An Inconvenient Tumor

That's me. I'm the pill sergeant.  And boy, when you've got cancer, are there a lot of pills to take. Not just medication, but also of the supplement variety.

You've asked for it, so here's our daily list:

1. Antacid: Prevents acid flare-ups from steroids. (1x day)
2. Steroids: Minimizes swelling (and symptoms) of Bryan's brain caused by the tumor. (2x day)
3. Flaxseed Oil: The oil has a group of chemicals called lignans that might play a role in cancer prevention. (3x day)
4. Prescription Strength Fish Oil (who knew?): Helps open the blood-brain barrier so the chemo can pass through and get to the tumor. (1x day)
5. Multi-vitamin: Gives Bryan all his daily vitamins. (1x day)
6. Anti-nausea: Protects Bryan's stomach from getting upset when he takes the chemo pills. (1x day)
7. Chemotheraphy: These pills do to the tumor what Norman Bates did to Janet Leigh in the famous Psycho "shower scene." (1x day)
8. Ativan: Anti-anxiety. Everything about having cancer makes you anxious. Enough said. (1 pill as necessary)

Bryan is such a champ. He could win a gold medal if the the Olympics had a "pill swallowing" event. It truly amazes me.

Yours truly, on the other hand...I am a pill swallowing wuss. It takes me 5 minutes to take a Tylenol. ONE Tylenol. Of the "go down easy" gel cap variety. You should have seen me the night before getting a colonoscopy (I was diagnosed with diverticolitis 2 years ago); I cut all the pills in half. So instead of having 23 pills to take, I had FORTY SIX. Over a four-hour period. One word: disaster.

That said, I'm very proud of myself because since Bryan has to take so many pills, I figured I'd overcome my pill swallowing fears and take some pills, too. Besides, we all hear that supplements are good for you and our doctors confirmed* that flaxseed oil, fish oil and CoQ10 enzyme are extremely beneficial to maintaining one's health. So I proudly walked into my local CVS (the pharmacists are practically family now) and said, "I'd like to buy a bottle of your finest flaxseed oil, fish oil and CoQ10 enzyme. Thank you, kind sir."

So now when Bryan has his "pill time," I have mine, too. And he gets a kick out of it, because when he's inevitably done taking his pills after five seconds, he can make fun of me as I spend five minutes on my first one. I'll get the hang of it someday. But until then, it's just another thing that lightens the mood of this little adventure we're on.

*Before starting any supplement or pill regime, consult your doctor. Sorry, but I worked on too many advertising campaigns. Legal disclaimers are just part of my nature.

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