Day 8 of Treatment

Today is day 8 of my treatment. I have a lumbar puncture scheduled for an injection of methotrexate into my spine. This is a one out of the five chemo drugs during my induction phase of treatment and today will be the first time that I will be put on it. I will also be receiving two other drugs that I got last week through my IV. The preparation for this procedure is the same⁠—no solid food after midnight and only clear fluids in the morning.

I’m on a steroid that is supposed to reduce the swelling in my neck. It’s been working really well. A side effect, though, is that they say I will be hungrier. I didn’t really have much of an appetite going into the hospital, and I haven’t really noticed myself being any hungrier than I would be at home.

The anti-nausea medication that they give me through the IV really helps⁠—I can actually feel it running out and it’s not pleasant at all when it does. So far I haven’t thrown up, but it’s gotten close a few times.

In the mornings I usually feel nauseated and don’t want to eat. I’ve found that having a cracker to whet my appetite has been working okay. Yesterday I managed to have a bagel sandwich from Tim Horton’s!

The weirdest part about how I feel is that sometimes I think about wanting to eat a certain food (like steak) but only in my head. My stomach doesn’t want to eat. Strangely enough, YouTube cooking videos seem to help 🤷‍.

Popcorn has been nice⁠—it tastes good, it’s light, and it’s easy to make. Sometimes my throat feels a little bit dry, but eating salty foods seems to help get fluids flowing in my mouth. I think the dryness is caused by most of my fluids going in through my IV rather than my mouth, so eating something to stimulate saliva usually helps my throat feel better.

I’m writing this about an hour before the procedure. My energy is probably at a peak right now, and I’m feeling pretty good!

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