Radiation report and hair

So here's the short of it,
Today was a "normal" radiation treatment; I'm stinky; and my hair is barely beginning to grow back. 


And here's the long

Today's radiation treatment is more like what will be normal.  I arrived at the cancer center at 2:00 and I was called back at about 5 minutes after.  I got changed - the command is internalized by now - "take off everything from the waist up and put on the gown open in the front".  By the time I walked into the treatment room, they had the table set up for me.  My body mold was on the table and my special knee pad and back pad were in place.  I got onto the table - oh yea, that next command take your left arm out of the gown - and got into the position.  The two technicians spent about 10 or 15 minutes getting my body positioned just right and getting my marks refreshed.  I asked them to explain it to me since I have to have my head tilted up.  There is a laser inside the machine which shines down onto my chest.  They have to line it up exactly with the marks on my chest.  And of course, they use the tattoos to show where they put those center marks.  They are like really big plus signs in permanent black marker.  They use this to set up what they call SSD "Source to Skin Distance".  They actually have a physics department where part of the planning takes place and gives them the numbers they use or maybe confirms them.  Once again, as they positioned me, sometimes it seemed that they weren't moving anything but my skin. Oh yeah, I had my arms above my head the whole time.  I can do 10 or 15 minutes with my arms above my head with no problem!  Then they did the two radiation treatments.  I have to lie very, very still and they blast me for a few seconds on the right side; then they come back and set the machine up for treating me from the left.  Then it's all over and I can leave.  I was sitting back in my car at 2:27, and was back at work before 3:00.  Right now this is seeming really doable!  Tomorrow and every Wednesday, I'll have my Herceptin infusion up on the 5th floor after I get finished.  It looks like I may even have time to stop for a Starbucks afterwards since there's one in the lobby almost on the way from one office to another.

One more radiation report.  I'm not allowed to wash "the area" with soap nor can I wear deodorant.  I don't think that part will be too fun for me.  I've been thinking today about the dress shields I remember the "older girls" and women wearing when I was a youngster.  Then I remembered my Texas friend commenting in the early days of the blog.  I had written about my tape allergy and how uncomfortable I was and the brilliant suggestion from my surgeon about using maxi pads for bandages.  Her comment had to do with the hundreds of uses for pantyliners or maxi pads - so I'm thinking I'm going to try using pantyliners as dress shields.  They are disposable; they have adhesive, so they'll stick to my clothes already; and I still have some left from before.  I'll see how that works with the stinky problem.  I suppose over the next 7 weeks, I'll become better acquainted with my natural smell.  

My last chemo treatment was several weeks ago, and I can begin to see some hair coming back on my head.  It's mostly just real tight stubble that isn't growing very fast at all, but I have about 8 hairs on my head that are trying to grow.  They might be 1/8th of an inch long.  I really don't mind not having hair in terms of not having to shampoo or fix my hair before I go somewhere - but my head is perpetually cold without my hair.  I've become pretty attached to my toboggans and the felt caps Mom brought me.