Pump needs a name
I officially started chemo today.
It turns out, for the most part, the side effects of the chemo don’t start for a couple of days. On Saturday I could start feeling it, then feel awful for a few days, but start feeling better sometime on Monday.
Or, I might be one of the lucky ones who don’t experience side effects. We’ll find out soon enough.
The picture on the left is of the chemo pump. Obviously the first priority is to come up with a name for it.
It can not be named Sally because that is already the name of my sister-in-laws truck. And it can’t be named Fred or Ethel because that is the name of the ducks who have visited our yard every year for the past 15 years.
I am going to need help in coming up with an appropriate, or inappropriate, name for the thing. I am hoping you will have suggestions.
As to the chemo experience, I spent four hours in a LazyBoy recliner having anti-nausea and chemo drugs fed into my body. Other than being a little light headed and tired I didn’t feel a thing. The place wasn’t very crowded and by the end of the four hours I was sort of enjoying the experience. Sort of.
I am already very glad I had the PowerPort 4000 installed. Not having a needle and a tube permanently in the arm makes for much greater mobility. It’s still annoying to have a tube attached to the chest, but it’s much easier to get around than when it’s in your hand.
The pump-with-no-name is smaller than I thought it might be, so that was a relief. I was once on a 48 hour heart monitor that was similar, and it was tolerable.
Anne and I met with Dr. Ey and later with one of the Chemo nurses. Between the two of them we received an overwhelming amount of information. Anne took extensive notes and I shook my head and said “Uh, huh” while pretending I was tracking it all.
If I didn’t have Anne keeping track of all this stuff, getting things scheduled, and creating a plan of action I’d be totally overwhelmed. I’m getting all the credit for having such a positive attitude, which basically involves my continuing to be a smart ass. Anne is the real hero of this saga. She is the one making this work.
Without her I would be in so much trouble I can’t even imagine how bad it would be. Thank God for the “for better or worse” clause in our contract. I’m so glad we didn’t have it stricken from the agreement because it’s really paying off now.
In a phone call from my cousin John he made it clear that if I lose all my hair the family is NOT going to be shaving their heads in support. That’s OK, I wouldn’t shave my head for them either. Perhaps as a compromise they could toast to my health with a beer, or two, or three.
I’d do as much for them, assuming it was good beer.
I have a few ideas for names. Having noticed the label on your chemo pump i.e. CADD-PLUS and keeping with the Star Trek theme, several cads come to mind. We have Trelane from Squire of Gothos, and Charlie from Charlie X and then there’s good old Q who keeps popping up when at the worst possible times.
“Anne took extensive notes and I shook my head and said “Uh, huh” while pretending I was tracking it all.”
Kudos to Anne! Yes, it’s natural for you to be overwhelmed, Gary. And, it’s great that Anne is there for you. Now, you know how important it is to have your own personal health advocate. Your mind and your body can only handle so much. That’s the reason that a support system is so very important.
I was very happy to see your post today. It’s very encouraging that you had the energy to write.
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Gary — how about Percy? As in Percy Pump. Maybe I just like alliteration.
And I’m not at all surprised that Anne is the hero — good genes and all that.
Hang in there!
Candace – I’m fond of “Charlie” but “Q” seems a bit cryptic. I think it would go over the heads of my non-trekkie friends. It will be interesting to see what additional names people come up with.
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I am very lucky to have quite a few Personal Health Advocates involved. We are friends with a number of people in the health care field (several who are nurses) who are wonderful resources. My primary care physician has also been a great resource.
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But, of course, it is Anne who is holding the whole thing together. Without her I don’t know what I would do. You are right, your mind and body can only handle so much.
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I have the inner drive to keep my body doing what it needs to do, but my mind has shut down. I am overwhelmed. Though I can understand, for the most part, what is going on, I am too drained to organize, research, and schedule everything that needs to be done.
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It is very fortunate I am married to such a wonderful woman. I just need to find a way to help her avoid having the stress frying her to a crisp.
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Judy – Percy? As in Percival? Doesn’t sound very manly. I’m going to be wearing this device in a holster on my hip, sort of like a six gun. Percy doesn’t quite fit that image, but I’ll consider it. Thanks for the suggestion.
How ’bout “Arnold”? – I keep flashing on Saturday Night Live send-up of Schwartzenager (sp?) – back before he was a serious politician of course.
Whenever you’re a little down, you can shift your Viking presonna a little to the southeast and hit the Alps dialect with a little “Don’t be a wimp – Pump It Up!”
FYI, Gary – we all knew Anne was a hero long before this!
You two are an inspiration – hang in there…
Or could go with Franz via same “Pump it up” rationale, but more exotic and not to be confused with a Green Acres pig (though there could be advantages to that….).
Although I believe that your pump is a boy, Sally is not off the table. Jennifer used to name all of her new stuffed animals Sally. If your said “Sally” in a loud voice it was likely that several bears, dogs, hippos, etc. would perk up.
Gary is so sweet to give me so much credit. I’m just doing what I always do–take notes, make lists, plan, organize. Fortunately, that’s just what I do naturally in the physical plane.
Now the metaphysical–that’s a major personal growth area for me in all of this.
As for names, I had thought of Fred but as Gary points we might get confused with the male duck who is often in our yard. Or is he maybe a mosquitoe in disguise?
Jeffx – I’ll put Arnold and Franz on the list of contenders. The only one who doesn’t seem to know Anne is a hero is Anne herself.
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Marcia – Ok, Sally is back on the table. If the pump ends up with that name I’ll keep an eye out to see is stuffed animals perk up when she makes her periodic noises.
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Anne – Just because you always do it doesn’t make it any less wonderful. It’s the main thing that is keeping me relatively sane.
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Everyone – I appreciate everyone’s suggestions. In spite of my original reservations, I am currently slightly leaning towards Percy.
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The chemo is a nasty concoction that is immensely dangerous to cancer cells. It occurs to me that a wimpy name like Percy, or Percival, might lull the cancer cells into a false sense of security, making them even more vulnerable for destruction.
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A special thanks to Judy for the suggestion of the name Percy. More suggestions are welcome. This is too important a decision to be made without lots of consultation.
Percy made me think of Perry, which happens to rhyme with Gary. Upon looking up the meaning of the name, I found this:
A traveler or “wanderer”. Originates from the name “Peregrine”.
Perry might be an appropriate name for a pump, which will be wandering around with you wherever you go. So, would Puppy for that matter. 😀
Anne, Anne, Anne… please don’t sell yourself short. As a spouse, the value of your love and support is priceless. My oncologist once told me how rare it actually was that my husband accompanied me to my treatments. She said that the majority of cancer patients go it alone with no one accompanying them to their treatments and/or no family to support them. So, like it or not, you are, in a sense, very much your husband’s heroine and protector.
Perry might be worth considering. Puppy seems a bit too warm and fuzzy for a hunk of technology. Besides, before this is over I might feel serious animosity towards this machine. I’d hate to have the word association spill over into my feelings towards puppies. I love puppies. At least when they belong to someone else.
In keeping with things arthurian and magical, perhaps Merlin would be an acceptable name for the pump. Technology often being perceived as magic as is mythology confused with history.
I might consider shaving my head in solidarity. Does that sort of thing inspire people? If knowlege that people are drinking beer in your honor is helpful, I may be your patron saint. Here’s to few side effects, great benefits and good beer.
A kid shaving his head in solidarity worked really well on the “Dougie Houser, MD” TV show that was aired in the early 90’s. I don’t know if the gesture has had any popularity since then. Knowing people are making beer toasts to my health would be extremely helpful. Local micro brews would be preferable, but any good beer will do.
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I’ll add Merlin to the list of possibilities. At the moment I’m not experiencing the pump as a magical device, but that could change. Thanks for the suggestion.
I’ve known Anne for at least 55 years. Yeah, she’s organized, takes notes, makes plans, and does all kinds of things for others with a great deal of grace. You’re a lucky guy on that front! But on the name thing, I can’t help but think there is a really creative (male) name out there that begins with the letter P. I’ll enlist Hugo’s help if you’re still accepting suggestions. I’m glad to know your first day with this stuff streaming through you was not unbearable.
I am still taking pump name suggestions. A creative one that starts with P would be welcome. The stuff streaming through my system wasn’t bad at all at first. It’s starting to get a bit more challenging now. We’ll see what tomorrow brings. Thanks for the kind words about Anne. They are so obviously true. I don’t know what I would do without her.
OK, I’m basking in all this adoration but it’s getting awfully thick. To counter that, I want to acknowledge that when Linda and I sat at the same table in first grade 55 years ago, I was not taking notes, planning, or organizing. My recollection is that Linda and I were blowing bubbles in our milk cartons, and then when they were empty we wrapped them in our napkins and “gave” them to Mrs. McGillicuddy, the waste basket. (You probably had to have been there…)
As Anne’s younger sister, I believe that, in the spirit of full disclosure, I should mention that if you don’t do what she tells you to she holds a magic bead over your head and makes you.
And, she is a hero.
Here are my final suggestions respectively submitted for the pump-with-no-name, which will hopefully have a name before the next nine weeks are over.
Piper – The pump is definitely playing with your pipes. No further explanation needed.
Picard or (Sir) Patrick – Not only because of the character, Captain Jean-Luc Picard, who was assimilated by the Borg and managed to successfully break free of the collective, but also in honor of the actor, Patrick Stewart, who was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II at Buckingham Palace this past Wednesday.
It’s true about all my stuffed animals being named Sally. And also about your wife and her magic bead wielding ways.
Fortunately your mother stole the magic bead, or it got lost, before I married Aunt Anne. No one should have that kind of power over a spouse, or a little sister.