karenulijohn

This past weekend was a complete washout.  Sunday was a repeat of Saturday only worse.  Harvey could barely get out of bed.  When he did get up, he was lightheaded and weak.  In fact, he spent most of the day supine on either the bed, the couch, or the recliner.  Conversation was kept to a minimum, and, at one time, I asked him if he would like me to just leave him alone, to which he answered “yes!”  It was a lonely day!

Monday promised more of the same, and I was worried enough to contact Dr. Suhag’s office.  His nurse, Mitzi called back immediately, and Harvey answered the phone.  All of a sudden, he was “perky,” oozing charm as he joked and laughed with her.  I broke in on this hilarity and told him to tell her what he had been experiencing for two days.  She listened intently and asked a few questions to determine if there was any infection, and then asked if Harvey was drinking enough water.  He said he was, at the same time I shouted that he was not.  His idea of drinking a ten ounce glass of water is taking a few sips out of a ten ounce glass!  Mitzi has clearly dealt with this kind of intransigent before because she used the ultimate threat: a two hour hydration session at the infusion center.

I brought him a 16 ounce bottle of water and demanded he drink all of it.  Tough love!  He put on his whiney, pathetic voice, telling me that it made him feel bloated, but he did drink it.  Less than half an hour later, Mitzi called back to inquire if there was any change.  There was a significant change.  He was more engaged and was able to walk to the kitchen and back without having to lie down.  We have agreed that he will drink two 16 ounce bottles of water and a 32 ounce bottle of Gatorade every day.  He still feels tired and less energetic than usual, but at least he is able to function.

Harvey had the penultimate chemotherapy treatment this afternoon after seeing Dr. Suhag and having a radiation treatment.  Dr. Suhag has  prescribed three more Neupogen injections over the next three days because Harvey’s white blood cell count is very low.  Even though he has only one more chemo session, Dr. Suhag did not want to take a chance on having to postpone it.  We don’t want that either.

With the heat that we are experiencing this week, we all need to be diligent about getting enough water.  The amount of body water decreases by approximately 15% (about 6 L) between the ages of 20 and 80.5 With this decrease, the body becomes more susceptible to dehydration from the loss of a small amount of body water.  Signs of dehydration include confusion, difficulty walking, dizziness, headache, severe fatigue, dry mouth, sunken eyes, inability to sweat, rapid heart rate, and low blood pressure to name a few.  So, have a big glass of water and remember the importance of being hydrated.