Ahhh….the weekend is here
Boy I sure do look forward to the weekends. The kids are all here, which means the whole family is here. And I love when they ask me what they can do to help around the house. And probably the best part these days, is I can look forward to no treatments for 2 whole days. I’ll probably take it pretty easy this weekend (what?!) and do some cleaning here and there around the house, play my guitar when the mood strikes and try not to get real hungry. After picking Wyatt up from his piano lesson this morning, he picked up some doughnuts to surprise the other kids with when we got home. Dang, they smelled so good and I couldn’t have even one of them! What I would do for a big slice of pizza or a cheeseburger right now.
Last night was pretty tough as far as eating goes. I was only able to get some apple sauce down, and it felt like molten lava in my mouth. This morning things seem a bit easier, so I made some cream of wheat and was able to make my way through it pretty well. I’ll drink an Ensure or a protein shake later on.
This week’s treatment was definately tougher than all others so far. My mouth is my main problem, but my lips are breaking up to (from the Erbitux) and that is affecting my speech. I’m using a lip ointment called Aquaphor that keeps them under control though. I really have no pain anywhere other than inside my mouth and lips at this point. And the daily skin treatments from Denise seem to be helping to keep the radiation burns from ruining my skin. And finally I’m really making an effort each day to take care of my teeth. My gums are thrashed, and since I don’t have a lot of bacteria fighting saliva to work with, it’s important to do a lot of mouth washing with Biotine and brushing each day.
Hey Guyle,
Just checking in again with you. I’m sorry to hear about the problems with eating. Muriel was asking about you. She saw something I had written to you on Facebook and she was very concerned about you. She said that she was going to contact you saw not sure if you guys have connected? Anyway, I don’t know what you think about prayer but Megan & I are praying for you.
Take care buddy, Stephen
Guyle,
I’ve just been catching up on all your posts about your treatment. This is rough stuff! The pain and the difficulty eating, swallowing, and breathing all seem pretty hard to bear. But you are handling it so well and quite positively. I just want to thank you for sharing your experiences — it helps all of us who care about you to know what’s really going on and gives us confidence you’ll be all right. And I want to add to what Stephen said — my family has been praying for you every day. I know it will help. I also believe in what you wrote about positive energy and focus (from The Key to Yourself). I haven’t read the book, but I know many examples of that principle working for people. I hope your mouth pain starts to ease soon.
- Steve