Three radiations down, 30 to go. Not bad so far. I should probably stop reading other accounts of it though, because I don’t know what will happen in my experience and the things I’m reading are kind of frightening. “Skin loss” is not a good term, for example. Also, I am grateful I don’t have throat or butt cancer. I know that’s terrible to say, but it’s true. Those stories sound like the very worst.
The treatments themselves take like, three minutes, and feel like nothing. This large round disc rotates around me, first one side, then the other, and I feel nothing. There’s no visible beam, there’s no burning sensation when it’s happening. The room has a large, backlit mountain scene on the ceiling, which is peaceful. There is a light on the wall near the entryway that flashes on, accompanied with a buzzing sound, when it’s happening, and I always think of an “On Air” light during a radio broadcast. The first treatment, the technicians hurried out of the room, saying “We can still see and hear you, we just won’t be in the room.” Then, the light and buzzing. I thought, “WAIT! I CHANGED MY MIND!” It seemed so dramatic, like I was in lockdown and would emerge with horrible disfigurement and extreme superpowers, but neither happened (yet! HA!). It really feels like nothing, and takes almost no time, which is weird. From what the technicians tell me, I can’t wear a bra after the first week, because I will not want anything touching my skin. Awesome. I’ll have my arms crossed in front of me for six weeks.
I also keep reading about extreme fatigue. We’ll see. So far, so good. I have a mental paper chain to count down with, and I’ve already gotten to tear off three links!
