August 2010...anyone starting chemo besides me?!
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Good evening warriors-
We are having *THE* best weather in the Northeast! Today was probably the nicest day of the entire year. I went to my niece's graduation tonight and it was just so beautiful and nice to see the blue sky, barely any clouds and nice, dry air! Oh, what a beautiful day and an even more beautiful night.
OMG...I had HAIR success today! I used my Sebastian "Get A Grip" as I stopped whining and started styling (as my B(gay)FF Greg told me!) and it worked! The stuff is like glue but when it dries, it holds and your hair stays soft. I also finished it off with a little Sebastian Polish and it actually looked nice. More to this point, I am thinking when it grows about another inch (1 more year!) I will actually keep it short. I spiked it on top and smoothed it on the sides. For the first time in months, I felt human. I actually put on make up and jewelry and I started to feel like my old self again....it was nice !
BTW, here is a link to "Get A Grip" in case anyone wants to try it: http://www.amazon.com/SEBASTIAN-LAMINATES-Get-Grip-5-1/dp/B003IHJNVO
Calamtykel: what happened today? Any results? I was really looking forward to hearing from you. Perhaps you are knocked out from all your water riding and subsequent begging the children to stay at the amusement park and allow you to keep sliding!
I seriously hope all is well. Please let us know when you find out.
Sptmm: Deb...I love the Belly Dancing DVD! It is great! Yes, it sure does help to get the hips moving. In fact, I am doing it tomorrow and looking forward to it.
Psychovegetative seems like psychobabble!Texas: I did not mean to be insensitive...I am sorry. You are NED anyway so you are officially stage NOTHING! The very best of the stages! I am sorry.. I just meant you would have company Please disregard...I feel bad now. The last thing I want to do is make you feel bad...you know I am always joking! I am sorry.
Omaz: that is great news about your friend. I mean it is good and bad news! Great that the uterine was non-aggressive and doing the CT scan caught the kidney but, of course, bad that she has any masses at all. Are you ever just dumbfounded at the surreptitious nature of this disease? Where the hell does it come from and why does it keep setting up camp in human beings and animals. I mean, we know it is in domestic pets but what about those in the wild? Surely they are dying of cancer and we don't even know it. It is a very strange situation and I wonder when/if they will call it an epidemic. It is very much a worldwide disease. It is all so weird. You know how they say your "questions" will be answered in the end? I wonder if, when I expire, will I find out what causes cancer!? I know, that is a very odd train of thought but I can't help it! This disease makes one really wonder.
I am tired and should be getting to bed now before the "workers" come over tomorrow and start making noise tomorrow!
Happy trails, all-
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Good evening warriors-
We are having *THE* best weather in the Northeast! Today was probably the nicest day of the entire year. I went to my niece's graduation tonight and it was just so beautiful and nice to see the blue sky, barely any clouds and nice, dry air! Oh, what a beautiful day and an even more beautiful night.
OMG...I had HAIR success today! I used my Sebastian "Get A Grip" as I stopped whining and started styling (as my B(gay)FF Greg told me!) and it worked! The stuff is like glue but when it dries, it holds and your hair stays soft. I also finished it off with a little Sebastian Polish and it actually looked nice. More to this point, I am thinking when it grows about another inch (1 more year!) I will actually keep it short. I spiked it on top and smoothed it on the sides. For the first time in months, I felt human. I actually put on make up and jewelry and I started to feel like my old self again....it was nice !
BTW, here is a link to "Get A Grip" in case anyone wants to try it: http://www.amazon.com/SEBASTIAN-LAMINATES-Get-Grip-5-1/dp/B003IHJNVO
Calamtykel: what happened today? Any results? I was really looking forward to hearing from you. Perhaps you are knocked out from all your water riding and subsequent begging the children to stay at the amusement park and allow you to keep sliding!
I seriously hope all is well. Please let us know when you find out.
Sptmm: Deb...I love the Belly Dancing DVD! It is great! Yes, it sure does help to get the hips moving. In fact, I am doing it tomorrow and looking forward to it.
Psychovegetative seems like psychobabble!Texas: I did not mean to be insensitive...I am sorry. You are NED anyway so you are officially stage NOTHING! The very best of the stages! I am sorry.. I just meant you would have company Please disregard...I feel bad now
The last thing I want to do is make you feel bad...you know I am always joking! I am sorry.Omaz: that is great news about your friend. I mean it is good and bad news! Great that the uterine was non-aggressive and doing the CT scan caught the kidney but, of course, bad that she has any masses at all. Are you ever just dumbfounded at the surreptitious nature of this disease? Where the hell does it come from and why does it keep setting up camp in human beings and animals. I mean, we know it is in domestic pets but what about those in the wild? Surely they are dying of cancer and we don't even know it. It is a very strange situation and I wonder when/if they will call it an epidemic. It is very much a worldwide disease. It is all so weird. You know how they say your "questions" will be answered in the end? I wonder if, when I expire, will I find out what causes cancer!? I know, that is a very odd train of thought but I can't help it! This disease makes one really wonder.
I am tired and should be getting to bed now before the "workers" come over tomorrow and start making noise tomorrow!
Happy trails, all-
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Hi all - no results yet - the office is closed on Thursdays - I forgot. I'm on my way to take the cat to get spayed at 8am, and I may be out for much of the day so I'll have to try to leave a msg at some point for him to call me. Hoping if they didn't call that makes all is okay, but who knows......I've had no more spotting or anything, but feel like I'm about to get my period any second! Time to stay on my Zen supplements or I get pms wacky!
Spent the day taking my mom and kids to a great farm out in PA. They do all their own grass fed beef and pork. Just amazingly good! They make their own hot dogs and bacon, etc. Nothing artificial; no hormones or any of that stuff, and they had pick your own organic blueberries for $2 a lb.
Meanwhile I continue to battle the gray fox that keeps stealing my chickens. going to try to call the county game commission today - the woman who runs the farm suggested that since the fox is arriving during the day that it might be ill and the game commission might come and take charge here. We'll have to see!
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Just called for the results. I'm pretty much totally a wreck now. funny how i didn't think much about it all week - now that I've thrown the ball in the doctor's court; left a msg for him to call me back - now I'm flipping out.
I told them he can leave a msg since I'm planning on maybe going outside......UGH!! I was driving this morning and thinking about all the things that could be wrong - why do we do this to ourselves?? I think once you get that diagnosis, you've got a scar that doesn't seem to heal as far as being scared of test results..........
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Hey all - he called me back within 10 minutes. First though "Oh crap - he called right away and not at the end of the day like the nurse said he would!"
But all is fine -- the lining's perfect - no cancerous or precancerous cells and the pap came back good.WOOT! I'm relieved........................................!
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Calamtykel: ******CONGRATULATIONS!!!!!!!******* The absolute best news! I am so very happy for you. Yes, I too go down the "worst case scenario" highway. It is natural and it is not being negative but rather being realistic, as we patiently wait, as to how bad news might affect our lives. I think it is practical to run down some "what ifs" in these situations. Plus I also think it helps prepare us for bad news.
It is all good, Kel!!! Now go out, enjoy this beautiful day and have a wonderful weekend! We have dodged another bullet! WOOT indeed!
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BTW, your avatar may as well have been a pic taken today after getting this news! Perfect, perfect pic!0
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<----------------- Lizzy, how's that one for a good news pic?
Yeah< i'm relieved! mom has the kids this afternoon - gonna do some cleaning around here before they get home. The relief settled in after he called and I took a power nap! Didn't realize how much I worked myself up over it - my stomach flip flopped when I heard his voice!
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Calamtykel: THAT IS GREAT!!!!! Great avatar! Goodbye bad news, go visit someone else and get away from my carousel! BTW, I know exactly the feeling you are talking about. I was laying in bed, 1/2 awake, when my GP called Wednesday morning and I immediately got that nerves-on-edge feeling as you do when you slam on the break and narrowly avoid an accident!! I was immediately bracing!
Well, happy trails to both of us! I am so glad we are ok...perhaps that is not a clinical diagnosis in my case but at least it seems that I don't have more cancer!!!
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Great News Kelly!!!!!!!
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Lizzy -one reason I didn't call wednesday is that I just didn't want to be "waiting" for the call. Then I didn't call yesterday for the same reason. I called when I came home from garage sales today and I'm so glad he didn't make me wait more than 10 minutes - what a good doc! I still miss my midwives, but I'm happy to have found him.
I just hate that waiting for the phone to ring. WHen they biopsied that thing on my neck, I made DH call. I was completely and totally immobilized. As long as you have not gotten the call yet, it makes you feel like you don't have to deal with it..........................House is now cleaned up -I picked a quart of berries outside and drinking my garden kale shake. Added collard greens since suddenly they look like they're about to go to seed....tastes sorta like bitter spinach...meh. But I guess it must be packed with good stuff......Kids won't be home for another hour or so -- mom took them to Chuckie Cheese this afternoon before she's bringing them home - so maybe I"ll treat myself and play some Roller Coaster Tycoon!
Why should they have all the game fun?? 0 -
Great news Kel!
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Great news Kel!
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Lizzy and Cal - sigh of relief!! Happy weekend!!0
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Lizzy- No no no- you were not being insensitive, just realistic- Oh yeah right i'd love to be stage nothing!!! I mentioned getting my port out and my DR said "just forget about the port it has to stay in" easy for him to say when he doenst have a 3 yr old bumping it all the time!!! LOL I have heard of people being NED for a long time (ten plus years) so basically its like being cured so to speak but its more rare and chances are that ain't happening. But i am living my life like it is. I know you're always joking- thats why i love reading your posts, like the dave chappelle skit "keepin it real" LOL
Kel- SOOOOOOOOOOOO happy to hear that!!!! whoop whoop!!!! My nephew loves that game and he accidently left it here at my house- if i had time i'd play (i played it in middle school for an economics type class)
BTW i scrubbed the hell out of my kitchen floor and front entry floor, i had gotten the swiffer wet jet after my surgery to make things easier but i noticed they were getting daker and darker LOL its like it will pick up major stuff like spilled juice but not basic dirt. So after a few hours of listening to my book on CD while scrubbing each tile individually the job is DONE! (i am a weird person- i hate cleaning and avoid it with a passion but if i am gonna clean i do it RIGHT lol) Tomorrow i am gonna tackle the bath room floors, my hands were getting blisters lol
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Great news Cal!!! Verrrry glad to hear this! Have a wonderful weekend everyone. We're off to the cottage for a couple of weeks. No tv, no connectivity, just sun...(hopefully!)
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Good day warriors!
It is a lovely weekend in the northeast! Just beautiful weather. Birthday party for my niece tomorrow. Hoping the weather stays nice. Also there is a farmer's market so perhaps I can get a red pepper for less than 2.50!! Houses, gas, food...everything is more expensive in good, old CT!
Sweeney: those are the best vacations where there is no connectivity but, to be honest, I don't think I could do it ever again! Not a week! OMG...I would be having terrible withdrawals between my stocks and the market and ebay and all the texts etc... I used to be able to come home, put my phone on a table by the door where I would leave it charging until the next day. Those days are long gone! I cannot be without my phone. I hope you are able to have a nice week and enjoy your lack of connectivity! I *might* be able to do it for one day, maybe 2 but that is definitely it! Two weeks? You must tell me if you survived without touching your phone etc...
Texas: swiffer definitely does not have scrubbing action. I got the wet sheets to put on my regular swiffer but even those are like a glossing over. I really think someday a really good scrubby/spongy mop will come out and, until then, hands and knees it is!
JSW: where you been? Did you sell your house? Have you moved yet? Perhaps that is where you are? Enough with my questions! Check in, woman!
I hope everyone is having a good weekend. Happy trails, all-
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Hi all, I saw my onc before my herecptin tx on Friday. I asked if I shopuld make any lifestyle changes and she said no. I said well I'd been reading how some women avoid plastics and parabens. She said how are you going to avoid plastic, and her tone was alittle condescending. Of course I didn't mean I would live in a plastic (or non plastic;-) bubble. I got chemo brain and couldn't remember the word teflon. She said you're not overweight, just go out and enjoy your life. She said we don't make any restrictions. I did make an appt with the dietician but for all my onc knows I could be living on beer and lucky charms!
Carolyn
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Carolyn - it's sad that when oncologlists are trained, that they are trained only to treat the disease of cancer and not to prevent it or what actually causes it. It was something I was truly awakened to in this whole journey. When we see that Vitamin D can actually prevent 50% of breast cancers in women AND other cancer such as colon cancer, WHY are ONCOLOGLISTS not routinely checking D levels in cancer survivors?? My osteopath did, and my regular physican always does it as part of routine bloodwork - DH's came back low as well.
It is a well know fact that parabens and plastics are endocrine disruptors- that has been proven. Plastics CAN be avoided as far as not leaving water bottles in the car so that the plastic gets real hot-- to where the water actually TASTES like plastic - it tastes like plastic because some of the plastic has leeched into the H20. It's easy to avoid these things -
I think lifestyle changes are HUGELY important for BC survivors since we all know something caused our BC and it's not just our own estrogen that's suddenly turned and tried to kill us and wreak havoc. Women have had estrogen since the beginning of time - God made it and it's there for a purpose. But when things get wacked out then it goes out of control. Something external makes that happen; whether its an excess of hormones in meat and dairy, exposure to radioactive stuff and radiation, chemicals in the water, or the known carcinogens they load up our food supply with such as nitrates. Even the carpet shampoo I got at the cleaner rental place says "This product is known to cause cancer in the state of California". Now it' s obviously not just causing cancer in California - but if it's sold in Ca it must be labeled as such - -so why are we using a substance in our homes that is "known to cause cancer?" =:O Especially when there are alternatives?
There is something everybody can do to reduce our chances of recurrence OR of other cancers without putting ourselves in a bubble -- now that we have had chemo AND are already cancer survivors we are at risk for other types of cancer, not just breast cancer, and anything I can do to reduce that risk I'm willing to do!
It frustrates me to no end that no oncologlist seems to be even INTERESTED in this. When I told one of the oncologlists I met with that I was drinking a green shake every day, he said "Yuck, that doesn't sound very good." Meanwhile, he was ill himself with something bad - he was hooked up to some sort of pic line or IV thing on a belt. Um, okay..........
I'm so glad BC.org has started to publish things about prevention - it's about time! Even if it just prevents a small percentage of breast cancer, each one of those lives is important!
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Cal: Congrats!!!!!
Carolyn: I'm reading "The Anticancer Book" right now. I've gained so much weight that I was already starting to make some diet and exercise changes, but this book has me convinced of just how important they are. Definitely read up and watch out for yourself on these things. As with most other stuff with cancer, we have to be our own advocates! Dr. Servan-Schreiber says the cause of cancer is up to 80% environmental, not genetic.
Question: How can you see an avatar picture larger than the little thumbnail we get on the site? I can't tell what Cal's new picture (or anyone else's for that matter) looks like.
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Lady - Are you almost done??0
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Good day warriors-
Is everyone fighting the good fight?! I sure hope so! I hope you all had a nice weekend and are finding some peace for yourselves
Ckptry: the very last thing any bc patient needs is condescension from the aholes that are supposed to watch out for us and empathize. Why are RNs/APRNs much more emotionally astute than are our oncs? Is it just me? I dated a heart surgeon from NY Pres when I was NYC. He was so cool and a very nice guy. Point here is even though most of our oncs/surgeons would like us to believe mentally they are off in science land, that is just no so. They are just choosing to be there. Beer and Lucky Charms...now you are talking!!!!! Oh yeah..this is America, land of the "if you can drink beer and eat Lucky Charms and still stay thin, you are perfect!!!!" Don't sweat it, Carolyn! Add a shot of tequila to your Bud Light Lime and party it up!!!! I swear to God, sometimes I just think a lot of our docs are just flakes....total flakes!
Calamtykel: the reason they are not checking D levels is because their main focus is to plow us full of that poison and then see how we do. Their job is done once chemo is over because even if D levels are out of whack, they can't pump us full of more poison so their hypothesis is over! That is the way I see it. Like I said, a lot of these docs are nut jobs. Also, as for the joker with the pic in his arm and his "yuck" to green shakes response, wth? Again, another whacko. The best advice I got from an ex-boyfriend when he found out I had bc, and having gone through a medical trauma himself in the past few years, was to be your own advocate. I have a firm understanding of that now.
Off topic question: have you ever used Bonanza? I know you are on Ruby Lane and I am beyond fed up with Ebay after only a few months. Their policies have got to change and they need to protect sellers. I am also wicked tired of talking to India and having it be like kangaroo court and I get the book thrown at me. I am done with Ebay. I understand Bonanza allows sellers to leave negative feedback on buyers. Do you know that to be the case? Any other reco's on auction sites? Let me know.
Lady: It is funny, I write responses as I read and your's about being your own advocate was right after Kel's! In any case, I am definitely going to get that book. As for weight and diet, they are wicked important. I am sure I told you guys already but my gyn put it quite succinctly: the bigger the fat cell the more estrogen it can (try) to make. I live in workout-ville now!
As for the pics, I don't think they can be ENLARGED!!! Joking...but they really can't be....joking on the caps I meant!
Sptmm: how are you? I miss hearing from you. I know it is summer and you are busy with your work and kids but just letting you know you are missed! Perhaps you have, with wild abandon, joined a traveling belly dancing troupe?!?he he he!!!Well, I am still trying to get my desk cleared off after all day and on the phones and to the post office etc....tiring!
Have a good night, ladies-
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Omaz: I have my 5th chemo next Tuesday, then just one more after that (famous last words; I thought I'd seen the end of chemo last December !:) Thanks for asking; I'm doing pretty good, leg pain for a week post chemo and tiredness have been my two SEs with this cocktail of drugs. Besides going bald again, of course.
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Lady -What a way to start off a new marriage huh!0
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Lady - it sounds like you're doing incredibly well!
Lizzy - I agree (goes without saying I guess! ) I don't go overboard on the conspiracy thing, but in all honesty, somebody's holding the reins here and steering the horse that hauls the giant machine that *is* cancer treatment as we know it. And I believe that is the drug companies. They are the ones developing drugs that then get tested and they run the clinical trials --and they publish the results. The doctors' job is to know the latest on all drugs and treatment and they read the studies and apply them. That's it. There's no thinking outside the box at all - like WHY suddenly are whole families of women dying of BC? We've had genes in our bodies forever! Why now are things messed up and we're seeing BC passed from mother to daughter and through families of sisters, etc. Something's messing our bodies up.
Interestingly, DH bought two books for me this weekend at a garage sale and I'm really enjoying reading them. They are 1926 copies of The Household Physician. They are huge volumes that detail treatment for everything - including cancer. Admittedly, in 1926, cancer treatment was dismal. It consisted of cutting as wide a margin as possible, including the chest muscles and sometimes even the ribs themselves if things were bad enough - sewing the gal back up and hoping for the best. There is one other treatment given - it consists of an ointment made of all kinds of horrible stuff - lead, arsenic and a bunch of other poisons and bandaging the tumorous area with it, and eventually I guess the idea was that the poison would "eat" the tumor (and flesh!) and eventually you'd get down to clean cells and then let it heal. GOOD grief - as horrible as chemo is, I was glad that we have it - even if it gives us not as big of a chance as we wish it would..................................
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Calamtykel: I can only imagine that it was dismal back then. All I can think, however, is 90 years from now will someone be reading about our methods today and feeling as thankful they did not have cancer circa 2010?! I agree with you about chemo. It is awful but certainly better than what putting poison on the skin waiting for it to eat cancer cells!! Outrageous!
Kel, did you ever use "Bonanza.com" to sell stuff? Just wondering. They are one of Ebays competitors.
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All:
Just found this pic of Sharon Stone with short hair. This is a cool look. I think I might adopt it for a while! Even though the top is not too long, the sides are *as long as* the top and it really looks awful. There is a hair academy nearby and I think I am going to go up there and let them have a snip! It looks like crap anyway...how much worse can they make it look and they need practice anyway!
Anyway, for all of you looking for a short do, this site has several ideas and this is the Sharon Stone link: http://www.short-hair-style.com/sharon-stone-hair-style.html
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Lizzy - Yes, I have a Bonanza store. It has done fairly well.
However, Google has changed a lot of the rules for listing things. You have to have those numbers, whatever they are called - IBN's in order to place in Google products. So unless your store has an exeption for vintage stuff, it will not get caught in Google.
I have sold on Ecrater for years. They also feed to Google, but you must follow Google's attribute rules. Ecrater is free so there is absolutely no loss in setting up a store, and the help boards are pretty helpful................
I agree- Ebay is a NIGHTMARE. I found it too stressful to try to keep up with the stars system. I would ship for free and still get only 3 out of 5 stars.... and I finally gave up. Since the stars system is tied to your ability to sell and your search standing, it just got too stressful.
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Carolyn -- I realized you are not too far away from me! If you want, I would be happy to send you a referal coupon to my nutrionist/herbalist - he does a lot with supplements, chinese medicine, homeopathy, detox, etc. If your medical center is in Basking Ridge, we are about an hour or less from there. I know that he has patients come from as far away as South Jersey because what he does is very unique.
Just to give you an idea, when my kids get sick, I take them to him instead of their regular doctor, first, because I know for the most part that he'll be able to nail what's wrong with them and fix it faster.Here is a website that explains a little about what they do. This is NOT his website, but rather another place that looks like they do the same thing, and it explains how the reflex testing works and how it's extremely accurate.
http://nutritionalwellnesscenter.com/nrt.html
The coupon I have is for a free first visit ($120 value) and then you go back and pay $30 for your follow up where you get all the results of the tests from the first visit. Every other visit is just $30 plus the cost of supplements - some of the supplements are available only through him (the company will only sell to doctors) and some you can actually get on line depending on the brand (usually the same price but when I'm short of cash, I order them online so I can use my credit card....
But he'll be able to tell you exactly what your body's deficient in and what it needs-
k
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Hey Guys! I was just thinking I would check in when I got to work today, and lo and behold, when I stop to read there is a shout out from Lizzy. Thanks for thinking of me Lizzy. I have not forgotten about you guys, never could. I have said it before and I will say it again...without all of you guys, I never would have survived chemo and the rest of this cancer crap with my sanity intact! I try to read at least once a day to keep up to date, but don't always get to post. Things are, of course, super busy with work and all. Lately we have been living in "dorm shopping ville" getting Taylor ready to go off to college.
Good news! I am cautiously optimistic that the aspiration of the seroma worked. I have had no drainage from my nipple since, so I am keeping my fingers crossed! And the whole procedure wasn't uncomfortable at all. Sore the next day, but not bad. Worst part was that I couldn't lift weights for 48 hours after, but I walked a lot, so that was okay.
Lizzy, I have not joined the travelling belly dancing troupe...yet. I am fielding several offers, LOL! But seriously, I almost know a whole dance now. One or two more weeks and I will have it down pat. Maybe I will start a third job as a belly dancer..LOL. But I think that will have to wait until I lose another 10 lbs. or so. On the workout front...I am right with you..I love to exercise now! It gives me such a positive feeling and energy! I have become an exercise maniac, but I love it. I was telling my daughter the other day that when I finally get down to the weight I should be, I am going to have to start eating more, because I certainly don't want to stop working out, but I don't want to waste away to nothing. Sixteen more pounds to go gets me a BMI of 23.3..I am 2 lbs. from being classified as "normal weight" for the first time is probably 20 years!
Lady, thanks for the tip on that book. I am going to go get it this weekend. I am anxious to do all I can naturally to prevent recurrence. Glad to hear you are nearing the finish line...this time FOR GOOD!
I am going to ask the onco today about that baby aspirin study that JSW had pointed out a while ago. See if she thinks it is a good idea.
Okay, have to get back to work. I know I missed something, but I will check back later. Have a great day everyone!
Debbi
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