Allison spent the better part of the holidays recovering from her first round of chemo. The nausea was debilitating the first week, followed by terrible mouth sores that intensified and lasted a little over two weeks. At their worst, she couldn’t even talk, let alone eat, because the pain was so bad even with pain medications and “magic mouthwash.” Thankfully, last weekend she started feeling significantly better and enjoyed ringing in the new year with family, feeling more like herself. 

 

This week has been both encouraging and challenging. Allison is currently undergoing her second round of chemo, which is a different medication than the first round. This medication is administered as one large dose, followed by a lot of IV fluids and close monitoring until the medication clears her system. The encouraging thing is that this round has caused far less nausea. The challenging part is that the mouth sores seem worse with this medication (even with the daily red-light therapy) and it's taking a lot longer than we thought it would to clear out of her system. We were originally told that it may take about 72 hours but we are now on day four and it is still showing up in her bloodwork. The good news is that there are no scary side effects from the delayed clearing, but the extended hospital stay has been discouraging to Alli. 

 

At this point we are just waiting for the medication to clear so she can go home. Originally, we were planning to come back again Tuesday for another round of this same chemotherapy, but we were told that her blood work has to be good and mouth has to be healing before they will start another round. This is encouraging to Alli because it means she will likely get some time to recover at home between rounds. 

 

If you are praying with us, we would especially appreciate prayers for the chemo medication to leave her system and that she is able to go home tomorrow! And that the next round we wouldn't have such an extended hospital stay. Also, we are praying that the mouth sores would not get worse, but that they would start to improve and that the pain would be managed enough so she can eat, drink, and talk comfortably. Additionally, with cold and flu season and siblings currently sick at home, we would appreciate prayers for Allison’s protection from illness. 

 

Right now, the most helpful support is your prayers and encouragement; Alli reads every single note and comment left and treasures them all! Financial support, if you feel led and able is also so helpful, and we do have a meal train set up if you would like to provide a meal just reach out to me personally.

 

Thank you for continuing to check in, pray, give, and support our family. We are carried by your love and kindness during this season, and we truly could not do this without you.