Round II - This time I will KILL IT!

[Pekka]

Yeah it's a good idea, but very difficult to arrange it seems... Since my wife works in shifts, her shift is always 12 hour.. so 13 hours when she's gone.... night shifts are cool because she gets back in the morning (but it's not a good idea to not let her sleep right away...). But we can at least minimize the time window... my mom will now be here much more since we got the new place. My mother-in-law will be here during the next weekend so that helps.

For the sake of surviving, we need good memories..... survival in flesh, emotion or spirit, I figure we always need that positive spin - at least it can't hurt...

I'm still fighting. Got my new chemo drugs today, so tomorrow we roll.... I'll give you guys an update how it went.

I have one symptom more than before... I get very tired quite fast. But I figure that is prolly due to the surgery and the fact that I've been in recovery mode (on my ass) ever since.

[pchang]

Yes. And both chemo and radiation will add to that feeling of fatigue.

[Pekka]

Holy moly did I get fatiqued!!!

But nothing else No nausea, no nothing.. fatique was pretty bad, I actually had to sleep it over. But I feel perfectly fine now. I was thinking about running soon.

[pchang]

Great news. Everyone reacts a little differently. Your reaction is on the mild end. Very good news.

[rah]

Yeah, hopefully it stays that way. My dad just started both and they told him that it could get progressively worse as they do more treatments. But then he's 85.

[Japher]

Stay positive Pekka.

[Alexander's Horse]

thinking of you Pekka

[molly bloom]

Holy moly did I get fatiqued!!!

But nothing else No nausea, no nothing.. fatique was pretty bad, I actually had to sleep it over. But I feel perfectly fine now. I was thinking about running soon.

Pekka, do you like Guinness ? When my friend was having chemo and radio therapy his doctors recommended it to him.

And soon it will be St. Patrick's Day, so you can join in....


Fell better and get better soon.

[Pekka]

I like Guinness sure. I'll try it I can see it helping a bit actually Difficult to explain.

So updating, I'm still OK, I've had my first week of chemo/radiation and it hasn't been as bad as I feared first. I feel a bit "heat" in my forehead like an hour after treatment but other than that, I'm OK. I've felt extreme fatique few times, but not every time. I don't have radiation on weekends so I only have chemo drugs, like today, and I still got that same feeling of fatique so I figure it's the temodal I'm taking mostly. Few days ago I actually felt rather energetic, not fatique, my wife told me that I didn't seem tired but more like manic if anything.

Yesterday I tried a bit jogging but wasn't ready for it. DIdn't failt, but felt like if I kept jogging, I might feel nausea soon. So I got to take it slowly. But I'll be running my half marathon this summer, mark my words!

I feel like I'm forgetting everything though. Performing simple tasks seems irritating and I keep having little troubles so I don't like that... as for more difficult tasks, no problems. Kind of weird. A bit foggy at all times. Then again, at least I'm relaxed because I can't remember anything Guinness time for sure!

I haven't told my doctors but I've used cannabis a bit as well, it has helped me a lot. It helps me sleep, and both times I was energetic and not fatiqued I had taken medibles I made earlier few hours before radiation. Also, I read that there are benefits of temodal and THC, they boost each other. There is a bit of controversy there but as a coin flip, I figured it was published in Nature so... I'll go with THC boosting temodal (my chemo drug). And THC kills cancer cells so .... not my main strategy, but definitely a side dish. I don't smoke it, I eat it. Adn I like it.

Also, thanks for sending me tips and links for clinical trials and what's happening. It's really useful, please keep doing it! It's difficult alone but survival depends on stuff like that.... it only takes one to make it.

edit: it's incredibly empowering. I know I'm not alone... I have eyes all over the world, if they see something interesting, they'll forward it to me. It's a tangible thing and gives me great comfort. Thank you dear friends

[notyoueither]

Good sign that you're adjusting well to treatment

[pchang]

Foggy part is called chemo brain. Quite common. Goes away once the treatment is finished.

[molly bloom]

I like Guinness sure. I'll try it I can see it helping a bit actually Difficult to explain.

They used to serve it up in Irish hospitals in maternity wards according to some...

It was not so long ago in Ireland that pregnant women were told to drink a glass of Guinness every day to fortify themselves and their baby.

http://www.irishcentral.com/roots/top-10-guinness-facts-93321039-237782481.html

Pekka- I can't remember what your musical likes are. Let me know and I'll see if I can get some things on a USB stick and send it to you, for help when you're recovering.

And just in case, like me, you're a fan of mushrooms :

http://www.cancerresearchuk.org/cancer-help/about-cancer/cancer-questions/mushrooms-in-cancer-treatment

[Pekka]

Molly, thanks, but I've got fiber optics and NAS (== more music than a life time can handle), and also I pay for spotify so I'm covered there Thanks anyway!

Mushrooms, interesting link, thanks.... ....

Good news: Now, a full week of radiation behind me, nurse called me and said my blood samples are excellent (optimal to be exact), so no need to change my chemo at all. My body is handling it well. Also, I feel energetic! I figure it might be the treatment working, I mean I've had some sort of brain tumors since 2009 (scary!, wow!), so now maybe after surgery, getting rid of most of it (hopefully), and killing it afterwards, maybe it's because I have less brain tumor, and that's why I feel energetic. Why not??? Seems logical to me. At least I hope so! I might be most healthy I've ever been in years (at least momentarily - bitter sweet).

Then again, I went for a job interview today for a big company. The had like 80 ppl wanting the job, short list was 8 and next week 2 remain. The guy told me right then I'm one fo the 2 and we'll talk money next week and that they want to make it worth my while... I was there sitting "OK" with my huge scar on my forehead, just out of radiation therapy... extremely surreal experience. Feels good to be wanted though... can't take the job now, I figure I'll see how my treatments go for the next weeks and then let them know that I have cancer (or had), and this is the status quo now, so.... if we're still go, let's do it. The jbo itself has benefits:

- Pays better
- closer to my home (less commuting)
- It's what I like about ym current job, but only that, so I don't hae to do all the other stuff I don't like (I made sure to tell them I don't like x, y or z)
- I don't have to "sell my thoughts to management, they already bought it and are committed in terms of investments for the next 5 years --> so much less stress
- less stress
- more my own terms

Got to say I can't complain. I'm having a blast Also I strongly believe this kind of stuff will benefit my health. Synergies and so forth. I'll be open about my situation though.

I've never tried mushrooms (psychedelic ones) but regular ones I really like. They're supposed to be good for you, I've read about it but never got around to it, thanks for the reminder! I kind of take these things way more seriously now.

Keep'em good links coming though!

[pchang]

Let us know how this week goes too. Hoping for the best for you.

[Pekka]

Week started well. Still feeling good. I get feelings of hope, sometimes storng, that I will survive this one. Maybe delusional thinking, but I think it's possible, if not forever, then at least for a long time to come. The doctors still keep saying it's not looking good and I keep telling them that I feel good so I don't mind what the papers say. Needless to say of course that it's time to look at all kinds of options soon.

But so far, I'm feeling good. I saw a boy, like 4 or 5 year old boy going for brain radiation after me... it sort of broke my heart.... He was all bold, looked exactly like that spoon kid in Matrix. His mother was there too, they had positive vibe though, so they're strong. I really hope he makes it, radiation and obviously other rough treatments that he is going through are ravishing his young body... so I just saw something that's worse. If that was my child, I'd be even more devastated. I'm a grown up at least. Everything is perfectly OK.