17. after the rasp

My folks just pointed out that when I don't post regularly, especially at this point in treatment, they worry that there's a reason for it. Of course that's true, but luckily not the reason they fear. I'll try to be more vigilant, even if only to indicate that I'm still kicking!

The treatment after my last post about overcoming the rasp in my throat was a very pleasant surprise. Although I again had some phlegm build-up it never got to the point where I felt threatened or panicked. I think I've learned how to stay fairly calm and that makes all the difference. Knock on wood.

The next day, Friday, brought a new experience. I guess it really started Thursday evening. I went to bed around 11 and slept for an hour. After that I was unable to get back to sleep. I think this was partly due to sleeping most of Thursday afternoon, but not entirely. I tried to tire myself by reading, surfing the web, and watching stuff on Hulu.com. But every time I lay my head down to sleep, saliva would creep up my throat. Eventually I would have to get up, spit it out and gargle. This went on all night. I tried elevating my head with a bunch of pillows. This worked at first but didn't last. I tried to sleep in my recliner, but same problem. By 5AM my frustration might have been getting in the way too.

When I got up at 7:30 and went through my feeding ritual I was pretty exhausted. I fed myself, washed, dressed and readied myself to go to treatment. Then I noticed I felt pretty dizzy. I sat down, but it wouldn't go away. We had already arranged for our next door neighbor Rachel to give me a ride because I no longer want to drive myself and Betsy had to go to work. But I was so disturbed by this dizzyness that I asked Betsy to come too. She agreed immediately, then called my radiation doctor to tell him about my condition. He said I should go right to the emergency room.

When we arrived at the hospital they sat me in a wheel chair and whizzed me to a a bed. My blood and urine were taken for tests, I was put on a glucose drip, and we waited. A couple of hours later the results were in: dehydration. It had never occurred to me that this could happen since all I'm consuming is liquids. And I seem to pee constantly. But it's pretty obvious now. I'm not drinking much through my mouth because it hurts and it hadn't occurred to me to supplement through my tube. I've been using the tube exclusively for my high calorie instant breakfasts and meds. I've only been drinking 3 cups of tea and a bottle of vitamin water a day. Clearly not enough.

By 3:00 I was ready to be discharged so we called the radiation folks to see if I should get my treatment -- which I was dreading. They said I was welcome to come by, but that the schedule was full and there was no guarantee that they'd be able to squeeze me in. Since it sounded like missing one day of radiation was not going to jeopardize the success of the treatment it was an easy decision. We headed home. I spent the rest of the day hydrating as much as possible.

Today, Saturday, my throat hurts in some new places, but overall I feel ok. The sky is blue, the window's open, a breeze gently blows the blind. The radio is tuned to WGBO which is playing blues and jazz. The DJ says "spring has sprung, it's 75 degrees in Newark." I'm drinking tea, water and juice and reading The Times. Esther and K-rad are doing yard work. Betsy is grocery shopping.

10 more days.