I'm not a pill taker... scratch that, I wasn't a pill taker. Now I think I've entered junkie status. I take a plethora of vitamins that the doctors have ordered...each to aid in my healing and/or support the effects of chemo on my body. But the little white pill I depend upon, she's crossed the line and when the bottle gets low I make sure she gets filled in a timely manner. #likepronto
She helps me sleep. She helps me dose off at night. She helps me cope the next day because she' s worked her magic in my sleep. She's a sleeping pill and I've never taken them prior to this whole cancer thing. In fact I didn't even want to really take her at all but if there is any time in my life that I can justify her use it's now. Of course it took several girlfriends to remind me that indeed I have cancer and that getting rest at night is a big part of my healing. #justifying
My obgyn prescribed Zolpidem/Ambien when I was first diagnosed. I didn't need it at first. When I began my first round of chemo I thrived on the steroids they gave me and enjoyed the huge boost of energy. I wanted to be awake because I had things to do. I didn't mind waking up at 3am because I could put on my robe and bust out a blog post. I felt like it. The scales were tipped in favor of the roids [over the chemo]. #goroids
Then the scales balanced themselves. No longer did the roids give me a hyper-boost. The chemo started to weigh on me. I needed my sleep. I needed to fall asleep. I needed to stay asleep. I needed some help.
My prescription was for one pill per night, but soon I was waking up staring at the ceiling and dealing with hot flashes. My ob said I could take 2 pills. Soon my pills were gone and when I went to refill them is when I realized I may have hit junkie status. The pharmacist was unable to refill my prescription because 'it wasn't time" "it shows you should still have pills". #panic
I felt like a complete and utter junkie...because damnit, I needed those pills. I was having chemo the next day and knew that I wouldn't be able to fall asleep. And that's just not acceptable. I must have my pills. #junkie I told the pharmacist that my doctor had told me I could take two... thank goodness he's heard this before and has solved this problem. He said my doctor would need to adjust my prescription to the higher dosage. And just like that he had a call into my doctor to up the anty. I was fine, panic over. #closecall #ZZZzzzZZZZ
I'm not crazy... chemo and cancer really do mess with your sleep http://curetoday.com/index.cfm/fuseaction/article.show/id/2/article_id/1418 Thanks to my girl Lani at Chemo Babe for the info.