Buzz cut

It has been a full week since chemo treatment #2 and this week was far superior to the first round. Em tried hard to be more active in order to keep the drugs moving quickly through her system and it worked! Though she was still extremely tired, she felt better much sooner than last time. The week shapes up like this - on day one she feels amped up by all of the steroids. By day 3, all she wants to do is sleep and that last at least 2 or 3 days. Day 5 usually brings general body discomfort and random other symptoms. By day 7, she starts to feel pretty normal again.

As everyone knows, this was the week everyone said she would lose her hair. She was noticing minor hair loss on chemo day last week and it intensified as the weekend progressed. On Sunday she told us that her hair actually hurt her head and she decided to just get rid of it. Out came the shaver and my dad gave her a buzz cut. Oddly enough, she had just enough hair left to look quite a lot like my dad when he was a teenager! On Tuesday even that 1/2 inch of hair was bothersome so she shaved the rest of it. Now she is feeling much more comfortable but also much colder! Of course it doesn't help that the outside temperature this week isn't getting much above freezing. She is making use of her various hats to keep her newly vulnerable head warm and cozy. Unfortunately, Kate and Jocie seem to delight in pulling them off of her, but she handles that with laughter and playfulness.

All things considered, she is doing quite well now. She should enjoy the next 7 days of feeling like herself again and she rather likes not having to style her hair after a shower. I have been so impressed by how tough she is and how well she has handled herself through these events. The countdown continues - 2 down, 6 to go!