Sylvia's Journal

There were two long planning sessions before my treatment could start. The first one was last week to measure and tattoo my body and do whatever they needed to do to produce the plan that would direct the rays to obliterate whatever cancer cells had stayed behind.

The second one was yesterday, to test the plan. I was positioned on a table, propped up with foam and pillows. It was not very comfortable, especially given that my head was turned at a 90 degree angle towards a blank wall. My curiosity was thwarted. I could not find out what was happening behind me and take a look at all the machines that were making these mechanical & tech noises. There is a large moving disc that looks like it belongs in a spaceship. Since my head is pretty much immobilized, turned to the wall, I cannot see much, except when that disc starts to descend into my view. I could imagine that being kidnapped by aliens, this arrangement may be familiar. I was looking for small green creatures inside that disc.

My friend Isabella offered to take me to the hospital. I had planned to drive there myself, not quite knowing what to expect other than that the treatment would not leave me incapable of driving home safely. On the urgings of Axel and Isabella to accept the support that was offered, I gave in. Isabella’s daughter, who went through this journey 11 years ago, had some advice for me, one of them to listen to music. It was great advice, as I had not thought about taking my phone and hearing aids into the treatment room. Sound goes directly from my phone into my hearing aid, so if I have both available I can listen to anything I want, music, books, podcasts, etc. without bothering people around me. The radiation technicians said that the lead in the room may interfere with the sound. It didn’t. I was able to listen to the final chapter of a fascinating book and so the it was more of a literary feast than a medical intervention.
Isabella hardly got to read her book before I was done. With little traffic, and the very short treatment, the new daily routine will take about one hour and 15 minutes out of my day – just as much as each of my exercise classes. All of them focused on my health and well-being. No fuss!