Never thought I'd want to be a breast cancer survivor
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So far so good
Read more: So far so goodWith this chemo regime I take steriod pills and anti nausea pills for three days – the day before chemo, chemo day, and the following day. This means that for days 1 and 2 I’m pretty hyper. My neighbours and friends notices that I talk faster and move faster – but by mid afternoon of…
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I miss my mom – and my first treatment
Read more: I miss my mom – and my first treatmentI didn’t really expect that sensation to hit. Last night I realized that one of the things that I was missing this time around is my mom. When I was first diagnosed the recurrence, I was glad to not have to tell her. That was one of the hardest things I had to do. But…
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Dates
Read more: DatesThe first time around, I found that I knew every date – the date of my diagnosis (June 12), first chemo (July 7), last chemo (Oct 30), first surgery (Nov 19), second surgery (Dec 17), third surgery (Mar 17) … this time, I have not been paying attention to dates. They don’t matter to me.…
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Ported
Read more: PortedYesterday morning, before the sun, we got up and drove to the local hospital (only a five minute drive) for my port surgery. This time, hubby just dropped me off – he came to pick me up in recovery, but there was no point in him waiting in prep as I was the first patient…
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Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday – busy times
Read more: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday – busy timesIt is interesting that when I look back on my first diagnosis, I was blogging daily – sometimes multiple times per day. I haven’t been doing that this time. Part of it is because I’ve fallen out of the habit of writing, something that I want to get back into. I do have some crazy…
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A surprise diagnosis
Read more: A surprise diagnosisThe oncologist appointment finally came Oct 10 – just after Thanksgiving. Since this was an in person appointment, it meant driving up to Halifax. We took the opportunity to book a hotel and spend the night, knowing that we had some shopping we wanted to do in the city. Shortly after the oncologist got into…
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Quality of my remaining life
Read more: Quality of my remaining lifeI have been thinking a lot lately about the quality of my remaining life, and how that might be affected by chemo. Please don’t say to me “you’ve gone this before, you can do it again”. Those seem to be the worst words I can hear right now. I don’t want a repeat of what…
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Self-care and setbacks
Read more: Self-care and setbacksI’m staying at a friends place, watching her dog (who is Cali’s bestie). It has been nice to be a little bit away from the chaos and I’ve been sleeping really well. Making coffee the other day I had a bit of a mishap. My forearm when over the steam of the kettle and I…
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The in-between space
Read more: The in-between spaceI’m living in the in-between space and it causes me to get anxiety that I sometimes cannot control. It is the waiting time, not knowing what will happen in my short term future. Part of the challenge with that is, when you are diagnosed with cancer, your future becomes your short term future. It becomes…
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Today I went for a hike
Read more: Today I went for a hikeMy friend and I hiked around Indian Garden Farms. We have done it many times – but only once this year. We really haven’t been hiking much this year in part because the weather has been terrible, and in part because I’ve been spending most of my days painting. I really felt the need for…
