Thank you to the coupla sweet friends who check this blog regularly and then checked up on me after not seeing any update since December!
I'll preface this by saying I'm fine. In fact, I had the most productive day of this chemo cycle yesterday! I did a load of laundry, cooked Thai green curry chicken, and went for ballet class, in addition to doing a bunch of work. Of course, I had to fight the internal "Do I really have to go to class? Maybe I can skip it, I can afford it" monologue and I came home aching to high heaven. But dance, for me, is always worth it. And I got to hear Raquel say, "Good timing, Norain" during the tricky plié combination, which I kind of live for.
Actual infusion
I had my fourth round of Enhertu infusion on New Year's Eve. Yes, what a fun way to end the year! As NCCS was on half day for NYE, I had to also appear on 30 Dec for my blood test. (It's cool because I took the afternoon off and went to Muse after the blood draw.) So on NYE itself, I saw the oncologist to complain about my soft nails (they now split really easily, even with a bump against anything solid, and snag on most fabrics and continue to split), then hung around for my chemo sesh. The "rooftop" garden is a really nice place to chill because it's quiet and shaded with a nice water feature. Watch out for the handwave-activated doors though, because they open quite violently.
Anyway, I was called up around 1pm and done by 2pm because Enhertu infusion is just that fast. Then I took the bus home and cooked karuvattu kulambu (dried fish curry) for the first time ever, and we rang in the new year at the 9th floor carpark rooftop!
Chemo 'fit
Pain and suffering
I knew that days 4 - 10 of the cycle would be the worst, with the nausea, acid reflux, bloating, and actual puking. But it didn't help me enjoy the week more or anything. I ate seulas durian (a piece of durian), then started eating chicken rice and started puking halfway, so that was fun. I just oozed through the days as best as I could, counting down to the end of week 2.
But then.
Week 3 was spent with jaw pain, bloating, stomach pain that doesn't go away with massage or medicine, and a very odd ache that I can only describe as a muscle tear feeling which attacks every time pressure is applied to any part of my body. On this last issue, it hurts my head to even pull on a t-shirt, as the collar part grazes my head. There are no cuts or bruises though so it's super mysterious.
I did go to the polyclinic to complain about the first three issues after a week of suffering, by the way. The doctor diagnosed it as "maybe you grind your teeth while sleeping, I'll give you ibuprofen" and "gastritis, I'll give you omeprazole for that". She did read through my NCCS notes - that's why I went the poly route instead of a private GP - and initially remarked, "Oh, bloating, but you normally get that right?"
Ya-huh but this bloating is different and that's why I dragged myself down hellloooo.
Anyway I feel it was a wasted trip health-wise because the meds did nothing. Maybe these are just new Enhertu symptoms and I have to operate on this baseline level of pain and discomfort.
But it wasn't a total loss because I popped over to Cata Coffee and The Egyptian Baker after that and got some coffee and yummy bakes! That's one great selling point of Eunos Polyclinic, that it's so near these great places.
Schedule
My oncologist recommended 4 - 6 Enhertu cycles before we do a CT scan, so I asked for the scan to be done before number 5. It's scheduled for the end of this month because they couldn't get an earlier date, so I get an extra two weeks off before my next infusion! I'm so thankful because maybe my body will feel better within these bonus two weeks. Even though I'm still dealing with the jaw pain, stomach pain, and muscle tear sensations.
I can still dance, though. The pain is not intense enough to distract me when I'm dancing. But the moment I'm in the bus home, it's back to haunt me. Always thankful to be able to dance (and get compliments on my musicality!).
Office 'fit today
