I'm sorry, ita. It's tough when you feel so far away.
Buffy: Dancing with you is way better than trying to hook up with some good-looking guy. Xander: I think I liked it more when you were kicking me in my puffy groin.
'Get It Done'
Natter 69: Practically names itself.
Off-topic discussion. Wanna talk about corsets, duct tape, or physics? This is the place. Detailed discussion of any current-season TV must be whitefonted.
billytea - Oct 22, 2011 5:52:03 am PDT #2758 of 30001
You were a wrong baby who grew up wrong. The wrong kind of wrong. It's better you hear it from a friend.
Ginger - Oct 22, 2011 6:31:29 am PDT #2759 of 30001
"It didn't taste good. It tasted soooo horrible. It tasted like....a vodka martini." - Matilda
I'm so sorry, ita.
If it's any help, I will say that I've known several people on the standard chemo regimens for colon cancer, and the odds are that she'll be driving herself (if she drives at all) and feeding herself just fine. There's often an initial shakedown, because some people are allergic to one of the components of the cocktail and they have to do some adjustments, but after that, most people just get progressively more tired. That chemo is often given on a pump, but a lot of people can't stand the pump.
I do have some suggestions that seem to help people have an easier time with chemo, if you'd like me to send them to you.
Lee - Oct 22, 2011 6:38:33 am PDT #2760 of 30001
The feeling you get when your brain finally lets your heart get in its pants.
Ginger's suggestions certainly helped me, for what that is worth.
Anne W. - Oct 22, 2011 6:49:49 am PDT #2761 of 30001
The lost sheep grow teeth, forsake their lambs, and lie with the lions.
ita, I wish I had something better to say than 'I'm sorry,' but you and your mom (and the rest of your family) will be in my thoughts.
Steph L. - Oct 22, 2011 7:37:23 am PDT #2762 of 30001
I look more rad than Lutheranism
I do have some suggestions that seem to help people have an easier time with chemo, if you'd like me to send them to you.
Ginger's suggestions certainly helped me, for what that is worth.
I love my Buffistas.
Fiona - Oct 22, 2011 7:50:19 am PDT #2763 of 30001
ita, I'm sorry. Best wishes to you and all your family.
§ ita § - Oct 22, 2011 8:02:38 am PDT #2764 of 30001
Well not canonically, no, but this is transformative fiction.
Thanks, Ginger. I'd love to hear anything. My mother has been told to expect a really rough time, and there's no way she'll be up and driving, I don't think before her first session.
Jessica - Oct 22, 2011 8:47:56 am PDT #2765 of 30001
And then Ortus came and said "It's Ortin' time" and they all Orted off into the sunset
ita, I'm so sorry to hear about the diagnosis. But being there emotionally is just as important as being there to "do" stuff.
Ginger - Oct 22, 2011 8:48:12 am PDT #2766 of 30001
"It didn't taste good. It tasted soooo horrible. It tasted like....a vodka martini." - Matilda
My mother has been told to expect a really rough time
I wish people wouldn't do this. Her doctors can probably assess her recovery from surgery pretty well, but no one can predict her reaction to chemo. I don't think it helps going in believing it's going to be terrible. It's frequently not.
I send you something today, ita !
Jesse - Oct 22, 2011 9:11:56 am PDT #2767 of 30001
Sometimes I trip on how happy we could be.
I was just reading David Rakoff's book Half Empty, and he talks about a thing called defensive pessimism, where people figure out the worst-case scenario, but then make plans to avoid it or deal with it, but it sounds like the kind of thing that's only natural to a certain group of people, and probably hardly any of the other people learn how to do it. So anyway, I wonder if the people who say she'll (or anyone will) have a rough time (with anything) are naturally defensive pessimists, who think it's a good idea to plan for the worst case, so you can either implement those plans and be OK, or be pleasantly surprised if it doesn't come to pass.