Ummm - I love my port.....

I think I have made at least 2 other posts complaining about my port - but I would like to revise my opinion.

Last time I was at chemo, there was a young man in my pod who was attempting to get chemo. I say attempting because while I was there 3 separate nurses tried a couple of times each to access his veins. His veins were good, but he is very 'valvy' so they couldn't get the needle in the right spot. Every time they poked him, they were wriggling the needle around to avoid the valves. He was sucking in his breath like all the air in the room would disappear so I KNOW he was experiencing a lot of pain.

It made me very grateful for this weird bumpy thing in my chest. And I long ago grew accustomed to the feel of it there so there isn't much to complain about.

For today's Herceptin, my nurse missed the port. So she poked in the needle too low and so had to pull it out and try again. Lucky me - I got a double poke today. Plus, yesterday they did bloodwork on me so another needle. It is amazing how non-needle scared I am now.

Today I was talking to a 39-year old woman in the chemo room who had a 10cm tumour and was getting chemo before surgery. I am pretty sure that the size of that tumour makes her cancer Stage 3 or more which is a scary proposition. It made me thankful that I found my lump when I did and its 3cm size is nothing compared with hers...

I guess you can always find someone in a worse situation than you, right? Since I spend quite a bit of time at the hospital, I often find myself wondering things - like while I waited to see the oncologist, I saw 2 patients outside in the courtyard enjoying the sunshine with some family. They were in wheelchairs and looked to be fairly severely incapacitated. I may have had cancer, but at least I can walk and move around of my own free will and not be reliant on a wheelchair. Are they looking at me and thinking, "I may need a wheelchair but at least I don't have cancer"? Things that make you go 'hmmmmmmmmm'

I am home for a week - imagine that! Then Cam and I are off to Oroville for the long weekend to see a couple of my Desert Hot Springs pals. I'm quite excited to see them again and check out a new place.

Then I hope to return to Tulameen in August, and then I'm going to Calgary for a week. This summer is WAY better than last summer!