The nurse came by last night to help me do my first treatment at home. She attached an extension line to the part that is hanging out at the top in the picture (see it here) so I can easily reach it with my right hand.
The infusion is pretty easy to do. My meds were delivered by the pharmacy via an overnight delivery (they’re refrigerated) along with all of the supplies. Other than lots of sterilizing and cleaning, I basically have to remember SASH – saline, antibiotic, saline, heparin. That’s the order that I do everything. From start to finish, it took about 40 minutes. The actual drip takes about 30 minutes so I’m sure it will get a little faster as I figure out what I’m doing.
She was surprised at the way they sent me the medication. She said most people can’t get their insurance company to approve it. It basically is like a little ball and it’s pressurized so I don’t have to have an IV pole or anything like that. I just hook it up and it runs through on its own.
She gave me a phone number to call tonight to talk to a nurse so she can walk me through it over the phone to make sure I remember all of the steps.
Within about 45 minutes after I finished the treatment last night, my head got very woozy and I felt like I had a sudden onset of the flu. I know what that is – another herx! I didn’t expect it to start so quickly so it caught me off guard. I have felt pretty bad today and while I have vacation time and could technically take off, I don’t want to use it this early in the year, especially without know what may lie ahead.
As far as how the PICC line feels, it is very weird. I feel like someone is squeezing my arm and I can feel where the line is from my arm into my chest. I can basically trace it out for you. If I try to lay on my side, I get that little heart flutter so I’m assuming it’s making the line move when I switch positions. Very uncomfortable – doesn’t take me but a second to switch positions to make that stop!
Everyone says I will get used to the line and not really notice that it’s there any more. I’m more worried about the adhesive allergy. The nurse is going to check on some other coverings we can try to use as well.
And last, washing my hair is going to be a challenge! I can’t get my arm wet so taking a shower is out and it will be difficult for me to flip my head over the tub and manage to keep my arm dry. I called my hair stylist and she said it would be $25 to wash and dry it. A few people at work called their stylist for me as well and the cheapest we found was $20. Being that I would have to go a MINIMUM of twice a week (should really be 3-4 times), there’s no way we can do that. So my husband is going to be a sweetheart and wash it for me.
It’s about time to do infusion #2….