Well, yesterday's infusion was very different than the first one I got in the hospital.
Admittedly, I already had an IV while in the hospital, and one of the problems they had at the clinic yesterday was finding a vein for the IV. It only took three tries this time, and two different nurses. I've got a lovely bruise on my left hand from the first attempt.
Anyway, going back to the beginning, after my shower and internetting yesterday morning, I had an early breakfast and then started gathering stuff for the infusion trip: a book to read, paperwork, emergency snack, insulin. Eric made us sandwiches in the time between his classes, and as soon as his second class ended at 10am we took off to Prosser to get my weekly blood draw.
Prosser hospital has gone from one visitor to no visitors, so Eric stayed in the car while I used my walker to toddle to the lab for my bloodwork. They recognized me even in my mask (because of my mask?), with the receptionist in the lab calling me by name as I approached. The tech yesterday was an older nurse who had drawn my blood before who is so good at her job I literally did not feel anything when she poked me. It all went extremely smoothly and I was in and out fairly quickly.
With plenty of time until my appointment, Eric then drove me to Kennewick and the rheumatology clinic, which is where I ended up after the hospital refused to do the infusions (probably due to the pandemic, but no one has actually told me what happened). We got there a half-hour early. They were screening everyone who entered, and wiping down the handles on the doors and even the automatic door button (which I pushed with my elbow). I got to wait for a bit, then was taken into the "infusion room" of the clinic.
I've been to this clinic a few times before, and I never knew they had a giant room full of comfy chairs for people to rest in while they got infusions. But there it was. I got to pick a chair, and then we went through the paperwork. I had to sit through the lesson on the drug I was getting again, which was fine, the side-effects can be chilling and I need to know what to watch for. Then I had to sign the consent form and only then could they get started.
As I said, it took three tries to get the IV in, and the nurses were busy with a number of people who were new, like me, because of the hospital situation. I gather that this clinic is one of few that have the facility to handle infusions like mine. I was there for an hour before they even started the first infusion, an anti-nausea drug. I also needed some hydration, so I got a bunch of saline solution. I ate lunch while they hydrated me and watched the nurses wipe down chairs as people left.
The actual infusion of Cytoxan didn't start until after my appointment was supposed to be over, 2pm. In the meantime, Eric had to wait in the car. If I'd know how long it was going to take, I would have sent him home.
The infusion finally ended just before 4pm. I was reading "The Twisted Ones" and was maybe a third through the book when the machine beeped to let us know I was done. I was a bit unsteady walking out, but that's what the walker is for. Eric drove me home, and a very upset cat awaited us. I managed the stairs ok, despite feeling an increasing exhaustion, but I decided not to go to bed because then I wouldn't be able to get up for dinner or my last required set of medications.
In the end, I didn't get quite as tired as I did from the first infusion, but I slept extremely well for about four hours last night, before the hydration kicked in and my bladder woke me. I was up again an hour or so later, but after that slept fine until it was time to get up and get on with today.
No plans for me for the rest of the week. Hopefully, I can just rest and write and maybe play video games. And start going up and down the stairs, because then I can get to the kitchen and maybe start making my own food. Of course, that all depends on what side-effects the Cytoxan decides to inflict on me. I had very mild nausea yesterday, but not much else besides the exhaustion. I'm either very lucky or I've been so sick so long I don't notice the bad things. Also, I'm told this will likely be the week when I find out if my hair actually will fall out or just thin a bit more. So I have that to look forward to.
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