Monday, June 16, 2014

Radiation Complete!

After 6.5 weeks, 33 radiation treatments, and 49 days of chemo, Scott is officially done with his first round of treatment!  To celebrate, Scott's sisters Denise and Michelle threw Scott a party.  We had delicious subs, and everyone got silly string to celebrate.  The next morning, we loaded up a TON of stuff and headed back home to Logan.

It's been nice to be home, and we have somewhat of a normal routine again.  It was nice to get back into our own ward at home, and to see our friends and neighbors that we love so much again!  Lydia, Emmitt, and I are planning lots of play dates so we can catch up with everyone (and so Lydia doesn't go through cousin withdrawal too much).  I've been back to work for about a month now, which has been both a challenge and a blessing.  It's been tough to fit in the time with 2 kids, but it's been very worth it for me.  I continue to get great experience with my job, which is extremely valuable if I ever need to support our family full time.  I have been very blessed to work for great people, who have been very understanding and flexible with our situation.  I've been looking into possibilities for me to get my masters part-time at a few different universities.  Potentially I could start a program within the next year if we feel the time is right.

Scott has also returned to work/school.  The honest truth is that it has been really difficult for him.  His reading, comprehension, writing, and speaking skills are still slow, exhausting, and challenging for him.  His first week back, he put in about 15 hours.  He said what he accomplished in those 15 hours, he feels like he could have done in 1 hour prior to his surgery.  Scott is also still very tired from his chemo and radiation, and has still been napping when he can.  It will probably take a few weeks to wear off.  He goes in for a follow up MRI on July 3rd, however they probably won't be able to tell us much about how the treatment went.  They will be doing another MRI in a couple of months when Scott's swelling has gone down - this MRI should help us have a better idea of what the status is with the cancer.  He has a month off treatment, then he will start chemo again.  He will do double the dosage of chemo for 5 consecutive days each month for 6-12 months.  During that time they may even up the dosage more if Scott can handle it.  They told us the chemo will cause him to experience the same fatigue he has been experiencing during these past 6.5 weeks.

Right now, we are just pluggin' along.  There are a lot of unknowns right now for us, and some days it's a little overwhelming trying to figure out what are plans are moving forward.  We're still just taking things a day at a time and trying to rely and trust in our Heavenly Father to help us know what is best.  When I look back at everything that has happened over the last few months, I know he has guided and blessed us through this process so far, and know he will continue to do so.