Last Wednesday's COVID booster knocked me for a wallop, but after sleeping three days, I am finally recovered. Recovery was necessary as this week was quite busy.

Monday: PT

Tuesday: check-in with Primary Care. She prescribed anti-anxiety meds to help me get through this. We will cease the meds when radiation ends.

Wednesday: Yikes! I woke up at 8 am with a headache. I went back to bed until my 10 o'clock call with the 25 yo daughter of a friend, who has made the move to greater Los Angeles. Deeply empathizing with this difficuly transition, I want to help. We spoke for almost an hour without incident, but soon a wave of nausea came over me, and we stopped the call around 11. '

I went back to bed and slept most of the day. My family alerted the doctor's office, and they prescribed dexamethasone. This is a drug I am very familiar with as it was the drug that I was on in 2010 to reduce brain swelling before my brain surgery,

Thursday: Oh, the fun. I met with the radiation oncologist and his team; signed consent to treat paperwork; and then was fitted for my mask and had the accompanying CT. Since I am familiar with the MRI procedure and how to lay still, the uncomfortable and sometimes claustrophobic fitting did not bother me as much as I expected it would. Who knows how I will be on the day of radiation, but for here, I breathed out and reminded myself, "Don't Panic."

Thursday also included an unexpected visit to Dr. Blondin's office to meet with his PA and review the symptoms from my day of nausea and sleep. I will stay on dexamethasone to help with brain swelling. This will also likely take me through treatment since brain swelling often comes with radiation.

Friday: Last week I started choking on liquids. A nursing facility visited today to do an intake. A specialist will follow up Tuesday to set up a choking evaluation and provide me with actionable steps to minimize/eliminate choking.

On the agenda for next week:

Neuropsychologist to test my cognition. (I've waited three months for this appointment - It is simply fortuitous that it will be two weeks before I begin radiation)

MRI so the physicists can plot care and radiation treatment.

Hypnosis so my mind can help my body heal and stay calm.