InsaneJournal

Chemotherapy
Who: Amelia, Ceri (NPC) and other random NPC Hospital Staff
Where: U of M Hospital
When: 9:30 am to 3:30 pm



The night before is what Amelia would refer to as "chemo prep day". After talking to her doctor and reading up on it online Amelia made several preparations. She had made several crock pot meals that were placed lovingly into her oven. As pre-chemo medication was likely to make her drowsy before and after (not to mention the nausea) she arranged for a hospital taxi to pick her up in the morning and bring her home after her therapy was finished. Everything she read indicated that other than sleepiness, her first day should be relatively pain free. Oh there were the IV's and what not, but that was nothing she hadn't dealt with before. She was mostly nervous about Saturday. How would she feel? Achy and nauseous was the general consensus and it scared her.

She was thankful to have Ceri in her life. It was an unexpected blessing to have her familiar. Only two days ago she had been dreading this event, knowing she would be coming home and dealing with the repurcusions alone. Though Ceri could do little to help her physically, having someone to talk to was a great relief on her emotions. So this morning when she woke she felt more energized than previously anticipated. She took her pre-chemo medication and a half hour later her ride arrived. Ceri wished her good luck and good by though there did seem to be anxiety in his "voice". The ride was thankfully not long. Amelia could feel herself start to feel tired and she worried about falling asleep in the taxi. Fortunately she managed to stay awake and made it to the hospital safe and sound.

After what seemed a million questions and paperwork, Amelia was ushered into the infusion room which was almost like a clinical living room. Comfortable recliners, radio, tv's and other comforts were around the room. When she settled into her chair she asked the nurse for a milkshake. This sort of request would likely be strange in any other circumstance but Amelia had read that drinking cool things helped prevent the blisters that were likely to develop in her mouth. She was thankful that food was allowed during these sessions. By the time her IV was inserted and anti-nausea medication was pumping into her, Amelia was taking a sip on her vanilla milkshake. A water and soda stood on a table next to a sanwhich and chips for snacking. More food would likely be on the way as she expected to be there about five hours.

The session wasn't as bad as Amelia expected it to be. But then again, she knew it was likely to get worse in the next 24-48 hours. She tried not to think about that though. Instead she read a book, watched some tv and chatted to the nurses who walked in and out, talking to the others getting their therapy. Amelia did her best to keep a brave face. Down the row of chairs at the end she saw what looked to be a 7 year old boy with similar IVs attached to his little arm. His mom sat next to him and they were talking and laughing. How could Amelia possibly be upset, sad or even appear bored in the face of that bravery? So she smiled and kept calm and did her best to act as if this was a normal everyday event.

By 3 pm Amelia was loaded into the hospital taxi, another milkshake in hand, and she was toted home. Once again she couldn't believe how happy she was to see Ceri.

Are you okay? He asked, standing near the coffee table where he knew she'd go.

"Yes, I think I'm okay. For now." She yawned. "For now." She took a sip of her milkshake and dropped her purse in a nearby chair. "I think I might go have a nap though. That medicine makes me tired." She sighed and mosied slowly down the hall. When she made it to her room she took another drink of the shake and set it on the bedside table and threw off her shoes before laying down the bed. As she started to fall asleep she wondered how many weeks of taking days off to go in for her therapy it would take before her co-workers started asking questions. With a sigh she pushed the thought away. She had already ordered a wig, though her doctor said it was possible she wouldn't lose her hair. She didn't care. She'd do her best to make this as normal and unknown as possible. She just wanted her life to stay as it was. She let sleep take her with that firmly fixed in her mind.