I am at the doctor’s office for my follow up visit to the chemo treatments.  I got blood work done at the office then I went back to see the doctor.  The doctor went over the results and informed me that my white count is low.  He stated that the chemo will make your white blood count low.  He informed me that I would be getting vitamins to bring it up.  The vitamin is called nuprogen.  In order to raise my white count I would have to give myself the nuprogen by way of injection.  He sent his nurse in to show me how it’s done.  I was very nervous about having to give myself a needle.  The nurse told me that I could use my upper thigh, stomach or upper arms for the injection.  She showed me how to squeeze my upper thigh and inject the needle till all the medicine was gone from the syringe.  I was told I would be giving myself and injection every day for three weeks. I would then come back in and have my blood checked again.  I could not get chemo until my white count goes back up.  These shots would help to raise my white blood count back up to where it should be.  After the nurse showed me how to do it, it was my turn.  I had grabbed the fatty part of my thigh and stuck the needle in and then pulled it back out.  The nurse explained to me that I was supposed to leave the needle in and then push down on the syringe to inject the medicine.  I had to try again and this time I did it right.  I was given two boxes filled with the nuprogen syringes and a red plastic box so I could dispose of the needles. 

I went home and had to explain to my husband and family that I had to give myself these shots in order to go back to getting treatment.  I had realized, injecting  the needle into my thigh would get easier each time I did it.  I was into the second week of giving myself the nuprogen and I started to get awful pain in my upper thighs. The pain was so bad I could not even walk up the stairs to go to bed.  I had to sleep on the couch at night. I had been using my thighs for the injection switching back and forth between the two.  I had called the oncology nurse and she told me the pain was from the shot and that I can use my stomach or my arms.  For some reason I could not see myself injecting a needle into my stomach.  I had to get someone to inject the needle into my arms.  I had asked my mother in law if she would be willing to give me the injections.  I trusted her and she had offered to help me in any way she could.  My mother in law was working for this large company at the time and they had a nurse on site.  She had asked the nurse to show her how to give injections.  My mother in law practiced on oranges with a syringe the nurse at her job gave her.  I felt very confident the day she came over to inject me.  I only had a weeks’ worth of injections left and then it would be off to the doctor’s office to get my blood count rechecked. The injections must have worked because my white count went up enough that I could get treatment.