We celebrated a 16th birthday this weekend! Sofia wanted to go to the same lovely spa hotel that she went to last year, and we took 2 of her friends with us. When I had booked it a few weeks ago, I wasn’t sure if I would be feeling well enough to drive to the hotel (25 minutes away) or even well enough to go for the night. Thankfully, I have been feeling reasonably well this weekend. So far the only side effects I have are tiredness, slight loss of taste and a swollen throat. I know it is going to get a lot worse so I’m happy to have this time of relative normality.
However, I can confirm there is very little joy in visiting a spa hotel during treatment for tonsil cancer. I was not able to use the spa facilities (no pool or outdoor wood-fired hot tub for me), nor have any treatments (massage and facials out of the question, pedicure just about allowed but no leg massage). To add insult to injury, I also can’t drink, so I had to watch forlornly as just about everyone around me in spa seemed to gleefully order several glasses of champagne, and corks were popped aplenty at dinner, while I sat with my sickly sweet mocktail trying not to scream, cry and punch them all. The final nail in the coffin was having to sleep in a springy plastic-sheeted kids bed while Sofia and friends took the master bed (it was her 16th birthday after all) but then proceeded to stay up until 2am chatting, banging doors and generally being noisy teenagers, so I have returned from the ‘blissful spa break’ feeling broken. I may as well have been drinking tequila shots at an all night club in Ibiza. Frazzled.
All that said, Sofia had a great time and I would do it all again for that reason alone. Except maybe next time somewhere like Butlins, where they can be noisy all night. And maybe don’t bother with the fancy dinner. And maybe Rich can take them! But otherwise, it was perfect 😊
This evening, I have had another gift from Rich and the girls. I am being given one for each week of treatment, and this week I will be moving into week 3. The first week I was given a morse code bracelet saying ‘F*** cancer’ – very appropriate to start treatment. Last week an amazing Diptyque room spray in my favourite Baies scent. And then today I had a brilliant wedge pillow for when the mucus starts to come in thick and fast and I can’t both breathe and lie flat at the same time. So much to look forward to - watch this space!
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