What was it like starting and experiencing chemo?

Chemo is the f*cking worst. I am 10+ year cancer survivor (my story is on After Cancer Club and on Quora here on how I was diagnosed with cancer) and this is how I would describe what it was like to experience chemo:

1) You are diagnosed with cancer and the doctor tells you that you will need chemo. I had 4 rounds of chemo (5 days a week for 8hrs per day = 1 round) but at first this was my reaction when he told me:

2) Then I showed up for chemo my first day, had my new port. My doctor and nurses were pretty much dressed up like this when this medicine with a toxic sign was on the bag:

3) I started feeling sick from the chemo at various points during my treatment. I remember being on the phone with my dad after my first treatment and putting my hand on my head and my hair started falling out:

4) Then I started to get side affects such as thrush, lost taste and felt ringing in my ears. This is how I felt about it when talking with my sister and brother:

5) After my 4th round I truly felt like a cancer patient. I had no hair, my face was swollen and I was exhausted at my sister’s bday:

Today: The truth is that chemo crushed me physically and mentally at times but it was key in saving my life. A big reason we started After Cancer Club is to help anyone that is going through cancer and needs support. Chemo is a true battle and you need an army to make it through. The picture below was taken with my wife 10 years later at Katz deli in NYC together