My Blog

A lot has happened since my last post!! I finished chemo. I had a lumpectomy. I found out that I had a lot of precancerous cells. I had a mastectomy. Now I'm in recovery. So I went to 2 doctors today. Everything is looking good. I will be starting radiation in the beginning of April. I'm excited about entering the final stages of my treatment. I'm also scared because this is a new phase of my treatment, and here again, I'm facing the unknown. Needless to say, these last few months have been an emotional and physical rollercoaster. I'm just ready for all of this to be over.

I want to thank everyone who donated to my cause. That includes my family, coworkers, and long time friends. Every little bit helps, and because of you all, I was able to pay to have my mastectomy. My insurance company isn't paying a dime until I meet my $3000 deductible. I'm halfway there.

For more updates, visit www.youtube.com/cancerlady78. 

It's been a while since I last posted. A lot has been going on in my life. I'm still working. Football season for my kids ended. Now, I'm having dental issues to go along with my cancer. If anyone has ever had a toothache, you know it's some of the worst pain you could ever experience. Try hosting Thanksgiving dinner while having a toothache. Needless to say, I spent my Thanksgiving in bed while everyone else was enjoying the festivities at my house. I gotta give a big "Thank You" to my husband's cousin, Kim. She came by the house early to set up and get all the food ready. Couldn't have made it without her.

Anyway, because of my toothache, I had to skip one of my chemo sessions. Now I'm a week behind. That's ok, though, because it felt good not to have to deal with that for at least that week. I also found out that my surgery will likely be scheduled for February. I wouldn't mind that except for the fact that that means I have to go back to work after the Christmas break. It is getting extremely hard to get up and go to...

Today I started my new set of treatment. It seemed like I was in that doctors office forever. I only received on chemo medicine and I was in there longer than I was when I was receiving three!! But I gotta tell ya, I am feeling pretty good right now. It's been several hours since my treatment and I am feeling no nausea! I even ate something and still don't feel sick. I do feel tired, though. But I'll take that because it gives me an excuse to do nothing. To make matters even better, I think my hair is starting to make a comeback! I can't be  totally sure, but I am looking a bit fuzzy up top. My youngest agreed while she was petting the top of my head.

So things are looking up! Stay tuned for more updates or visit cancerlady78 on youtube. 

Thanks for you support! 

I know it's been a while since my last post, but I've been busy, busy, busy. I've been constantly going between work, kids' football/cheerleading, and doctors. It has been quite a month!

So, anyway, I have hit a milestone with my cancer treatments. I am finished with my 2-day chemo cycles!! Those were the harshest of my treatments, according to my doctor. Now I will be going once every week. I am about 12 weeks away from surgery. My last couple of ultrasounds showed my cancerous masses shrinking in size, which proves that the chemo is working. Sometimes, knowing that is the only that keeps me going to treatment.

Thanks to everyone who has been keeping me in their thoughts and prayers. I can feel the effects!

A big THANK YOU to my sis-in-law Candy and her husband for taking up donations for my cause. Thanks to them, I was able to pay for my antinausea medication for my treatment and the ultrasound copay. I love you guys.

Tags: breast cancer, cancer, candles, candles for cancer, chemotherapy, radiation therapy, treasures, trinkets, trinkets and treasures

I had treatment the same  day I went back to work. I really didn't think I would be able to handle being at work after the treatment, but I did well. The treatment didn't have as much as an effect on me this time as it did the last time. I ate more and I had more energy. There were times when I didn't feel too great, but I worked through it. So I am excited about being able to work until it's time for my surgery.

In other news, I had an ultrasound last week. I'm feeling confident that I will receive good news from my doctor. For those of you that don't know what news I'm hoping to hear, I hope to hear that the cancerous mass is shrinking. I feel like it is, so I'm quite confident.

Well, I gotta do some more school shopping for my kids. So, until next time...

Wow! I have been feeling good this last week and a half! I feel like me again. I don't think this feeling is going to last too long seeing as how I have another treatment this week. I am certainly not looking forward to that. Especially since I go back to work on the same day. At this point, I'm not even sure that I'll be able to work. It was so hard recovering after my last treatment. I didn't have the energy to deal with my own kids. How am I going to deal with someone else's? Luckily, I'll only have to sit through workshops and trainings for the first week. That should let me know if I'll even be able to get out of the bed to go to work. I am preparing my self to take a leave of absence if necessary. Hopefully, it won't come to that.

In other news, I'm losing my hair. It wasn't as devastating as I thought it would be at first. It was only a little more hair getting tangled in the comb. That wasn't so bad. Now, it seems like every time I run the comb through my hair, half of...

Well, here it is; a week after my first treatment. I can say that I'm feeling pretty good (finally). It has been a rough week. Sitting there receiving the medications was the easy part. The after-effects were horrible. A few hours after I got home, all the energy I had left my body. All I could do was sleep, and I remember feeling so heavy. It took every effort I could give to even move. The next several days were not too much better. While I could move, I just didn't have the energy to do it. I moved from my bed, to the recliner in my living room, to the couch. Every time I tried to do something productive, like combing my daughter's hair, I would just feel exhausted. And to think, I have 6 months of this!

The good news is, my doctor says I will feel better if I eat and drink like I need to. After taking her advice today, I am feeling pretty good. I know that this is going to be a very difficult time for me and my family, but I am on the road to recovery. Despite all the tears that I shed...

I have taken my first official step towards my treatment for cancer. On Friday, I had a port surgically implanted under the skin of my chest. If you know anything about me, which I'm sure most of you don't, then you know that I am not a fan of surgical procedures. I have a fear of being put to sleep. You should have seen how I freaked out last year when I had my wisdom teeth surgically removed.

Anyway, I was quite impressed at how I handled this situation. My husband, who is very aware of my fear (he tried to comfort me at the dentist's office last year), suggested that I let the doctors know about my fear. I did. They were so understanding. They explained everything to me and gave me some options to help me feel more in control of the situation. In fact, they gave me something to "relax" me. The funny thing is, I don't remember anything after that. I just remember waking up in the recovery room. Now it's two days later, and I'm still in some minor pain. I just keep thinking about going through chemotherapy, which I will be starting this coming...

I have finally completed all my staging scans. They say that I am at stage IIIA. That means that the mass in my breast is large and that the cancer is in a nearby lymph node. At this stage, the cancer is still considered curable.

Anyway, with the staging process complete, it's time for me to start treatment. The first step is for me to get a port inserted into my chest for chemotherapy and bloodwork. It's an outpatient surgical procedure. Since my treatment is officially underway, I decided it was time to tell my children what is going on. I could barely get the word "cancer" out of my mouth before my son, 9, started crying. I don't think he really knows anything about cancer other than it's not a good thing to have. Then my youngest daughter, 7, started crying. My husband and I tried to reassure them that I would be ok, but they were not trying to hear that. My oldest, 11, stayed strong. Looking at her helped me keep my emotions together. That was really the hardest thing I ever had to do. That was harder than actually hearing that I have cancer. Now it's done and the...

Tags: breast cancer, cancer, candles, candles for cancer, chemotherapy, radiation therapy, treasures, trinkets, trinkets and treasures