Round 1

Monday 21 October

Day One

A change of ‘taste’ in my mouth, I guess this is the infamous metallic taste but, never having eaten metal, I wouldn’t know. Coffee starts to taste wrong, water makes me nauseous – not good when I have to keep hydrated. I stopped using the mouthwash given to me as it makes my tongue burn a little. All gum and mints burn my mouth too.

I find a variety of flavoured Mentos to suck on helps with the funny feeling. I have bought 5 different types of toothpaste, including children’s flavours. I have also bought different flavoured juices and fruit teas.

Day One to Eight

Mild wind and constipation for five or six days, followed by diarrhoea and a stomach-bug like feeling for another two or three days.

Intermittent blocked ears. Every now and again I feel like I am hearing things as if I am under water.

Day Ten

Some intermittent tingling in my hands starts after about 10 days. I now have fizzy fingers and fat feet. Again, this is an on again, off again thing. Add to this that any time I do something like open a bottle of water or walk the dogs and they pull on the lead, my hand really fizzes!

Day Fourteen

A shooting pain starts in my left side. Wind? Kidneys? Eating too much food? No idea. Pain killers dull the pain. I walk like I am 90.

Five days prior to my next round of chemo, I go to the emergency department at three o’clock in the morning in severe pain. A round of (expensive) tests later and the doctor has no idea what is wrong. A friend has told me her mother-in-law also had abdominal pain during her chemo.

Day Fifteen

The random moulting has picked up pace and hair is definitely dropping – a bit like the proverbial flies – so an even shorter cut required. Expected this, only perhaps a couple of weeks later. Pubic hair has been dropping out for a few days now – always a lovely sight when going to the bathroom.

I will be having the military style crew cut a lot earlier than expected.

It is not just hair that is moulting. I am getting little blisters, minus the liquid filled aspect, on my hands and the skin is sloughing off. Must use hand cream.

At some point, my body decides that a menstrual cycle is no longer required. I have lost count of where I should have had a period.