Part 1: How are you doing

As promised, here is the "How are you doing?" post. I'm doing better than expected and that is saying a lot. Today is going to be all about side effects. After 3 months (almost) of Nexavar, what are my side effects.

1. Dry, itchy skin. I am naturally a dry skin person. The pills make things worse but it is very manageable. I read online to not use normal soap or shampoo. I use baby body wash to keep my skin moister. I was using baby shampoo but I couldn't get my hair as clean as I wanted. I probably need to switch back.
   
   I think the hard part is that clothes (jeans are my enemy) rub against my dry skin. I'm constantly finding places where my skin is rubbed a little raw. It's not so bad. I use lotion and/or Vaseline to keep those areas moist until it clears up.
   
2. Hand & Foot. No, this is not hand and mouth or whatever that cow disease is. It means my hands and feet are dry. My hands are at an almost cracking state (ouch). Since I'm allergic to everything, I use Vaseline at night. I put it on my feet and then put on these big dietetic socks. Then I lube up my hands and stick them into gloves. It's sexy. Trust me. During the day, I moisturize with Aveeno Daily Moisture lotion. 
   
   Side note about Vaseline: I go thru one big tub of Vaseline a month. The downside is that the grease from it is staining clothing. It's worth it, but at the end of all of this we are going to have to buy new sheets.
   
3. Blisters. I've been wearing flats everywhere and I love my heels. In fact, aside from my running shoes, I didn't even own a single pair of flats until I started the drugs. My feet hurt (part of #2). I have blisters on the bottoms of my feet and while they hurt if I walk around bare foot, they don't bother me. I've always had thick callouses on my feet. Take that meds! 
    
4. Thinning Hair.  I suppose this item goes with #1 from above. My scalp is red and brushing my hair hurts. Any time I get stuck on a little tangle and pull, the whole clump of tangled hair falls out. I have so much hair that this doesn't bother me. As mentioned earlier, I should probably go back to baby shampoo.

Honestly, those are my old side effects. They are barely noticeable and are so much better than the methotrexate/vinblastine evil drugs.