Good evening, dear reader. Today struck me like the opening phrases of A Tale of Two Cities, which is to say that there were high points and low points. Not unlike any other day, I suppose; yet somehow this one managed to be rather taxing. I would like to thank those readers who offered help, advice, and encouragement in dealing with all the side effects that have waylaid me over the past week. Your support, your thoughts, and your kind words are all truly invaluable.

To clarify a set of details from yesterday – there were several concerned comments – the medication that I have been taking that contains acetaminophen is a concentrated blend of that painkiller and hydrocodone (Lortab). Each 15mL (1 Tablespoon) dose contains 7.5mg of hydrocodone and 500mg of acetaminophen. The prescribed dosage for me is 30mL every four hours; so, doing the math, that works out to 5000mg of acetaminophen per day (assuming I sleep at least a bit and force myself to forgo that sixth dose, which I try to do). Yeah, that’s a lot. Last week was when I realized just how much I was taking; I brought the whole thing to my radiation oncologist’s attention then and told him that I was hesitant about that much daily use of the drug. It was during that visit that I was prescribed the Fentanyl patch; he did so at the lowest dose possible (25mcg/hr) to test both my reaction and the drug’s effectiveness. However, he also instructed me to continue taking the Lortab at the same dosage for the time being.

As of today, my dosage of the Fentanyl has been increased to 50mcg/hr. I haven’t yet noticed a real difference, but the pharmaceutical documentation seems to indicate (assuming I’m reading it correctly) that the drug takes 24 to 48 hours to saturate one’s system; so perhaps I will notice something at the higher dose tomorrow. This still doesn’t address my concern about possible damage to my liver, but once we find a level of this new medication that remains effective, I’ll bring it up again and see if we can’t reduce the dosage or replace the Lortab completely with some alternative medication that is less risky. I like my liver; he’s always been good to me (though I suppose I can’t say the same is true in reverse – sorry, Liver), and I’d rather like to keep him. Yes, I just anthropomorphized my liver. His name is Kevin. What?

Work today passed in a busy blur. I spent much of the day working with colleague on the creation of some video materials; I’ll finish filming the first set tomorrow and then spend a couple of days editing and encoding. This will be one of the more enjoyable projects that I’ve had the opportunity to manage since I returned to the office. I had actually begun planning of the project a month or so before I went into the hospital; of course, according to the original plans, I was to spend at least part of the time in front of the camera instead of being always behind it. For now, however, the plans must change. Give me six to nine months, and then we’ll see if I can’t change things up a bit. In all, I’m satisfied with my current role, so I won’t complain.

In retrospect, perhaps the best of times, worst of times comparison was a bit melodramatic and/or all in my head. Maybe it’s the higher dosage of medication; I’m off somehow and haven’t yet realized it. I’m not sure. Perhaps there will be more clarity tomorrow.

Until then, take care of each other.

Peace be with you.