Round 1: November 17th – 21st. ding. ding.

Jason took his chemo dose of temozolomide that first morning with the intent of going to work for the day. It can’t be that bad. After all, it came in the mail right next to the phone case Owen ordered from Amazon.

Act normal, we thought. Stay distracted from the reality that he was, quite literally, poisoning himself.

Within 30 minutes, the nausea hit like a tsunami. Wave after wave of vomiting. Unrelenting.

Damn. Should have taken the nausea pills prophylactically after all.

The nausea didn’t stop. Ever.

Chemo: 1 Jason: 0

Round 2: December 15th – 19th. ding. ding.

After trying three different antiemetics with little success, a fourth was suggested to use with the upcoming week of chemotherapy. Please, God, let Zyprexa work. This can’t get any worse.

First dose down. And… no vomiting – still nauseated (that never left) but no worse. Second dose down. Still no vomiting. It’s working!

Chemo: 1 Jason: 1 But wait…

Cough. Cough. Influenza-a (+). Seriously?!

Chemo: 1 Jason: 1 Influenza: 1 ???

Thankfully, the influenza was short-lived, but it still left its mark. Energy low. Appetite low. Blood pressure low.

For the next two weeks, Christmas outings were preceded by, and then followed by, long naps and little nutrition. He tried going to the movies with us as a family, despite a blood pressure of 88/60. This doctor has never been happier to see a big tub of salty popcorn!

By New Year’s Day we started to see a little more “Jason” return, and some of the nausea fade. Finally!

Round 3: January 12th – 16th. ding. ding.

Chemo clearly won round 1. Jason battled back in round 2. How was round 3 going to go? It’s anyone’s guess. Like PTSD, maybe the nausea would return with just the site of the pharmacy package in the mail or even the sound of the pill bottle opening.

Yet, with a small alteration in his anti-nausea “cocktail”, this has been the best round yet! Vomiting averted.

While it’s certainly still chemo!, this round has been more like just slamming your finger in the door and less like falling off a two-story building. (And, yes, he did actually slam his finger in the door and cut through his fingernail this week. Go figure. His luck! Thankfully, he’s not allowed on roofs anymore.)

Chemo: 1 Jason: 2

We’re 25% of the way through his 12 month course of chemotherapy. It feels like quite an accomplishment. In December, we didn’t know how, or literally if, he could make it the through the rest of treatment. But today, it feels doable.

“You came near when I called on you;

you said, ‘Do not fear!’” Lamentations 3:57