It continues .....

I went through a bunch of emotions with finding out I had cancer yet again and of course a million questions.  The one that kept coming to mind was, "Why, me?"  then ... "Why, again?"  Did this have anything to do with having thyroid cancer just 15 yrs ago?  What did this mean for me?  Man ...so many questions.  What kind of treatment did this type of cancer mean?

My ENT was great and answered so many of my questions.  He said this type of cancer can't be treated with chemo (I am so thankful for that) and it usually gets treated with radiation.  He said that he wasn't sure if I truly needed it or not.  They did get all the nodule when he did the surgery, so if he did do radiation it would be for precaution measures.

So, my ENT sent me to an Oncologist to get his opinion.  After visiting with Oncologist he felt like it would be in my best interest to get the radiation - every day (except for weekends) for six weeks.  Oh joy!!  I had no idea what  I was in store for with the treatments.  I didn't know what to expect.  I was really hoping that I would have gotten started on the treatments right away, but my insurance had another idea.  For some reason there was an issue - really weird - and they said it had never happened before, to anyone.  It took a couple of weeks to get it all straightened out, but they finally did.

I am not going to lie, the thought of radiation, scared me to death.  The unknown is always scary .. and this one wasn't any different.  For my first visit they had to make a mold/cast that I would wear each time.  It covered my whole face down past my shoulders.  They fasten it down to the table each time.  It kept me from moving.  My very first treatment I had such anxiety before I got there and then before they fasten me to the table.  I prayed and prayed, more than I ever have before.  I prayed for peace and calmness to get through the treatment.  Thank God that he heard my prayer and answered.  There was a calmness that came over me that only could come from God.  This just didn't happen with the one treatment it was with each and every treatment.  A calmness that can only come from God.

The first couple of weeks of treatments went by pretty easily.  No complications or problems.  Then the 3rd & 4th week hit along with all the side effects that go along with radiation and where mine was located came it's own set of side effects.  I am still not sure which one was the worse, the fatigue, sore throat, bad taste in my mouth or the blisters inside my mouth.  None of them was fun.  I had to eat a lot of soft foods and drink a lot of water and/or tea.  Drinking hot (not too hot) tea with lots of honey did help coat my throat.  I had to make sure that I was eating enough to keep up my strength and to not lose a bunch of weight.  So, I allowed myself to eat whatever I wanted without worrying if it was on my diet or not.

My journey will continue ....