Day 1: And So It Begins

We started today! So far he is doing pretty well. He had an IV drip for between 2 and 3 hours. They started with anti-nausea medicine for 30 minutes, then about 2 hours of the actual chemo. He started feeling it pretty quickly, with a burning sensation radiating out from his chest. It developed into chest pain and difficulty breathing. They started to become concerned, but Kent's vitals were great so they said not to worry. We played Sudoku, read, talked, visited with fellow cancer patients and families, and had quite a bit of fun during those few hours. They hooked up his pump (he brings a chemo bag home in a portable pump that he wears in a fanny pack. He will have it for 46 hours and then we return to get unhooked.) and then sent us on our way. Kent did find out 2 hours after we finished that he had another side effect: disliking the cold. When he touches cold things it feels sharp, but when he eats cold it feels like being stabbed by a knife. Poor guy! Guess our date to Jamba Juice (which was supposed to happen to celebrate finishing his first dose of chemo) is going to be postponed for a few months.

Everyone there is so kind, and we really appreciated it. Kent is by far their youngest patient, so a lot of the nurses there said it was quite refreshing having a youngster to talk to. :) I will say that I didn't like the nurses teasing and flirting with Kent too much, but we ended up with a guy nurse in the end who was very professional. :)

Things are going pretty well so far.  Even though it isn't an easy experience, we are feeling very grateful for the opportunity to grow closer to each other and to the Lord. He is giving us these experiences to help us in our progression, and we are grateful for that knowledge. We are continuing to feel the Lord's love and blessings in our lives,and the love and support of so many loved ones. We are so grateful everyday.

Some of the most heart-wrenching, discouraging events in our lives - from which we long to be set free - are actually designed to prepare us with the very skills and understanding [God] needs us to have.  As we draw closer to the Lord and put our total trust in Him, in His power, and in His timing, we can leave our fires of affliction more pure, more refined, and with more skills and understanding."   - Wendy W. Nelson