I Have Been De-Ported

It's been 2 weeks now - but Thanksgiving was in that time frame, so I haven't been able to sit down and focus on this post.
On Tuesday the 22nd I went into Dr. Moline's office and had my port removed. It was an office procedure. The worst of it was all the numbing pokes I had to have. It seemed like a dozen, but it may have been only 10.... She numbed the area around the port, then started snipping away to get down to it. As she explained, the port is a foreign body, so my body built up tissue around it. That's what she had to get through. I originally had a small incision at my throat - going into the jugular - when the tubing was placed in it. She didn't have to do that - just pulled the whole thing out through the incision at my collarbone. She then held her finger to my neck while the jugular repaired itself. She explained that this whole time it's been trying to do that again with that foreign object there and a hole in my vein. Then she stitched me up and I was ready to go.

The port itself is about 1 1/2 inches (or less) big and the tubing is about 6-8 inches long? If you look closely you can see 3 bumps on the silicone bump. The nurses would find those 3 bumps and then poke right in the middle of them. Then the tubing went from my collar bone into my jugular. The IV drip would go directly into that. So there was no need to have an IV hook-up every 3 weeks for the last year. Also, there was no chance that the chemo would come in contact with my skin at all. She said that the silicone material could withstand up to 200,000 pokes and the bottom of it was nearly indestructible so there was no way it could have broken down or deteriorated.

I really didn't have any side effects or anything. I had to keep a small weight on the incision to prevent any fluid build-up in the space where the port had been. I did that for the rest of the evening and a little the next morning. Being that it was Thanksgiving, I really didn't sit down much on Wednesday. But I was not over doing anything. I was a little tired on Tuesday. I think mostly it was because I didn't prepare myself much and only had a breakfast then went into this appointment at 3:00 somewhat hungry. It was just before 4 when we left and we went to meet the rest of the family for dinner at Azteca. My parents had arrived for the long weekend and so that was really nice to have them around. My mother went with me to the appointment and sat in the waiting room watching (not listening to) Bonanza! What fun for her.

I am happy all this is over. I do have follow up appointments - in fact I have one on Wednesday. And I have to have regular vision checks and bone scans - probably once a year due to any side effects from the medicine I am taking. I feel really good! I pretty much have all my original stamina back - that's not saying much. I do have limitations on my right arm. It feels like there is a heavy weight around my shoulder everytime I lift it up. I'm not too strong, either, but then I haven't done much of any out of the ordinary lifting for over a year. I am slowly getting that back. I have to be careful to not overdo anything like that so I don't have any fluid build up - edema. That is my one big concern now. I feel like all my scars are healed well and all else is going great! I don't think I have any swelling, but there is still some numbness and that tingly feeling is just a pain and that is what makes anything feel like it is bigger than it really is.