First visit to Chemo Suite

We had the pleasure of Livi's company yesterday for our trip out.  Of course, we had to wait until she finished work experience, oh and she didn't want to walk too far (her feet hurt), oh and she didn't want to visit boring houses/castles, oh and it was going to pour down in the afternoon. Well, that left us with plenty of options....not!
We eventually conceded to going to Farmer Giles farmstead (how old are they??!!).  Actually it turned out alright.  Yes, they were the oldest kids there and yes, it did rain, but we managed to dodge that for most of our time there.  All the animals were friendly and the kids and Chris enjoyed feeding and petting them (just goes to show, they never grow up).  There were lots of tractors for Chris to take photos of and I got to see a jet and an Apache helicopter flying overhead! Satnav took us through some lovely villages on the way back, so not a bad afternoon in all.

Today involved visiting the Chemo Suite for the first time.  Had bloods taken before going for a chat with the chemo nurse.  This happened in the same place as the treatments and took around an hour.  Not a big room and not an awful lot of space between patients.  Most of the bays were occupied and it was quiet, except for us talking and nurses busying themselves with various tasks.  Jo, the nurse went through my regime and told me about all the delightful things that may happen to me, such as the nausea, tiredness, hair loss, sore mouth, taste changes, allergic reactions, joint pain, fluid retention, diarrhoea (but hopefully the constipation should counteract that!), to name but a few. The biggest thing I have to watch out for, though, is infection.  Jo told me that if my temperature goes over 38C or I suddenly feel unwell, I have to contact either them or the GP for blood tests and antibiotics.  It makes you feel like you want to hide away for the duration, but of course, you can't, you just have to be sensible - not go shopping at peak times etc.  Chris mentioned Liv working with animals (something we hadn't really thought about) and Jo recommended that she shower if possible or at least wash thoroughly and change her clothes before coming home (that'll be a culture shock for her!). 
I also got my next couple of appointments.  I have to see the oncologist a couple of days before each treatment, to see what reactions I've had and if they need to adjust the dose.  They'll also take bloods at the same time.  If they're not quite right I'll go in a couple of hours earlier on treatment day and they'll take it again.  If it's still not right I'll have to wait a week before having my next treatment.  So my next dates are 15th Sept to see the oncologist and the 17th (Vaughan's birthday) for treatment.  Hacked off that it's Vaughan's 16th birthday but we'll have to celebrate that another day.
Suddenly chemo's thundering ahead like a steam train...........