Thursday, September 13, 2007

Significance of Labor Day

I will have to describe in detail my experiences in the chemo room at another time, but a quick aside- After spending 2 hours connected to an I.V. drip, talking with the nurse about her dogs and my dog, having her give me Benadryl when hives appeared on my neck and face, having her give me food when I was hungry and a popsicle to keep my mouth cold during one of the treatments, she left to go home to Texas for the holiday without even turning to saying goodbye, good luck, anything.

I watched her give her co-worker that 'I'm so glad I'm done' roll of the eyes as she loaded on her back pack. I waited for some sort of acknowledgment, and after she was halfway down the hall, I yelled, "Have a good weekend." She stopped, seemingly embarrassed with a half smiled, 'You, too. Have a good weekend.'

Luckily, it wasn't all that bad for my first chemo treatment, but my next holiday weekend, I'm hoping my destination won't be bed, couch, or toilet. With that said, I don't blame the nurse for her eagerness to leave. It's a depressing place and not everyone is as cheerful as me. But next time, I hope she remembers I'm not just a job... and that goes for everyone in my huge list of radiology technicians, receptionists, my chemo-coordinator, etc, etc. Smile, dammit!

And P.S.
My dog is really awesome.
Click here for how-to information on self-breast exam: http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/breast-self-exam/WO00026

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