection must have been part of the excessive sweating that concerned me because now I only sweat a little and I am just halfway through the antibiotic supply. I still have insane dry mouth and expect to have it for another week, but the nasty virus has let me go again. All is right with the world.
My piece of advice to you is to love your extra five or ten pounds, you may look and feel better with them. I feel better knowing it will take a serious medical issue to knock these 16 pounds off me and I do not see it happening any time soon.
Until next time,
Susanne
Please check out my GoFundMe page.