And here we go again. Anxiety, yet excitement can only describe the next to last chemo session. We are at number five on the morning of August 4th when we yet again make that journey to the clinic for Michelle to be hooked up to all these IV’s to receive these nasty, yet necessary medications that will continue to kick her cancer’s ass! I just said a bad word, didn’t I?
Well, that’s part of the excitement that I am talking about. Michelle and I are beginning to feel very confident that she is going to beat this thing and live to tell all that she defeated cancer. Still, we knew the journey was not over by a long shot. She still had to endure this chemo treatment and then deal with feeling horrible for the next five or six days. And for me personally, that meant ramping up my own body’s Adrenalin to be able to provide for Michelle, both physically and mentally.
I’ll tell you right now, that the effects of chemo are no joke. They strip you of every fiber of energy before your body can even produce it. I had gotten used to Michelle running around all the time like her hair was on fire. But not this particular summer. She was lucky enough to maybe run a few errands here and there in between each chemo treatment. But even at that, her energy was still not nearly what it usually is. Plus take in account the heat of an east Texas summer and it is hard enough for a healthy person to maintain their energy, let alone anyone going through chemo treatments at this time of the year. I used to always dislike taking Michelle back out the day after chemo treatment to receive her post-chemo shot. But fortunately for her is that her energy usually wasn’t completely drained the day after chemo. So she was able to handle getting out in the heat on these days. Also, it gave her the opportunity to get out of this house one more time before the chemo drugs made her feel terrible. We always knew it was coming. So you have to try and enjoy every moment of somewhat normalcy.
One thing that I really haven’t talked much about as of yet was Michelle’s love for different types of hats she enjoyed wearing all summer during her breast cancer treatments. So whether it was church service or a trip to the oncology office, you better believe Michelle was going to be rocking a hat! I completely believe showing off a pretty hat or ball cap was the only way she could fully cope with having lost all of her hair early in the process. It was always so neat to see Michelle’s face light up every time someone brought her a new hat. Or sometimes when Michelle felt up to it, we would go visit a women’s boutique and purchase a new hat. Heck, sometimes they would even give her a hat free of charge. And let me tell you all something. My lady was beautiful in any hat! I laugh now thinking back because I think Michelle darn well knew how sexy she was!