New Post!!!

Hello,
I know it's been too long since I last posted an update. Sorry. Many of you have called and said what the heck??? Well, it has been rough lately. The chemo is finally building up in my system and it is wiping me out. I just can't wait to get this over with! JUne 3rd! They ended up giving me the full dose of chemo last time. I was really bummed. My doc wanted me to get 4 treatents under my belt before decreasing my dose. I cried and agreed with him. :( At least my cancer markers are still below normal and even keep falling in that category!!!! I'm kicking cancer's ASS!!!

I've been pretty depressed lately. I'm just wanting this over and want my body back. I feel frumpy, bloated and bald! Sadness is just a part of the whole cancer thing. I think it will take some time for me to get my energy back up after this is all over. My blood counts have been pretty good. I have to take potassium and magnesium every day or else they get critically low. I am anemic and got a shot of some sort of EPO. (Guess I can't compete in pro cycling this week!!) It seemed to help for a couple of days and now i feel anemic again. I go get bloodwork done tomorrow and we'll see what the numbers say. I just don't want them to go so low it postpones my chemo treatment. That is my biggest fear these days. I just want to get it over with, did I say that before?

My sister Stacy came up from Leadville two weeks ago. It was great to see her and have her help out. My friend Ann is coming from California next Thursday and then Michelle comes from Missouri after that. While Ann is here Bob is flying to Denver to pick up our new (to us) 1987 Vanagon with a pop top! Yes, we are selling the truck and getting something we can go on the road with this summer! We intend on doing a lot of weekend camping this summer. Come on and join us!

I'm hoping to get to Colorado maybe twice this summer. Probably in July and August or early September. I'll keep everyone posted! Cant wait to see you all!

Well thats all for now. I'll try to be better about posting more often. It just feels like there is no news here even though there is.

Thank you everyone for your support!
Peace and Love,
Katie

Here is a picture of me skiing three weeks ago! oops it downloaded on top!

Half Way Done!!!!

Yipee!!! I am half-way done with chemo!

I had a hard time with my last round of chemo. I just didn't feel like eatting or drinking and got very dehydrated. I was trying to be stoic and power through it, which didn't work. I ended up getting IV fluids and it helped a lot. Next time, I will get fluids before it becomes a crisis! My doctor has decided to decrease my dose of cis-platin, the drug that seems to give me trouble. He wants the chemo to be a therapeutic dose versus a toxic dose since my CA125 (cancer marker) levels are low, within the normal range. He really wants me to complete all 6 courses of chemo and lowering the dose will enable me to make it through.

Carla and Donna, my friends from Boston and Rochester, came to visit this past week. They were extremely helpful for Bob with Fischer and Ziggi. I wish I could have felt better while they were here but I have learned to take one day at a time. In spite of feeling awful, Carla and Donna were doing yoga and I just had to try a pose, Crow (check it out!). Later I found out this is quite an advanced pose! After IV fluids I even felt like serenading my beautiful son with Puff the Magic Dragon!

We decided to let Ziggi stay with our friend Terry for the remainder of my chemo. Just too much to handle. I miss her, she reminds me to "be in the moment". She will rejoin our family in June when I finally finish the chemo!

KO, DDub, Carlalala

KO doing Chemo Crow

KO & Fischer singing "Puff"

KO & Fischer

KO & Ziggi

Ok, that was the Donna veersoin for this blog. She wrote it in first person for me. Thanks Donna! I am feeling really well today, this morning. It goes from hour to hour. I AM really excited to have my cisplatnin decreased. I think it will enable me to endure this hell.

Thanks for reading! ...and thanks to Donna and Carla, I'll miss you! (they leave today)

Love,

Katie