The Alien Within: 8 – Caffeine Free Hyperbole

Date August 1, 2015 Author By RLG Category Journal

Or The Effects of High Dose Steroids…

For the first time, during the wee smalls of last night, I woke with a slight feeling of nausea and, as a safeguard, took a supplementary anti-sick I had been prescribed jic.

It helped!  There was also some mild internal hurty bits around the site of The Alien Within, but I have grown accustomed to these after my trip to A&E and downed a couple of Paracetomol, as if I don’t have enough rattling around already.

It is now 2000hrs on Saturday, 01st August, 2015

I am resting, not moving much, vegetating even and have been for the last hour or so after dinner…

My normal resting pace is between 65 & 70bpm!

This morning started like every other, hot drink in bed delivered by my Jilly, just before she goes walkabout with Benson.  Followed by a shower, only this morning, first time in a week, I was I encumbered by my attendant Chemo Pump, yay.  Freedom unbounded… lol, although I do have to avoid douching the dressing on my PICC Line, so the Limbo will be earning its keep…

Not pretty, but functional at least and it works.  At least it doesn’t have a long dangly tube hanging out the elbow end, keen to get tangled on anything and everything like a random bindweed frond blowing in the wind!

This morning also signalled a change in the drugs cocktail, although we are not 100% sure we have got it right.

Today is the last day of the current high dose steroid tabs.  These have appeared to have combined with the concentrated Chemo injection from last night with the net effect of consuming a triple Espresso first thing and then following it with another – and I have been there and rather stupidly, done that on a regular basis in the dim and distant!  Steroids, aside from the other effects on one’s system and internal organs, is a stimulant and boy have I been so stimulated today, almost as soon as having taken the damn things.  And Jill has complained that I have been talking far too much today, mostly garbage, exaggerated truths and nonsense…

Hence the increased BPM, which has been steady at the mid-eighties all day long and only now starting to slowly reduce – did I mention that the Watch calibration appears to be spot on?  At least from my trip to A&E earlier in the week I managed to check it against the hospital tech and it was on the nail!  Tomorrow will be different, no more Chemo and definitely no steroids!  I may need to nip out and have a triple Espresso…

Yesterday’s Chemo increase has also made its presence felt in other, more subtle ways;  my mouth has felt a bit weird, like it was coated with something, not unpleasant, but odd and seems to have affected my taste buds.  I did experience this during the first day’s intravenous feed, but it wore off pretty swiftly.  This has been evident all day and may just be dissipating now.

The only other pills I will be on, for the next couple of weeks at least, are the remains of a short dose of antibiotics, a couple of days of anti-sick tabs, and one more to protect my kidneys and liver from all the excess waste brewed up by the Chemo & steroids.  I also have a morning subcutaneous injection, which will continue, supplemented by another for just the next five days – tiny ring of bruises around my midriff (good job I am carrying a little excess!).

On top of all that, we popped out for non-invasive (retail) therapy today; I am probably a little more tired than previous evenings!

And tomorrow; I really want to visit Billing Aquadrome for their annual Land Rover Fest…
NEXT: Week 1 – Day 7