Weekly Update

    Thank you to everyone who is following my blog!  It's cool to come on and see the numbers grow!  It also creates a bit of a responsibility for me to get back here and update things!
     Had my first treatment dr. appointment in Philly on Thursday.  The office is right on Broad Street, 2 blocks north of City Hall, and I kind of smiled to myself as I pulled into the parking garage.  Toto, I don't think we're in Muncie/Cowan any more!!  Anyway, it's an easy run, and I am so glad I have changed drs.   The Physician Assistant follows me, under the guidance of the main dr, who happens to be chief of hepatology and gastroenterology at the university.  He was around on Thursday, gave me a big smile, and actually knows who I am and stopped to talk for a minute!
     No big medical changes at the appointment.  My blood counts are starting to go down, so that explains my increasing fatigue, but things are off to a good start.  We drew another blood sample for genotype testing and it was sent to a different lab.  I am promised a call as soon as it comes in!  We discussed the genotype conflict, and I got an honest to God answer that there is no doubt a lab error involved, it just depends on which end!  So all I can do is wait for the new one to come in, and then have some more frank discussions.  Best news would be that I am a gen 3, didn't waste the last treatment time, and still made the right decsion to get on with treatment this time.
     Friday night I really got zinged with fatigue and had that first deep down to the bone need to crash.  Struggled through dinner with my mother-in-law and was in bed within 10 minutes of getting home.  I was SO tired, but not necessarily sleepy, so I read for awhile in bed.  Saturday I felt better, and we finally got down to the marina to open up our sail boat for the season.  I paced myself there, and only did a few necessities, and took a nap on a beach towel on a bare settee for an hour.  We grabbed a bite to eat and came back home.  I'm glad that the process is begun.   I hope to spend lots of time there this summer just resting and hanging out.
     The big outing for today was the grocery store!   It's so foreign to me to become more dependent on Steve.  I had to tell him to slow down and not walk so fast through the store. Food shopping is not nearly as interesting when you really don't care what you eat!  I just smile at all the years and years I've done this by myself, in the midst of raising kids, working, running other errands, etc.  Anyway, we have some basics in the house again.  Cereal with a banana and a strawberry was fine for me for dinner. 
      My hair has changed over the last week, also.  For the record, I have always had very fine, naturally wavy/curly hair with a lot of body to it.  Last time I was in treatment I had it cut very short to deal with the loss of hair and I've just kept it that way.   Well, now it has become very coarse and straight, almost over night.  Not real attractive this minute, and I don't have a hair appointment for another 10 days!  Did I tell you the dr said I can continue to have it colored and do whatever I want with it?   There was a report on TV that suggested hair dye was hard on the liver, but he said it wasn't proven and not to worry about it.  I wasn't sure if I could handle giving up my dirty blonde hair for natural grey right now!
     I do have to honestly say that the first wave of depression has hit.  That's one of the major side effects of the medications.  I'm on an anti-depressant, and will keep a close eye on it to see if we have to tweak it.  I was talking to my daughter just to get caught up on things, and all of a sudden I was crying.  Poor thing, didn't know what had hit her!!  Can't give a rhyme or reason for it, and will try really hard to boost myself up with prayer and positive thoughts.  "Skyping" with our grandson has been great therapy, and I know his mom/my other daughter, goes out of her way to arrange for our little visits to cheer me up!  There's nothing like seeing him run across the room to demonstrate his new sneakers to bring a smile to my face!!  It's such a blessing to be living in this age of technology!!!