Time for chemo round two. 

I was anxious about how this round would go after experiencing so much pain from the first round.

But everything was normal with a PICC dressing change, and the doc saying my numbers were good for round two.

So I started my chemo ritual of putting on compression socks – yes the one your grandmother buys – followed by thick socks to go under my ice socks.

Which are meant to help reduce chemo neuropathy and the cold sensitivity that is a side effect of my protocol.

I also wear compression gloves and ice gloves to protect my hands the same way.

And the arm weights are to help keep my blood flowing.

It may look silly, but it works! 

You gotta do, what you gotta do – right?

I went home with my chemo bottle, which stays hooked up to me for 48 hours giving me supplemental meds. I even got a special fanny pack for it! 

Then a few days later, I was unhooked and could carry about my business as usual. 

For the following days, besides a bit of nausea, and what seemed to be a chemo rash, I felt fine.

I was still eating as normal, but not drinking as much water as I should be. So my doctor ordered me at-home hydration which came with its own IV pole.

Man, did that bring back memories. 

Yeah, it’s not the first time I’ve had my own IV machine. I had one when I was 12 because of my Crohn’s disease.

The IV pole is not an easy accessory to work with. So I opted for the IV machine carrier, which was much more flexible and didn’t bang up my walls.

Besides the IV hydration, I was continuing to live my life… Except for the pain.

I was, and still am, in the same amount of pain that I was in after my first chemo treatment. 

So I asked for an MRI to get confirmation that the pain was just as they all said, “the chemo working.”

I donned the gown on a Friday morning, hoping the scan would confirm that things were on track. 

But Friday afternoon, the results appeared in my MyChart account and they did not look good. 

All I can think about is how fine I feel and how that’s not normal for chemo patients. Does that mean I’m not absorbing it? Just like I can’t absorb other medications, and then they don’t work? Like, is the chemo not working? 

I know you’re supposed to wait for a doctor to interpret your results, but when they’re uploaded to your MyChart, how can you not look?

Come on, you know you’ve looked. 

Hopefully I’m wrong about what I understand my MRI results to say, but I’m not going to find out until tomorrow.

So, until then… 

➡️ Follow Jess’ cancer journey on Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube.