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Thursday, December 11, 2008

Changing Chemo Days

Inasmuch as anyone can like getting chemo, I like getting chemo on Tuesdays. It works for me.

Too bad for me. Tuesdays does not work for my doctor. So, he's moving all his Tuesday patients to Sunday. If not Sunday, then Thursday. Those are the choices.

Sundays or Thursdays.

Yuck!

Sundays, I have a shiur (class) that I love and that I do not really want to give up. Moreover, if I get chemo on Sunday, I will be tired for most of the week.

Thursdays, I teach swimming. And, if I get chemo on Thursdays, I will be really tired over Shabbat.

Tuesdays was good. If I had to lose a day, at least it was in the middle of the week, so I could do things before or after. Though I was always tired after chemo, I worked myself into a routine where Wednesdays and Thursdays were "easy days." Fridays and Shabbat were also fairly low key, with a lot of sleep scheduled in. It might not have been perfect, but it worked for me.

And I built everyone else's schedule around mine.

Now, the deck of cards is collapsing.

Logistically, it would be easier for me to switch to Sundays. I even have someone to pick up my kids on Sundays (If I don't pick them up on Thursdays, they will have to take a bus). But I would be giving up a lot (my shiur, my week). So, I would rather get chemo on Thursdays, even if it means I am extra sleepy on Shabbat.

The problem is that I teach my kids swimming on Thursdays. The prospect of rearranging my kids' schedules makes my head hurt! But one of the main reasons that I teach swimming is so that I can teach my kids!

I have been avoiding dealing with this, but it is not going to go away.

I only have a few weeks, until the end of December.... The new schedule starts in January!

It is so complicated.

I know it won't work, but I like Moshe's solution the best.

Moshe suggested I...

Use The Force.

Doctor: I’m going to have to switch you to Sundays. There’s no way around it.
RivkA: (waving her hand slowly) You don’t need to switch me to Sundays.
Doctor: (glazed look in his eyes) I don’t need to switch you to Sundays…
RivkA: I can stick with Tuesdays.
Doctor: (still glazed) You can stick with Tuesdays…



Please daven (or send happy, healing thoughts) for RivkA bat Teirtzel.

With love and optimism,
RivkA

8 comments:

Shevy said...

I like Moshe's suggestion. It reminds me of a (true) story I read where a woman needed to write a personal cheque for cash at a hotel and she didn't have a drivers license (required in order to do so). She just kept affirming what the girl said and then repeating like a broken record "Try this. It will work." while offering a totally different type of ID. Eventually, they cashed her cheque.

You could try (in a very quiet, polite voice) "I understand you need to switch everybody around and I need to come on Tuesday." Note the "and" NOT "but".

What's the worst case? The doc is going to think the chemo drugs have fried your brain?

Engineering Goddess said...

I loved the suggestion of using "The Force" - when you get that perfected you can teach the rest of us!

Sarah said...

LOL!

Anonymous said...

could you teach swimming on tuesdays?
always annoying to try to juggle everyone's schedules...

Batya said...

The force, oy.
He'll say, "sure, show up Tuesday, and you'll be all alone and won't get the meds you fought for."

Hmmm Thursday sounds better, doesn't it?

RivkA with a capital A said...

Clarification: I could come in on Tuesdays, and even get my treatments on Tuesdays, BUT my doctor would not be there. So, I would have to come in on another day for my appointments (at least once every three weeks and often more than that), AND if there is a problem, he is not there to help me.

Rivki said...

Eh - well maybe the doc won't be there, but if there is a problem you can ask for the doc to get paged. If the people workin with you that day give you a lame excuse as to why they can't page him, demand that he gets paged to get it worked out. Unless he is off that day, there is no reason he can't deal with a problem for you. He probably just wants to do clinic that day is my guess, and can still be talked to. But, I could be wrong.
Put it in HIS hands, see what plans He has for you. Maybe you should keep the old schedule, or maybe you're meant to do something different, who knows. If you're persistent enough, you might be able to even get the Doc to make an exception for you.

A Soldier's Mother said...

I liked this one...so:
1. If the force thing works, give me a call, I have a list of other force things I could use help with.

2. Call your doctor's office and tell him that he's been nominated for the noble prize in medicine and to receive it, he'll have to be available for the next six months on Thursdays and possibly on Sundays as well...think that'll work?

hope so - sorry for the change in schedule.