Long 48 hours

Monday evening Ed came into the city and my boss and his wife took us out for a pre-birthday dinner. Told that I was to "pig out" that night, I tried my best but things just didn't taste quite right. Unfortunately, the food was also a bit rich for my stomach, and I ended up with a stomach ache that lasted all night and into Tuesday morning. That celebration didn't go very well, although the company was wonderful and the restaurant was lovely.

Yesterday was chemo day. My iron is still low and my hemoglobin is down to 9.4 (not that anyone informed me of that fact). After my treatment I was given iron by IV again. We'll see how that affects my energy level over the next few days.

At 3:00 we saw the nutritionist and she provided several great ideas. She recommends adding protein powder to smoothies and milkshakes (if I can tolerate them -- smoothies are my drink of choice) as well as using at least 2% milk and yogurt rather than nonfat. She also suggested that I replace half my water intake with fruit juices, which are much higher in calories, and that I try to eat at least five smaller meals a day -- working my way up to six to eight small meals a day. She wants me to avoid being overwhelmed by the "normal" amount of food that I would eat during my three-meals-a-day routine and suggested breaking some of those portions in half. I also need to add bakery goods, like muffins and pound cake, to my list of foods. Since I like carbs with butter, she encouraged me to eat pasta, bread, and potatoes. Since my iron levels are low, she also gave me a list of iron-rich foods and told me I need to eat the non-meat sources with vitamin C-rich foods.

Several foods that I like were on her short list: peanut butter, bananas, eggs, pancakes and waffles, oatmeal, sour cream, smoothies, and bagels. That was good to hear, as I was afraid she was going to have me eating tofu or some other food that doesn't appeal to me. (Apologies to those who like tofu.) I explained to her how difficult it is for someone who has always tried to watch her weight (at least since I turned 30) and counted calories to suddenly find herself looking for high calorie foods. It's a change in mindset that isn't that easy. She explained that I need to add about 250 calories a day to maintain my weight, based on her calculation of my current caloric intake, and add 500 calories a day to add about 1/2 - 1 pound per week. She also wants me to keep a journal for a week of all my food and beverage intake as well as the times I consume them.

I guess I'll be taking a trip to the grocery store this weekend to see what might interest me. If I let Ed go, he'll buy multiples of all kinds of things and then we'll be left with multiples of things I can't/won't eat. I see myself lugging all kinds of stuff into the office, though: jars of peanut butter, sticks of butter, fruit juices, crackers, etc. Thank goodness we don't have bugs!

Tomorrow is my appointment with the pain management doctor to discuss numbing the phrenic nerve. I will report back on his recommendation. I have chemo again next Tuesday and then scans the next day. I will also have an x-ray of my right jaw, as I have been experiencing tenderness there for a few weeks. My infection on both ring fingers has not cleared up, so I am back on an antibiotic today for the next week. Other than that, I feel okay.

Today the temperatures are supposed to reach the mid-80s. It was 85 degrees on our way home yesterday and by the time we reached our driveway at 6:45 p.m., it was 82. If your weather is anything like ours, GET OUT THERE!