Illinois ladies facing bc

Crap, Mak you just are not catching any breaks. I am busy until around ten, but if you want, I would be happy to drive over and help. Seriously. I am pretty good with kids.

I just read an article in the new Better Homes and Garden. They have a report out that if you are an early stage and a small tumor, even if the SNB comes out positive, it does NOT help to remove all the nodes. The reoccurance rate was the same either with or without removing the nodes at ten years. Wouldnt have helped me as I am a IIIc and my tumor was huge. But, if it can help out others and not have them go through LE, Lets find out more...

Blessings to all, Onward

Mak - where are you located?  I am in St Charles.....I just moved here and am not working:)  Maybe I can help (I know this may seem odd since I don't know you...but I went through chemo and have a 5 year old...I get it!).  PM if I can help

Awww Robo!! I'm so sorry we all have to go through this!! Breast cancer sucks...and that's putting it mildly!!! Its OK to be upset and negative about this hair loss, I just found that out myself. It's probably the worst thing I've ever experienced!



I wish I could give you a big hug right now!!! We are both going to get through this crappy horrible phase and it's going to be glorious on the other side of this. hang in there!!! (((((hugs)))))



Lisa...we just planned a vaca for February after my chemo and I agree 150%.... It gives me something ahead of me to look forward to and puts me in a "happy place" when everything seems so bad.

Robo, the night I go to bed early your hair starts to shed. Figures. Yes it sucks. Yes you deserve a drink (Adey & I prefer tequila though. We got bombed at lunch this summer at Las Pintas  ) Next time we'll make it a threesome.

We really need to get you in some long scarves and funky earrings. I know you will rock the look. My building manager told me the other day she initially didn't even know I was going through this. She  just thought I was doing an artsy thing with the scarves. Also you might consider wearing hats with hair. I don't look that great with hats but I bet you will. There are even places that sell the hair and you can just vecro them into your hat/scarf. (I think you said you can sew but if not I can & do have a machine).

Madmom I bet you look good in scarves too. It's all in the way you wear them. Many women don't cover enough of their forhead… that's when the look like chemo heads instead of stylish.

mahometmom62  I too went from a small skimpy B to a full D. Seems lots of us end up doing that.I was told I would end up a small C. I'm pretty sure I look at least like a full C. I think guys have a different perception of boob size. My PS is male.

Looks like a chilly one today. Not sure what to wear for  my power walk but I'm about to go out there. Brrrrr.

Learn to get in touch with the silence within yourself, and know that everything in life has purpose. There are no mistakes, no coincidences, all events are blessings given to us to learn from.
-- Elisabeth Kubler-Ross

I know Susan will resonate with this quote.  I find it so interesting that it comes just as Robo ,Jenn and Mahomet are dealing with the hair loss issues.  I very much admire E.K.- Ross and some time ago came to feel that pretty much how E.K.R. puts it, is so.  That is a steep gradient for some and not everyone in life "needs" this information.  I'm going out on a limb here to say that I use to pray a lot for enlightenment.  I was at one time finding my life so hard to live, and so many of the parts made such little sense to me. 

In truth, my life sometimes is still hard to live, but the difference is.....that I did get the blessing and gift of some answers.  I wish I had the right words to describe it all.....just because it might make things easier for others, but I'm not very good at that.  I do though deeply believe that none of us live random lives and that every experience, bad, good, indifferent is full of meaning and is something we NEED to know.  It could be something simple or deeply profound, but whatever it is will be something to enhance your being/spirit/soul --- that part of you which is so deeply and very much more you than your body and mind. 

My limb is quite long now because if you got this far then you know I don't believe I'm my body....I'm so much more.  My body is here to get me around and to interact, but it is just the house my soul uses --- 

So as difficult as this issue is....losing hair, losing body parts, etc. losing our identity, losing something we have generally had since birth, our hair, seems I know cruel, unwarranted.  In the middle of pain is often when you find your strength. 
How would you learn to be strong if you never, ever were weak.  How would you learn to appreciate good stable health if that was all you ever had.  It is not we ourselves per se' that need or want these lessons and trials, but our soul which we can either glorify by accepting our challenges or denigrate by not doing what we can to ride the rough sea.  Whichever way we go is a lesson for the soul to learn.

Does that make having all that happens to us less painful.....well, not very much.  We are, after all human beings with such a full and deep range of emotions and having to deal with so much we never expected to, while knowing so little.  It is pain, and upset, and you feel violated and are by this disease, but you will learn and you will grow and somewhere in that......perhaps without knowing, you will be a bit of a light to someone else.  All the women here were my light and just to let you know......I did reach a point, right after I started my Taxotere chemo that I was ready to throw in the towel ---  seemed to me at that time that going forward anymore was way too hard physically and  emotionally and death from cancer seemed easier.  I've never said that here before because it sounds like such a downer and I didn't want to let my friends down -- make them feel that they weren't a totally positive source for me....because in reality they were.  I just had to remember that things were happening to my body while my soul was unaffected.  That was a part of my "get through the next five minutes" time period.  Ladies, if that is what it takes.....if you have to take your life in five minute segments.....that is what it takes.  Just keep looking at the soul......the soul is your light and it will get you through the worst five minutes in your life, every time. 

I am wishing you ladies with all my heart and soul deep, lasting, loving light for this rocky path you are on. 

Hugs, Jackie

Just got this email from BC & BS:
"Protect Yourself Against Prostate Cancer: Talk to Your Doctor About Early Detection"

If it's not spam to enlarge body parts I don't have it's spam to protect body parts I don't have.

Thanks all for the offers.. Gab woke up crying but then within the hour she was using her arm.. so off to daycare she went.. crossing my fingers she is OK.. as I'm still quite nauseous from yesterday...

Robo...I am so glad to hear something cheery in your post   The sun is shining for you today!!!

Robo47:   I went to a boutique Naturally Yours in Willowbrook for my wig.   My wig looks so real and I take it back there from time to time to get if poofed up.  They are the nicest ladies. They sell everything you would ever need.  I went for my wig, they shaved my head and put it on. I closed my eyes and then I opened and was surprised.   I went out to the reception area and my husband couldn't tell. My kids were like "did you get it". Hope this helps.  I'm still wearing my wig. finished chemo in june. Going this weekend to get poofed again. Not sure when I'll reveal my new salt and pepper hair.   Haven't seen the real hair color for a long time. LOL.

Personally, I loved hats....I went bleached blonde the two weeks before losing my hair and that was fun, having blonde bald head. smile. It took two hair salon visits to get it down to blonde from brown. Now...I like that there is less gray hair grown back, but I keep it short and have never gotten back into the habit of combing it, i'm just one stubborn witch arent i?

So i get it cut quite short and unless i forget conditioner it's not too hard to look at. I always flinched when my Mom thought hair was so important the several recurrences and chemos that she had. In high school when i went to great measures to curl my long hair, my Mom told me it didnt matter if my skin still looked terrible! (acne). Well i had figured at least my hair could look good! Thank God those times passed! 8-)

hansen..i noticed your post. i went to rush....my surgeon Dr. Godellas was GREAT, he went to Loyola. My Mom went to northwestern...for ovarian cancer...i felt they dropped the ball....univ of chicago had high ratings, you might check chicago magazine ratings? i'm sure others will steer you, too....it's good to read up on things if you have time, good luck!

Great to see you here tonight Kater.  I love the pragmatic part of you that always finds a way to make events special --- alive and rich with meaning.  That is you.  Big hugs from the other cat/animal person.

Jackie

Good morning.... I was just sitting here thinking and realized, where's wendyk??? Is she on vacation again??? I don't think I've seen her on here in awhile.....

WendyTK how are you doing?

Joan I hate the CT scans too. They tell you you're fine but then make you do a follow up.  I'm betting on your onc too.

Madmom, Robo how you feeling today?

Glad to hear Gabby is better.

Been doing lots of job stuff. Met with another recruiter yesterday. She seemed to like my stuff. I just need time to redo my website. I did redesign it just before diagnosis but never got anyone to code it. I need to revisit to see if I still like it and find someone who can code it cheaply. I also got a call from another recruiter who found me on careerbuilder. Also a call from a  PR company I applied to but I wasn't a good fit.

I got my results of my bone density test. My chances of a major fracture in 10  years went up .2% and hip .1%. My first test was before chemo. I have been on Calcium since the first test but I don't think that's too bad considering I did chemo, went through chemopause and started Anestrozole since the first test 11 months ago. I'll talk with my GP about it next time to see what he thinks.