I HATE Chemo

I don't whine about this very often but today I'm whining. No, actually, crying would be more accurate. Here's what happened.

If you read my post from a couple of days ago, you know that I had a severe allergic reaction to some bug bites, presumably from the chemo drugs in my system.

This morning, we went out walking again and my ring finger started to itch. I never saw or felt a bug bite me but it obviously did. My finger started swelling and I knew I would have to get my rings off but they were so tight it was going to require some soap. I kept walking faster and faster wanting to get home but it swelled faster than I could walk. As soon as I got home, Ken had me soak it in ice water. I also covered it with soap but I couldn't begin to get it off. By that time, the finger was so swollen I couldn't even bend it. And VERY painful. Ken called our family doctor and he said to get to the emergency room. So at 7 am we were on our way to Mercy.

They got me right in and it wasn't long before I saw a doctor. He looked at it and said they have several tricks they can usually use to coax rings off but he could tell by looking at it that it was too swollen for that. So, that meant they would have to saw my rings off. The nurse tried a manual saw first but that wouldn't go through. They were actually thin bands but apparently very strong. So, then she came in with a drill that had a saw on the end of it. They had to get a piece between the ring and the finger, obviously, so that they wouldn't saw through the finger. So, that made it even tighter and so painful I couldn't stand it. That is where the crying came in. But, the motorized version wouldn't work either. So they went back to the manual saw. By this time, there were three nurses and a doctor in there. One very sensitive nurse kept telling the one with the saw to let me take a break because it was so painful but the one with the saw felt she was making progress and wanted to keep going. Finally she got through. Of course, it still wouldn't come off so they had to get some other tools and bend them to get them off.

Once done, they brought in an ice bag and wanted me to ice it for awhile to make sure the swelling started to dissipate. It went down a little so they said I could go but I should take the day off and just ice the finger and take Benedryl. I compromised by taking Benedryl and going to work but taking the ice pack with me. The swelling has gone down to where I can now bend the finger but it is still very red, painful and I think there may be a permanent indentation where my ring was.

In the meantime, another bite on my right elbow has swelled to almost saucer size. But at least I don't have a ring choking my arm.

I feel so bad about the rings. I know that many people upgrade their original rings over the years to get bigger and better. But I have never wanted to do that. I just wanted my original rings. Ken thinks that it may be possible that a jeweler can fix them. I suggested that maybe they could make them a little bigger in the process to accommodate for the swelling that I sometimes have. He said they would have to make them fit around my neck to accommodate the swelling I had today. Have to keep your sense of humor, right?

Later.