Where's My Web-Slinging Action? Adjusting After Radioactive Iodine Treatment
Where's my web-slinging action? I asked my husband on our way home from getting my radioactive iodine treatment last Friday.
"Maybe it comes with time?" he answered.
I admit, we both secretly hoped that I'd suddenly find myself with some new superpower--even if it was small or only temporary. Or at the very least, I expected that I'd feel something.
But the fact was, if it weren't for the fact that I remember taking the capsule that came in the scary lead package at the hospital and the fact that my doctor sent me home with explicit instructions to avoid public spaces and close contact with others, and follow specific rules of hygiene for the next 72 hours, I might not have known that anything had happened at all.
That's right: for those who are wondering, like I did: will I feel any different? In my case, the answer was a resounding "no". I didn't get sick, I didn't get any neck or jaw pain, and I didn't feel all glowy. Nothing. It's been life as normal--except I had to be alone a lot for the first three days.
But my husband and I made the best of it: he made me special food for some meals and brought in fun take-out that we never have for others. We picniced in areas of the house we never dine--me in one of the rooms we'd set aside for my semi-isolation and he in the hall outside of it. We took walks each day...I just stood a little further away from he and the dog than I usually do. He camped out on the couch and I got to remember what it was like to sleep in a bed alone again (I didn't kick anyone!), and it actually felt a bit like years ago when we were dating (and it made us miss each other all that much more, which is always a good thing for any relationship).
So I didn't get superpowers. But when you compare it to the alternatives (getting sick from radiation or having to recover from surgery), I really think I got off okay.
"Maybe it comes with time?" he answered.
I admit, we both secretly hoped that I'd suddenly find myself with some new superpower--even if it was small or only temporary. Or at the very least, I expected that I'd feel something.
But the fact was, if it weren't for the fact that I remember taking the capsule that came in the scary lead package at the hospital and the fact that my doctor sent me home with explicit instructions to avoid public spaces and close contact with others, and follow specific rules of hygiene for the next 72 hours, I might not have known that anything had happened at all.
That's right: for those who are wondering, like I did: will I feel any different? In my case, the answer was a resounding "no". I didn't get sick, I didn't get any neck or jaw pain, and I didn't feel all glowy. Nothing. It's been life as normal--except I had to be alone a lot for the first three days.
But my husband and I made the best of it: he made me special food for some meals and brought in fun take-out that we never have for others. We picniced in areas of the house we never dine--me in one of the rooms we'd set aside for my semi-isolation and he in the hall outside of it. We took walks each day...I just stood a little further away from he and the dog than I usually do. He camped out on the couch and I got to remember what it was like to sleep in a bed alone again (I didn't kick anyone!), and it actually felt a bit like years ago when we were dating (and it made us miss each other all that much more, which is always a good thing for any relationship).
So I didn't get superpowers. But when you compare it to the alternatives (getting sick from radiation or having to recover from surgery), I really think I got off okay.
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