More blood tests, more sleepy

Yesterday, I went in for my blood tests. For the first time, the phlebotomist (good word. Say it out loud. Phlebotomist. Phlebotomist. I'm not sure what is more fun to say, phlebotomist or sphygmomanometer) had to poke twice to hit a vein. Her first try, she thought one vein would hurt less. Well, it hurt plenty, but she couldn't make it work. So, back to Old Faithful, and that hurt a little bit, but I don't think I will let them dig around anymore. Fast and sore is better than slow and just as sore.

I got my results, back, and I knew what they would be before I got them. I've been extra tired, so I figured my reds would be around 10 (reminder, 14-17 is normal). Sure enough, it was at 9.3. To get an idea of how it feels, go donate blood, ask them to take five pints instead of one, and that will give you an idea of how things are. My platelets are at 64, which is also low. I'll have to put off my knife fighting for another week. My white blood cells are just fine. In fact, I'm still above normal on my grans.

So, no transfusion, but I'm going to have them check my blood counts again on Tuesday to make sure that I haven't dropped any further. My Aranesp shot should kick in soon, so I expect my reds to start climbing back up.

Well, the wart on my foot is pretty much gone. Hooray for chemo! Also, I haven't had to shave for weeks now, due to the elimination of all growth. So, the side effects can be good. Granted, that whole blood cell decimation thing isn't so much fun.

Anyway, I'm feeling okay. I get tired easily. No biggie.

Thank yo for your continued prayers. My PET scan will be somewhere around March 15. Then, I can be done. I'd really rather not have surgery. That would mean going to Indiana. Who would ever want to go to Indiana? Sure, they have a velodrome, but it's probably a little too cold too race on right now. I guess there's that fantastic food for which Indiana is famous.