Day 167 – 3.05.167 – Night’s Rest

Last night I finally slept through the night without waking up because of pain. What was happening was I would wake up with mucous and start coughing and it would result in a burning sensation down my chest. Wonderful experience if you want to be awake all night. It would go away after 20-30 minutes and I could fall asleep for a couple of hours. With the Olympics on it was not too big of a deal as I would watch some event and then go back to sleep.

I have received a lot of positive feedback from my post a couple of days ago in regards to my final treatment. A lot of what I write is off the top of my head where I just like to put my thoughts down quickly. In the past I would wake up in the middle of the night and start some coding and right now it is something similar. At times I have some of these ideas start in the middle of the night, but I do not get up to start writing. If I have difficulty sleeping I may start writing my thoughts in the middle of the night.

The amount of snacks we have in the house right now is insane. It is pretty awesome the sheer amount. In the last week we have received these boxes from various sources an the family and kids have been snacking on it.

1.) I am grateful for the neighbours that we have who have helped us out with things and with their kindness and support. It has been an interesting journey so far and it is nice to be able to sit outside on the lawns and to chat with people comfortably. It is a helpful distraction from things. During some of our discussions today we had discussed that they know someone else that is going through stomach cancer recovery and how it has come back now. That is the one concerning thing is that it might come back, which is why I think that as long as I am strong enough they are going to keep on hitting me with more chemotherapy just in case. It is in my lymphatic system and they want to make sure they kill any potential seedlings. Based on my latest treatment, the chemo is working. My hands and feet are pinkish, I have burning sensation in my chest and added nausea and difficulty eating. 10/10 for effectiveness!

2.) I am surprised by how quick people at work respond to my updates and they often share their reflection on what I wrote or add in a story from their life. I love that they share this aspect of their life with me and I can see their thoughts and how it resonates with them. A good friend of mine iterated that it is not the work that is important, but the relationships that we build with people. I agree completely. People may leave work or jobs may change and the work is no longer the thing that ties you together. The relationships that I have built with my work colleagues and friends transcends the humble beginnings of how they started. I am still close with quite a few colleagues from when I worked at the hospital and they have all helped out in their own way behind the scenes without me noticing. They kept an eye to make sure my journey has been as smooth as possible. I will be eternally grateful for that.