My Breast Cancer Story, Eleven Years Later...here I go again.

I’ve had 3 zaps and so far I’m doing good. Monday I start on a regular schedule so that is good. I have so many appointments lined up for the next couple weeks. Radiation is a breeze so far and everyone there is so nice. I have fallen into kind of a depressed mode lately. I don’t know why. It’s just not like me. I think when you go through something like this you keep going and doing everything you have to do to get better and it all just catches up with you after a while. I am frustrated because my mind feels good but my body is just not like it used to be. I can’t just bend over and pick up my dogs toy like I used to because now it takes everything I have to get up again. I walk up the stairs and have to stop at the top because I am exhausted. I walk down the stairs and my knees just don’t want to work. Chemo does a number on your body. Then coming off of all the steroids after you have been on them for 7 months is hard to adjust. I have lost 7 of the 20 plus pounds I gained from th...

I waited ten days to hear from someone about starting radiation and this morning I get a call saying, can you be here at 11:45? Yikes no time to think! I was really nervous about it. I called my mom and she came to my rescue. Today was actually a dry run, I start tomorrow and I don’t really have a schedule yet. I have to do it at their convenience because there are no regular time slots open. So starting tomorrow I will go everyday except Saturday and Sunday for 7 weeks for a total of 35 treatments. That means I will end some where around June 12. I heard it takes longer to change your clothes than it does to do the treatment. Today I had to lay on the table in the little form they made for me and this huge machine rotated around me and they made sure everything was lining up right. They also gave me a little bar code on a card that I have to scan everyday and it lets them know I am there for treatment. Then I go into the changing room and change into my lovely gown. Then I just wai...

I went to work today and aside from my joints being stiff I did really good. I was a little tired when I got home but still managed to go to the deli and get some stuff done around the house afterward. We have needed a new kitchen faucet for about 4 months now. It worked, but the hot water handle was broken so every time I needed to use it I had to reach under the sink and turn it on from there. Yes my man can put in windows but he’s no plumber. Yesterday we went to Home Depot and bought the new fixture. Today when I came home from work it was sitting on the kitchen table and I walked by it about 5 times and then decided I was going to fix it myself! I crawled under the sink and turned off the water and then went and got a pillow to lay on and crammed myself under the cabinet and started wrenching. I got the first nut off no problem, but the other ones were stubborn. When Jeff came in from work all he could see was my feet stinking out from under the sink. I was so determined to d...

I went for my radiation simulation yesterday. This is where they set me up for my treatments. My mom, Pam and Sue came with me. I was a little nervous because I didn’t know what to expect. They called me back, and I had to lay on a table on and rest my head and shoulders on a foam block. It looked like one of the things that come in the box when you buy a new television. It was covered in plastic and they poured some thick goopy stuff over it and then position me how they wanted me to lay. I had to lay with my left arm up over my head and hold onto a pole that was by my right shoulder. The foam got really hot until it hardened from the chemical. This took about 5 minutes. So there I lay holding onto the pole and my hand and arm are starting to fall asleep. It was driving me crazy, I just wanted to shake it out. I asked if I could move it but she said I had to hold it up there another 15 minutes. I couldn’t move because the doctor had to make some markings with magic marker.. I have X’...

              I went to my radiology appointment. Just getting there was fun. My mom was following Pam’s car because she had to go to work and didn’t know how long we would be there. So were driving along and a car just like Pam’s gets in between us. We turn right and Pam looks in the rear view mirror and guess what? No mom! She starts following the wrong car! Lololol. I had to call her on her cell phone and she picks it up and say’s…I know…I am following the wrong car…Then she finally catches up with us while we pull over and wait. We pull into the parking lot and you have to push a button and tell them why you are there so they can lift the gate…Pam does it no problem, mom does it…nothing…nobody answering her…she is sitting there getting frustrated and we are cracking up watching from our parking spot. They finally decided to open the gate for her after about 5 minutes. Lol This visit was a consultation. I talked to my r...

I have some great news! I went to the doctor today and found out that I am officially in remission!!! Yup That's right cancer free!! I have been waiting for the results for 2 weeks, it was a long 2 weeks, but Yay! I can move on to radiation now. I don’t even have to go back to the Docs for a month! After going every Monday for 7 months, that was music to my ears. I celebrated until I got home and checked my computer and found out my friend from another journal who has been great support for me and going through this at the same time as me found out today she has a malignant tumor in her lung. She is a fighter I know she is. She is only 3 months out of chemo and now this. It is really hard for me to celebrate knowing what she has to go through. On my sidebar of my journal main page there is a link to her journal. It is "I Shaved My Legs For This?" Stay strong Kim. I am feeling really good. Aside from being tired I think I might be getting back to normal. My mind is raci...