©Jenny Harrod 2019

Blog posts

Today was a good day..

Today was a good day as is usual the first day post Chemo so I try to get a s much done as possible. I went to both Lidl and Aldi to pick up some of their weekly special bargains, caught up with some long overdue e-mails to family and did a little online retail therapy.

The patients sharing the C…

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How wrong was I?

Oh Dear, I got that very wrong didn't I?

I thought my four months of Chemo were a complete regime, and once I had a scan to assess the results I wouldn't need any more, (at least for a while). 

However, I saw the Oncologist (for all of 2 minutes) today and he had expected me to have had more …

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Still waiting

Warning - mentions of bodily functions and smells, do not proceed if you are easily offended.

Monday 23rd September

Well, its been over two weeks and I am still waiting to hear what the CT scan showed. Hopefully I will find out this Wednesday when I see the Oncologist - fingers crossed it is g…

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Scanned and awaiting result!

So last week Friday 30th August, I had a CT scan which shouldn't have been a traumatic experience but it was. Not the actual scan itself but the hour long wait before, the jug full of water I had to drink to ensure I had a full bladder, and then the additional half hour wait afterwards before they r…

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Loving Life - Positive Mental Attitude!

So, OK, yes its been a while sorry about that.

I have spent the last couple of weeks worrying about my Mum. I can't phone her as she won't have her hearing aid in, probably won't answer the phone anyway and any high volume conversation only serves to inform the whole of the Close about our bu…

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A few more symptoms and a bit of pampering!

Sorry, not been on for a while but it has been a fairly quiet few days and is my rest week from Chemo. 

So, how have I been? Well, I have had a mild background headache for a few days which is new and my teeth 'hurt'! That sounds odd I know but it is not as severe as actual toothache, but I feel…

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Two days post Chemo and the Treacle legs have hit early!

OK, 'Treacle Legs' - a term I suspect everyone with MS can relate to. It's like walking through treacle with legs being heavy and a fear they will give way completely. Certainly not an excuse for high blood sugars!

Really upset they hit today though, I had rested this afternoon in readiness to go…

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New month same routine, except ...

Well it’s the second session of Chemo tomorrow and far from getting a handle on it, it is throwing up all sorts of problems.

If I touch my limbs or chest I feel like I am bruised or kicked in the stomach (or maybe like I have done a hard workout). 

But there has been another potentially mor…

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Well that wasn't scary at all was it?

Well, its officially true, pride does come before a fall and are often the results of the actions of a Fool!

I was so pleased that I had managed to keep my blood sugars below 20 whilst taking the oral steroids (Dexamethasone), that is until today. Then if you pardon the expression it all went t*t…

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Day 1 Session 2 - last time was just a tester dose.

So, I found out at my latest outpatient's appointment with the Oncologist that my first days Chemotherapy was a low dose to see how my MS would respond and if I could tolerate it. I wish he had told me that before I started it as I thought it was pretty much an easy ride. 

That said, yesterday I…

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Days 12 - 16 - Back, Bladder and Blood Sugars!

So here we are in my week off Chemo and days 12 - 16 which have been eventful in a number of ways.

Monday 12th

I spoke to my Senior Diabetes Nurse (Jen now) who, having seen my Blood Sugar results, suggested we should once again concentrate on just having the Lantus insulin at bedtime to get m…

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Days 5 - 7 and a Relapse (maybe)

So I have survived it past the initial shock to the system from all the IV fluids, the oral steroids and anti-emetic medications.

Certainly Monday and Tuesday were days where I felt someone had taken my batteries out and left me totally drained, so I even spent Monday in bed to try to recharge fo…

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Days 2, 3 and 4 (dizziness and some minor mishaps)

A couple of good days have been followed by a couple of days with some concerning side effects. I suspect it might be a MS relapse as I have not had any Rebif for over a week. Yet another complaint has been made to Lloyds Pharmacy Homecare Service (LPHS) who has escalated it to their actual complain…

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The journey begins - ironically on Independence Day!

OK so I have reached Day 2 of the 21 day Chemotherapy Regime.

Day 1 Wednesday 4th July

Admitted as a Day Case to the Chemotherapy Department at St Mary's Hospital. First I was weighed to ensure that I wasn't in fluid overload at the end of the session - I needed to weigh no more than 2 kg abov…

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Giving it the Needle!

OK, so I have now been on Insulin for a week and it is actually beginning to have a little effect on my blood sugars at last.

Having started on 8 units at bedtime on Monday, I am now up to 14 units and my waking blood sugar is almost at optimal levels ( 5 - 7 mmols). My lovely Nurse Helen, is ha…

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Taking back some control!

So, yet again I found myself in tears with my lovely Diabetic Practice Nurse, Helen. I have built up a special bond with her since I moved here. I found it very difficult to surrender myself to the role of a patient, having always been the one 'dishing out information and performing Practice Room tr…

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... I shall call it Boris!

This is probably the toughest blog post I have ever had to write, and it has taken a while as I needed to spend some time visiting family and letting them know what's going on.

Some of my Facebook 'Family' have already been following my story to a point and have been very supportive.

As alrea…

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Was it a sign?

Now, as some of you will already have read, when I ordered my new Motability Car - a Ford Kuga, I named it Caz after my best Nursing Friend who passed away far too young from Breast Cancer on the same day I ordered the vehicle. I thought 'Caz the Kuga' sounded good.

Today, literally after my onco…

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Cruised the Fjords

So, we had our cruise to Norway on the Saga Sapphire, and at least I enjoyed it. Him-in-the-Shed pretty much decided before we went that he wasn't going to have a good time, although I actually chose that cruise with him in mind because of his interest in the 1940's and WWII.

He moaned about wait…

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Making a SPLASH!

So, it looks like my fifteen minutes of fame has arrived. Having responded to a Tweet from the MS Trust about exercise and MS, I was asked to write a blog post about how swimming has helped my fitness and Multiple Sclerosis. I was asked for around 600 - 800 words, but you know me, I had to add at le…

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20 blog posts