September 2015 – Toxin Free Living

Hair. &. Tired.

Published on September 9, 2015 by melindacookseyLeave a comment

My hair grew back. Then fell out again 🙈 not all of it! Just parts of it. Including my eyebrows and eye lashes. Typically my under arm hair is coming back and my leg hair never stopped growing!

I wish my hair wasn’t on the pillow again! I suppose you feel better when it isn’t falling out. And having the marker of the ‘last chemo’ did make me feel like I was getting somewhere that the hardcore treatment was over. But I suppose you forget it isn’t over I still have the side effects, the medication to elliviate the side effects, the injections for bloods. And I’m tired! I mean really tired!

I’ve been for a walk the last 3 days and now I’m lay down on the sofa just tired and not wanting to move.

When can I eat rare steak again? Pate, soft cheese, seafood? All the foods I wasn’t allowed to on chemo? I guess it is a while yet? When my bloods are back to normal? But how do I know when that will be as they don’t test you after chemo, when you have already had your operation.. So it’s a guessing game… Am I cured, will I worry forever more, will my hair ever stop falling out! 😂😂😂

Will I feel full of life ever again?

Sleep, glorious sleep.

Published on September 6, 2015 by melindacookseyLeave a comment

So some of you may or may not know I have become quite a night owl due to the post chemo steroids and then injections, and then just the aftermath of it leaving my body. It’s about 7-10 days of mindless nothingness and is some what annoying.

On Tuesday or Wednesday of last week I went to see a lovely woman called Fiona, who practises Reiki, I was late (standard) but as a fellow breast cancer sufferer she spoke to me anyway and gave me a top tip about lavender and it can help you sleep! 2 drops of oil on a tissue (which I did and popped it under my pillow after I sniffed it a few times) or on the pillow case (no more as it will cause over stimulation) and it can also make your hair grow back quicker ( I’m not sure if that is through rubbing it on or sniffing it .well I am already finding coconut oil a good speed inducer for hair growth).

So I dutifully enjoyed my chat and mini reiki with Fiona and will be going back for more! (She is wonderful gives 3 free sessions to other women who have gone through / or going through breast cancer and really cares).

So off I popped home, had treatment, and scurried off to the shop I have bough spiritual stones and gifts from in the past but today I was there to see if the lady behind the counter sold lavender oil… Which she did! Hoorarh 🎉 she also told me a purple amethyst stone under my pill (after I cleansed it in water) would help me sleep and calm my energies. So dutifully I purchased the two that cost me all of £3! Well worth the trip to but them.

So last night, after my new advice (gentle telling off from my nurse) I took my steroid tablets earlier 7am and 6pm (it’s meant to be before 2pm but I forgot) I took two sleeping pills that my onchologist recommended. I used my old eye mask trick and ear plugs and I was alsleep from 12 – 8am (missing my steroid by an hour but I got up straight away and took them!

So I’m feeling pretty happy that I trusted in my normal methods of doing it all and something or all of it will work. But I have to say the lavender was a lovely peaceful smell to have by me. Very calming and relaxing I would advise anyone to get some lavender and an amethyst crystal! For £3 it really can’t hurt giving it a try.

Chemo 7: the last one!

Published on September 4, 2015September 4, 2015 by melindacooksey4 Comments

The last chemo, done and dusted today and I don’t plan to sit in that comfy chair ever again!
I’m currently sat drinking water and feel maybe I should have some cocktails, champagne or prossecco but water is doing the trick! Maybe I will have a celebratory drink later on.
Thing is its not really over yet. I still have to deal with the injections (7 of them) which I hate, the tablets; not to mention the aches and pains and mouth and stomach trouble!
But it’s not all bad, they took out my picc line, after making my onchologist and the nurse laugh yesterday.

Nurse “Dr Price, melinda wanted her picc line out tomorrow After chemo, can we do this.”
Dr P ” not really melinda, what if you get an infection, or have to come back in so forth (I’m paraphrasing here!)”
Me giving a really good puppy eyes ” but I am going away for a couple of days in a couple of weeks, just in this country and there is a hot tub that I want to go in and I can’t with the picc line”
Nurse and Dr P look at each other, smiled and then started giggling at me!
Dr P ” well you haven’t had any infections throughout, so we’ll, since there’s a hot tub, I don’t see it being a problem taking it out, and if anything happens we can cannulate you anyway ”
Me “yeahhhh, thank you!”
Dr P then walks away chuckling at me. 🙈 whilst the nurses carries on tsking my bloods.

Honestly I’m a nightmare, me and my district nurse chatted so much in the morning about nothingness that we forgot the bloods and just flushed my picc line, so after my onchologist (Dr P) appointment I went to get them done from the chemo ward next door. And they did bless them.

All the nurses in the chemo suite are so nice, they always smile, joke with you, chat to you, give you tea and coffee and offer you sandwiches and biscuits. They are just really good people in there! So if any of the nurses or Dr P are reading this, so if you are thank you for being so kind and treating me like a human, a dippy, happy, smiley probably annoying human! 😘

And my biggest thanks and continued thanks goes to everyone around me that takes an interest, that reads my blog, my Facebook page and comments, it does actually mean a lot to me; my friends that call, message and visit me to come chat rubbish and just be themselves and don’t treat me any differently; to my family who make a long drive to come to see me every week, my mom who on top of this messages me everyday, to my sister who is now sending me more photos of the kids which I love seeing. But, most of all I am thankful for my rock, my guardian angel, my nurse, cleaner, house wife, driver, chef, everything and more…. There aren’t enough thank you’s in the world to cover the amount of help she has given me and the amount she changes her life around to make sure when I need her she is there! So basically she is an angel (mostly 😂). Love you more than cheese my girl, and you know how much I love cheese 😂😂😂.