Side Effects, or Lack Thereof

I had chemo on Monday and it’s Wednesday today. I feel no side effects – no nausea, vomiting, or fatigue. I did an hour of exercise this morning, then was with the kids all day – music class, two play dates, art projects, painting – and I’m not in the least tired. In fact, I feel like I could go for a run now. But I’ll save that for tomorrow morning, when it’s still dark out and the lake is quiet.

I had a bit of achiness in my legs yesterday, but that’s gone. And one weird thing today is that each time I started eating something, my jaws hurt; almost as if I’d bitten into something very tart that made my jaw muscles tighten up. I think that might be some sort of vitamin deficiency. If anyone reading this Blog knows what that is, let me know.

A friend called me yesterday to ask how I was doing because she’d heard that I wasn’t feeling well. I got a bit annoyed because I was feeling just great. I never liked the euphemism, “she’s sick” for “she’s got cancer” or even “she’s dying”. Even before cancer came into my life, I thought it was silly to say someone was sick when they had cancer. We say someone has diabetes, has had a heart attack, had a stroke. We don’t say they’re “sick”. I know people are trying not to say the “C” word, but I certainly hope that anybody who knows me would know that I’m not afraid of a word.

But I think the real reason I find references to me as “sick” annoying is because although I am in excellent shape at the moment, I know that one day, I will indeed be sick. I want to save that word for when I’m actually looking and acting sick, not on a day like today when I’m working out, romping around with my kids, my friends’ and neighbors’ kids, and running circles around Tony, who had to take a nap in the middle of the day.

For now, I look and feel great. Except for the little matter of the cancer, I’m the healthiest and strongest I’ve ever been in my life.