Just as they told me: side effects are worse this week. Sunday was bad; a lot of nausea and trips to the bathroom. The doctor had recently prescribed diazepam (Valium) to reduce (possible) rectal spasms. I took one of those, and that certainly helped me sleep.
Monday morning I was well-rested and everything was great. But shortly after my 3:15pm radiation session, the waves of nausea came back, along with some abdominal pain.
Since this nausea was a bit more extreme, I tried one of the things they prescribed for nausea: ondansetron (Zofran). That didn’t seem to do much; the nausea waves continued through the night, and I got very little sleep.
After a night like that, I can’t function, so I had to take the day off from work. Just the process of doing that (canceling meetings, sending messages about some urgent items) felt pretty overwhelming.
I spent most of the day horizontal on the couch. It seemed all I was capable of doing, in that state, was to contemplate some ads from yesteryear.
1953:
1948:
And this fine ad from 1939:
foiblish 
Jonathan,
I remember the feeling on the couch and being in limbo. Stick with it it will get better.
Henry
Thank you Henry!
Nausea is so challenging. Maybe a zoftan patch, goes behind your ear, for the nausea? It can be a game changer. It was a regular part of therapy for my nephew and uncle. If you choose tablets then try the melting tabs. They melt under your tongue, 4mg or 8mg. It might sound strange but some swear by smelling fresh cut lemon.
You are in our thoughts.
Thank you – great to hear from you, Aunt Joanna! 🙂 I was prescribed both zofran and compazine and I have those on hand, in pill form. I’m holding off on the zofran due to constipation as a common side effect, per recent discussion with my care team. I’ll keep it on hand, though, for the chemo starting in about a month.
Ginger chews have actually been pretty effective for me, for nausea. Now that I’m done with chemo (in pill form) for the time being, nausea should stop, but they said the radiation side effects will likely continue for a few weeks.