Three Chemotherapy sessions in and I think I’ve finally figured it out. Maybe? After chemo on July 27th, I was a wreck of nausea, anti-nausea pills and laxatives. I’d take my pills the second I felt anything resembling nausea, which meant I was taking them far too frequently, which made my stomach hurt. Oh, and I was so goddamn tired of being constipated I took intense sounding laxatives, which only added to my abdominal woes. I was a literal mess. The good news is I’ve learned my lesson and won’t mess with anything that isn’t Miralax (learn from my mistakes, dear reader).

For Chemo Session #3 on August 10th, Rory and I flew from MT back to Seattle for 48 hours. Now that I have a couple of sessions under my belt and I know what to expect, you’d think it would get easier. Quite the opposite – I’ve started to dread it. If I may vent for a second; the nausea, the cold cap I have to have on for 90 minutes after my chemo session has ended, the cold mittens and booties which make my hands and feet feel like they’re going to snap off in a fit of frostbite. It all just sucks. And I’m one of the lucky ones – my nurse described me as “sailing” through chemo. And I am – I feel not terrible the majority of the time. The week after chemo I feel downright good. But let’s be real, even a baseline of not feeling terrible most of the time isn’t ideal. Guys, just don’t get cancer.

That said, I’m doing much better this go round than last. By letting a small sliver of nausea to surface before attempting to thwart it with pills, I’ve found a happy balance. Who knew the answer to living relatively nausea free was a little bit of nausea? Eating also helps tremendously. I’m a snacking queen and am convinced I’m the only chemo patient on the planet to actually GAIN weight while undergoing treatment. The good news is I’m gonna need that fat for grafting my impossibly perfect implants, so I’m embracing the eat.

I’ve also managed to accidentally preempt what should have been my worst post-chemo days. I’m supposed to take steroids on days 1-4 (Day 1 being Chemo day), so day 5, which falls on the Monday after Chemo (ie: today), should be my worst day. Steroids give a false sense of energy and vigor, so the first day without them is usually the hardest. By forgetting to take my steroids yesterday morning, I managed to unwittingly make yesterday my worst day and am feeling surprisingly good today. Not sure if that’s a recommended practice, but it’s an option if you need to time your bad days accordingly. Maybe talk to your doctor before you try it deliberately though?

Nausea aside, I’ve been feeling remarkably good. Aside from napping like a champion, I’m doing pilates three days a week and working on my abs the rest of the time. I figure, if I’m going to have impeccable boobs, I want the abs to go with them and this post-partum diastasis recti isn’t going to heal itself.