September 18, 2015
On Wednesday, September 16, I completed the third week of my
chemo regimen. I will now have a week
off. It will be good to have a break.
The first week of the past regimen went well. I was not as sick during the week following
the first treatment. In fact it was
Labor Day weekend, and three of my sisters (Jessie, Kathleen and Tammy) and
their husbands visited us for the weekend.
We spent most of the time at our Lake Anna house. It was really fun being with them, and it was
relaxing at the lake. I could rest when
I needed to. We spent time eating,
visiting and laughing. I enjoyed watching
the others do water sports, and we all enjoyed a nice boat ride. I even took a ride on the jet ski. Before we went to the lake, my sisters also
helped me pick out some wigs. We had so
much fun as they tried on wigs as well.
I felt a lot of love and support from them. My family is fabulous!
The second and third weeks have been more difficult. I have felt much sicker with headaches, body
aches, nausea and stomach pain. Overall,
it has not been a lot of fun. It was my
daughter’s birthday (Stacey). She and
Stephanie, my other daughter, came to visit me on the weekend of September
11-13. I felt pretty good on Friday, and
we took a little bike ride around the Washington monuments. It was a beautiful day, and we took a very
relaxed pace. It was very pleasant. Unfortunately, on Saturday, I became very
ill. I had a severe headache and lots of
nausea. I spent nearly all day in
bed. I was very sad and disappointed
because I had planned to take Stacey shopping for her birthday. Sunday, I felt a little better, but not
great. I was pleased to be able to
attend at least one hour of Church on Sunday.
I always enjoy seeing so many friends and feeling their love and support. For the remainder of this week, I have not
felt very well. I haven’t had to stay in
bed, but I continue with the pains described above. Sleep has also been challenging.
Even though I have not felt well, Heavenly Father and the
Savior have blessed me. For example, one
day when I was feeling extremely sick and crying, I prayed asking whey I had to
experience all this suffering. In
response, I was reminded of one of my favorite scriptures in John 14:27, which
reads as follows: “Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the
world giveth, give I unto you. Let not
your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.” I am grateful for the peace that comes from
Heavenly Father and the Savior.