Bizarro World

Today I was driving to my hair salon in DeLand and noticed the traffic in the other direction was quite heavy. When I went to exit onto the main drag (route 17/92) through downtown DeLand, police had completely closed it and I had to exit in the opposite direction. So I immediately started grumbling because I don't know all the back roads and I was thinking, now what? I called the salon and told them about the road closure and I was hoping they could give me an alternate route to get there. I ended up backtracking to go another way. Pamela from the salon called me back to tell me there was a hostage situation at the Winn-Dixie on 17/92. Say what?? I guess that would explain the police that could be seen everywhere and the road blocks. I made it to the salon and my sister-in-law Linda had called me in the meantime to give me a news report. As it turns out, it wasn't really a hostage situation but someone had called in a bomb threat and the entire plaza had to be evacuated. There was no bomb, and no one was hurt, thankfully, but it certainly wreaked some havoc on sleepy, quiet DeLand! There also was a similar incident today in Clermont, in Lake County. Now the FBI is involved and the question is if these incidents are related to the Wal-Mart bomb threats that are occurring at an alarming rate across the country! I'm convinced we've all gone mad. Sheesh!

Much more important news: I love my new haircut! It's a pretty short (for me) sassy little shag. A little wax or pomade and I will look absolutely punkish, lol. I knew Christine would come up with something grand. I like it enough that I'll be bummed if/when I lose it from chemo. Now do I feel comfortable enough to post a pic on the Internet for all to see? Ummm, probably not, but you never know! ;)

Hair Hair and Hair

I have a hair appointment tomorrow and I'm not sure how short I want it cut! I'll let my stylist, Christine, help me with that. :)

Uneventful day....ran some errands. I'm realizing I have to get busier cuz I'm starting to go a little stir crazy!

Wigging out

I went to the Cancer Institute near me this afternoon to check out the wigs available via the American Cancer Society. Trying them on was quite amusing....my hair is too long and thick to try on the things properly! They didn't even sit on my head right, lol. So, it looks like a haircut first. I wasn't too crazy about the selection they had, but I found out about a retailer in Orange City (a few miles from here) that I'll have to check out. Thankfully my insurance covers 90% of the purchase of one. I was told by a nurse that if your hair is thick and the roots are strong, the hair loss may not be as bad. I'll prepare as if it's all going to go AWOL and it will be a pleasant surprise if it doesn't! ;-) Cheers.

Crazy Sexy Cancer

Tonight is the premiere of a documentary entitled "Crazy Sexy Cancer" on The Learning Channel (TLC) at 9:00 pm. A young woman, Kris Carr, diagnosed with a rare, incurable type of cancer documented her journey, as well as several other womens', for this film. I have a link to the film's website on the left of my blog.

Just from reading her blog and visiting her website, I can tell there is no doubt Kris has the "right stuff!" Even if you're not dealing with a cancer diagnosis, her outlook is one to embrace by every living, breathing human being!

Blood count good!

Went for lab work today and my WBC is good! I still have to be careful about being around sick people and large crowds, etc. and keep an eye on my temp, but I'm glad everything looked good today.

Rachel, you have to let me know if you get ham salad and report back....I'm still thinking about it, lol!

I'm hungry for.....

I don't know if this is typical, but I am craving the strangest things, food-wise. Ham salad?! I haven't eaten ham salad in years! I don't know where that came from. Not about to go hunt that down....yet. And yesterday I had a PB&J sandwich. Oh well.

Wal-Mart

I'm trying to be careful where I go until I know how my white blood count reacts to the chemo, but today Linda and I did a Wal-Mart run. I got most of the stuff on my list, but was ready to go before I got everything, which is quite typical for me. Sunday's a stupid day to go to Wal-Mart! No biggie, I can go another day this week.

Tonight I'm watching the Steeler game, yay.

Please keep my brother John in your prayers. He's been in physical rehab for a few weeks and will likely remain there another few weeks. He's not thrilled about being there. The goal is to get him walking again and out of the wheelchair. He's making progress, but I know it's not easy for him. Your prayers are appreciated.

Cat Naps

Linda and Joe came over today to move boxes of floor tile from the garage to the sun porch and Linda cleaned. I'm truly blessed. I did some laundry. :)

Other than taking occasional cat naps, I'm doing fairly well, thank God. Still drinking lots of water and I have some orange Gatorade that tastes like Tang. Not the best stuff I've ever tasted, but it will do.

I strung 2 streamers of pink ribbon and stapled all the cards I've gotten to them to keep me encouraged. Whether you've sent cards, emailed, called or just prayed.....THANK YOU!! Much love to you all.

zzzzzzz...

I slept a lot yesterday and even in the evening AND most of the night! I don't feel as tired today, thankfully. I have a pesky little headache that doesn't want to go away, but headaches are not unusual for me. :(

I'd like to go pick up a few things at the store today. Maybe this afternoon.

Thanks for all your prayers....without anyone even telling me, I know prayers are being said. Bless you.

Kinda tired

I got up this morning and had some breakfast, but felt really tired. I went back to bed and slept for about 3 hours. I feel a teeny bit queasy, so I drank some ginger ale and it's just about time to take one of my anti-nausea meds, so I should be okay.

I'm trying to figure out how to change the time zone on my posts. It's three hours behind Daylight Savings Time. I'm sure it's a simple thing to change, but I haven't found it yet!

End of Day Two...still okay!

Had the Neulasta and IV fluids today....non-eventful, thank God. Sooo, hopefully things will stay this way...time will tell!

Not bad so far....

I don't feel bad at all today...hope it stays that way!

I woke up in the middle of the night with DRY cottonmouth, but I brushed and drank some water before I went back to bed. It seems fine now. Had breakfast, no problem, no nausea. So far, so good.

Today I go for a Neulasta injection and IV fluids. Catch ya later!

Hellooooo

Well, so far so good. Tomorrow I may feel worse, but right now, not bad. Before the chemo, they gave me a steroid and another anti-nausea med via IV, then after that the red devil and then the Cytoxan. They took blood for the genetic testing. I drank water the whole time and I was hungry after, lol. Linda made chicken stir fry. By the way, I think this port is pretty nifty, although it can also be annoying.

Oh, this is great....I had an eye exam a couple of days ago and got new contacts. Well wouldn't you know, I developed a stye in my right eye. Sheesh! So my oncologist prescribed antibiotic drops. I also gave myself a paper cut on the way there today AND poked myself with a safety pin! I warned them that I was a total klutz. They gave me some Neosporin. I think they already think I'm kinda nuts.

Please don't be offended if I don't return calls right away....I'll get back to you! :) I may be feeling crappy tomorrow. We'll see!

Ready

My appointment for my first treatment is at 1:15 PM. I'll do my best to report back this evening. xoxoxo

Awaiting my first treatment

Well, tomorrow I receive my first chemo treatment, and I'm a little nervous about it. My sister-in-law, Linda, will take me. I think she'll be eligible for sainthood once this is all over.

I spoke with my oncologist's nurse today to review all the meds. No less then three are anti-nausea meds, wow. Hopefully, that'll do the trick. The other one is a topical anesthetic to help with the port site. Wednesday I go back for a shot of Neulasta (for white blood count) and IV fluids to combat dehydration. I was told to eat frequent small meals and drink LOTS of water.

Here we go!

Good news!

I had a PET/CT scan Friday, Aug. 10th and this past Friday I learned that all is clear, YAY!! I believe every organ in my body has now been reviewed thoroughly and there is no finding of cancer anywhere else. Whew.

The Adventure Begins.....

Hi there family, friends and animals,

I am a breast cancer survivor as of July 7, 2007. This blog is to keep those dear to me informed of my journey. I will be pestering all the women out there to follow breast cancer screening recommendations, so you are forewarned!

I am thankful for my Lord for loving me and creating good out of the bad. And He always does, even if we don't realize it!

This journey started in April of 2007. I went for a routine mammogram. My gynecologist's office called to tell me that there was no sign of cancer, just something like a skin fold or crease in my right breast. It was deemed as a "technical issue." I was advised to have it redone. I had the follow-up scheduled for May. I changed that appointment because something came up and it was just a technical issue, right? So, my next appt. was in June. To my surprise this was not just a technical issue. After the mammogram came an ultrasound then a little chat with the radiologist. It was then I was told that the "lesion" would likely result in a biopsy. WOW! Wasn't expecting that! He suggested a MRI first. So, I did the MRI and didn't freak out from claustrophobia, thank God. I was then called to go back in for another mammogram and ultrasound, it was needed to reassess the original findings. I met a great radiologist who said she suspected cancer. GREAT. I had a core needle biopsy the next day and found out not too many days after that (although it felt like an eternity), that I had invasive ductal carcinoma (IDC) in my right breast. My radiologist then referred me to a surgeon who specializes in breast surgery and an oncologist who is a breast cancer specialist. I met my wonderful surgeon and was scheduled for a lumpectomy and sentinel node biopsy on July 26th. First I had a MRI on my left breast, which was normal, yay. The surgery went well and we thought the lymph nodes were clear. Well, it turns out there was 1 positive node, which by the way, wasn't one of the sentinel nodes. This finding solidified the need for chemotherapy, followed by radiation. I have to admit, the positive lymph node put a damper on things. But, I'm moving forward. I had a port inserted on August 14th in my left arm for chemo. I start that adventure August 21st. Eight rounds over 6 months, once every 3 weeks. Oh, joy. I'm being treated by the Cancer Institute of Florida in Orlando and so far I have been very impressed with my medical team; they are top-notch. And if you know me well, you know my attitude toward doctors, surgeons, etc., based on some not so good experiences with family. So my good feelings about my team says A LOT. I'm going to have genetic testing in order to determine how relevant breast cancer is for the rest of my family. I won't go into the technical aspects of all this here, but more info can be found at www.myriadtests.com.

I am very thankful this is considered an early breast cancer. Not as early as I would like, but no one asked me what kind of cancer I would prefer. Go figure. I am totally trusting God to walk beside me through this and He has also blessed me with an awesome family and a terrific group of friends. I want to thank all of you for your incredible support and prayers. Amen!