So far this first cycle of infusion that I had last Monday hasn’t been too bad.  I have to check for blood clots in my legs every morning upon waking, but I’m okay with that.  I am taking Avastin every two weeks through an IV and then every 42 days I take a capsule Lomustine.  I am also taking a multitude of supplements, about fifty capsules a day, exercising, drinking papaya leaf tea, and following the ketogenic diet.

One of the most stressful things I have been struggling with is being able gain access to full extract cannabis oil because in the state of Tennessee medical marijuana is not legal.  I cannot for the life of me figure out 1) why is medical marijuana not legal in every state and 2) how in the world am I going to get this.  Cannabis Oil has been shown to shrink tumors in certain patients and as someone who is trying to fight this brain tumor with everything I’ve got, I find this so sad that there are so many hoops and hurdles.  We may need to move back to California.

I know people judge this type of thing, but it’s funny, I have never done drugs, heck I used to be the type of person who didn’t want to take a Tylenol or Advil for a headache, I never tried pot, heck I’ve only smoked 1 cigarette before with my friend behind the Pizza Hut across from our high school and I thought that was disgusting.  Medical marijuana is used to help patients with a number of things, prevent seizures, help manage pain associated with MS and Fibromyalgia, ease side effects of chemo, and SHRINK TUMORS.  I may need to run for office!

But, enough about my frustration.  I am in a very good place emotionally.  I have been going for walks even though my legs hurt, I am able to rest outside in the hammock since the weather has been nice especially in the shade, I am feeling a little more clear in my head, have more energy and I appreciate all of this as I move into this next treatment because I am not sure how I will be feeling.

Some of my friends got me out of the house this week for a hike and a walk, trip to the grocery store and I even had Noel drop me off at TJ Maxx while he went to the grocery store.  I feel like that is the only place I ever go is to the store or to run errands, so that was a very nice treat and I got to be out by MYSELF!  Last night, Parker and I went out to the mall and had a great time.  We’ve been decorating for Halloween and having a blast with that.

I am getting to a place where I don’t feel like my brain tumor is dictating every aspect of my life, a huge portion of it, but not all of it.  I am reading a book called Radical Remission and I highly recommend it for anyone who is battling cancer.  It is a book filled with hope, patients who were sent home on hospice care still here many years to share their stories, one who has been cancer free for 30 years and they reveal why they think they healed.  The author reveals what the nine key elements are that she believes resulted in these patients healing themselves and I was already on the path before I even began reading this book.  One was letting go of fear.  I can check that off my list.  Another is diet.  I am a firm believer in this being so important. It was Hippocrates that stated, “Let food by thy medicine and medicine by thy food”.  I think at a society driven by quick access we have gotten to the point where we want fast food and pop a pill for symptoms of anything.

I’ll be writing more about nutrition this week.  I hope you all have a wonderful weekend.