A Little Fable - Page 22

Jackie...wow am I late. I'm so sorry. I pretty much only read "dog stuff"; I stay out of the chat room, the off-topic stuff, etc. I saw how many pages this obscure titled thread had and only clicked out of curiosity to see what it could possibly be about if not dogs. Wow. Not what I was expecting.

Hang in there and let me know if there's anything I can do- no, I'm not close, but I have a bit of free time during the days so if you need anything that can be done remotely, just say so. 

Thanks Jenni, I appreciate that! 
jackie harris

The one thing I wish I could ask was how to comfort my dogs. I'm not supposed to have ANY contact right now, but I can't help but hug & love on them a little. They look at me with such sad eyes, & I can't make it better for them. It's breaking my heart!

Jackie,

I'm so sorry to hear you've been in so much pain. I hope the doctor can give you something to ease the pain. Did you get a Neulasta shot after the chemo to keep your white count up?

I loved the photos. You are clearly beautiful, both inside and out. I know the hair falling out is a bit traumatic, at least it was for my mom, but the good news is it will grow back.

Still praying for you, beautiful and courageous Jackie.

Hugs,
Char

Thanks Starrchar, I did get the Neulasta, that's when the pain started! If you don't mind my asking, how did your Mom do with the Neulasta? I couldn't believe how awful my reaction to that was!
And my sweet little Ansgar tried to rip my port out! She came up to me, & instead of being her polite self, she lunged at me & hit me with her right paw right smack on the port, very deliberately, too! She's had enough of my having weird smells, etc., & her smart silly self figured out exactly where they were coming from! Fortunately no harm was done....jackie harris

Jackie, My mom usually did ok with Neulasta, but every so often it would cause pain. Unfortunately it is a common side effect. If I remember correctly there is also a daily shot called Neupogen to build up the white blood cells and I wonder if that causes as much pain. It might be worth it to ask your doctor.

Wow, your Ansgar is something else! If they could only talk!

Bumping this to say I hope the docs were able to give you something to counteract the effects of the Neulasta, Jackie...hate the thought of you in such pain. '

Hope today is a good day for you, as the fall weather is approaching! Pumpkins all over Texas s we head for Greenville tx. Collins street bakery n may visit a couple of my Kids. Gsd ones

Hugs 
 YR

 

Jackie, there's something I learned when I had a spastic terrier.  Try getting someone to come in with the dogs, one at a time.  Have them massage the dog around the ears, thumbs on the head, fingers directly below the ears.  Talk in a calm, reassuring voice from where you are.  That way, they get to see that you're okay, while relaxing with a fantastic massage, it's worked like a charm every time I've used it.  It puts Drake in another dimension, he goes into a trance, it's funny
 
Your dogs want to comfort you, it's what they do.  You don't get much more loyal than your dogs, especially when you have a true connection.  I hope this passes soon and you're well on the road to recovery, hang in there girl.  

Hexe, I did have a nice long talk with my MDs, & they rearranged my meds so that, while I can't say I'm pain free, it seems much more controlled.
Which meant, Jan, that I did have a very good day yesterday! We even went out to dinner with Carl's son, a retired MD, & Carls daughter, & had a lovely time, with the aid of some Zofran to ward off nausea!
And Travels, that sounds like such a nice idea, I used to massage their ears & they just adored it, but my limited access right now has left me yearning to do more with them, so that's a great idea! I did manage to sneak some 'doggie bag' goodies to them last night!  jackie harris

Unfortunately, Neulasta and Neupogen are pretty much the same sort of drug. Not identical but the purpose is the same, and the side effects are the same.

Some patients experience severe muscle and bone pain with them, others are unaffected. Acetaminopen is the drug of choice for treating the pain.

When I did community nursing, we had quite a heavy load of cancer patients, and therefore, I've seen a lot of patients on this drug (and given the injections many, many times). Only a small number had significant pain from the neupogen or neulasta. Sorry that you seem to be a member of this minority. 

They don't want Jackie touching her dogs because her immune system is depressed by the chemo, and they regard the dogs as dirty disease-carriers.   I wonder if that's really the case.

Maybe you could just pet the dogs (have someone restrain them on a leash so they don't jump all over you) then wash your hands carefully afterwards?