Radiation - One Month In

One month of radiation treatment is in the books. 20 days of external beam radiation therapy treatment and 10 to go. The finish line, (if there is one), feels close. Kim has settled into a nice routine of getting up early and out the door by 7:20 in order to arrive, change, and be ready for her 7:45 appointment. There's been a nice, elderly man who has the appointment slot just after her and they have a fun little battle going to see who can be ready to go first. The plan to start the day with treatment has worked out really well as Kim gets to work early and has a full, uninterrupted day to work and then relax at home.

Uninterrupted. Huh, hardly. There's still the occasional doctor's appointment here and there and some days she just can't seem to get a break from having to be two places at once. Sure, the treatments are invasive but the time going to and from appointments, not to mention the waiting, is a drag. 10 days...

It's an easy process, though, and she's at the radiation therapy center for no more than 30 minutes total. She walks in, grabs a gown, changes in a private room, and locks her clothes in a locker. She'll sit in the patient's waiting room for just a few minutes having to endure the brainless nonsense that is morning news shows on the TV in the room. The nurse comes to get her and it's a short walk to the room with the linear accelerator. The door is incredibly thick and we're told the surrounding walls are six feet thick concrete. It's a cozy feeling room despite the big machine and lots of cool stuff to look at.

She lays down while technicians line up the machine using small tattoo marks on her chest. Once she's set, it's just a few minutes of radiation time. The doctors have done well to protect her heart from radiation and the treatment area is only as large as it needs to be. Incredible technological and human processing power at work. And everyone in the center is just so fantastically nice. Every single day at 7:45 AM.

Kim pops out, changes back into her clothes, and walks out, off to work. Simple as that.

So far she has not experienced any significant side effects. Her skin is sensitive on that side of her chest and upper arm and she says it's the feeling of a sunburn though there's no evidence on the outside. She only has a few shirts she can wear right now against her skin and we all do our best to touch this area when we hug her. She's been so incredibly tough through this entire ordeal. Now, we're told that two weeks after radiation therapy ends that she will experience fatigue so we'll keep an eye out for that.

My favorite course on Zwift, the 2015 World Championship Course
in Richmond, Virginia. Kim is climbing Libby Hill here. 

Following surgery recovery Kim talked about joining a gym and we had some long talks about the practicality of doing so. Exercise is key to recovery but gyms just do not seem to work out for most people. So Kim and I discussed another option, her bicycle. Now, her arm hurt and she couldn't use it for riding on roads or trails plus she was fearful of falling on it. We've also just completed the rainiest February in Portland history. So she's ridden a trainer indoors.

This is not the same old noisy trainer set up in the garage that induces boredom in five minutes. We invested in a smart trainer, the Wahoo KICKR specifically. Smart trainers use power meters and bluetooth technology that connect your bicycle to devices running cycling simulation training apps. In our case, we have a trainer in the basement, our own bikes installed, and an iPad on a table in front of the bike. We've both been signed up for Zwift for a month now and it's been great. Kim was hesitant on her first session but once she warmed up the fire came alive. Not only has Kim been able to increase her overall fitness using this system, she's had fun, she looks forward to riding, and I believe the increased blood flow and endorphins have accelerated her arm recovery. What I believe she will really love is the fitness she starts Spring with. That will be a big mental boost to kick off a season outdoors.

Give Cancer The Bird!

A recent study confirms the importance of regular exercise to increased survivability for those recovering from breast cancer.  I doubt that the gym would have had the same result and best of all, she gets to ride at home. No aggravating drive to and from the gym. Andrew and Jason often practice music while she rides and it makes for some great time together on these dreary days. Sometimes I think they pick up the tempo just to get one of sweating more. It's been great for both of us.

Hit me up if you have any questions about the trainer or Zwift, I'm happy to offer my opinion and advice.

I'm going to ask Kim to write something soon on how she's feeling because, for me and the kids, she has been as normal as ever. The wig is even gone now and she has a really cool hairstyle going on. We went out to a friend's party at a bar two nights ago and she got lots of compliments on her hair. She looks really cool with short hair. Now, if only the weather would warm up a touch so she could go without a hat for a while. Come on spring, you can do it!

There's always heated blankets. Yes!

10 to go, sweetheart, hang in there!

A confession, I've not been getting up early with Kim over the past two weeks. I want to but I don't. I stay up late most nights now either reading magazines or stuff online. I worry. I worry about Kim, my kids, my job, life, all of it. I worry if I'm gonna go crazy from this weather and how much I miss mountain biking regularly. I worry that I want to move right now to anywhere that's not here and that I'm not shy about saying that aloud these days. It worries the kids when they hear that, they like it here. I worry that I'm likely out of ideas. I worry most of all about missing lay ups. Why did I miss so many open shots tonight?!? I try to cover up the worry with learning about new things or reading but it doesn't always work and I stay up way too late. And so I make up for it with that extra time in the morning. Andrew is up early for school so he makes coffee for Kim and they hang out for a bit. He's out the door at 6:55 each day. As I type this it's 12:37 AM and I've still not taken a shower since getting home from basketball around 10:45. Still gotta do that. I want to be the guy that goes to bed early but I just can't. FOMO. Fear of missing out.