December 7, 2007

• **Edit**
  My funny Gracie:

  She
  was looking over my shoulder as I brought up this page and was
  wondering why there was a picture of her broken leg — I told her that
  I had put an update because it had been 4 years since she broke it and
  I got cancer and I was just reflecting back on it.  So I was scrolling
  through the my post to show her and she saw at the end of it that people had posted comments
  – she says:

  What do the comments say — “Happy Anniversary?”

  haahahaaaha…

  **End Edit**
  
  We have much to be thankful for every day.  This day, however, holds special thankfulness for me.   This day 4 years ago, I had a biopsy on my breast. Three days later I was diagnosed with breast cancer. It was something that changed my life — one of those defining moments like getting married or having your first kid, only not so happy.

  The end of 2003 and the year of 2004 was difficult at best – but by God’s grace and mercy on me, it wasn’t the black pit of horror I thought it would be.  There were sick days and sad days, pain both physical and mental, even physical lasting scars, but through it all and even now, there is so much peace. And that is only God!

  We make a hundred seemingly random decisions during a day not really thinking of the outcome a head of time.  One of those “random” decisions of mine was to get my mammogram done — I had just turned 40, but only got the mammogram because I had met my medical deductible that year already.  I figured “now was a good time – after all, in two months it would cost me a considerable amount more” – and I wouldn’t have thought it necessary to spend extra money we didn’t have after the 1st of the year.

  If God had not caused me to have so many medical issues that year having the outcome of meeting my deductible, I would not have gone and had it done — And that would have cost me my life.  However, that seemingly random decision saved my life.  So, I am very thankful today as I reflect back — thankful for these continuing years with my family and friends that God has and is allowing me to enjoy.  All praise to Him!

  Here is my post from 3 years ago, December 4, 2004:
  Many of you have asked me about my cancer — so I thought I’d blog
  about it — especially because it’ll be a year on Tuesday that I was
  diagnosed.
   
  
  Lots was happening at the time.  My daughter Gracie fell (a year
  ago today – she was 6 at the time) in the kitchen and had broken her
  femur.  That was the day of my biopsy (running from emergency to
  the cancer building in the same parking lot to have this done). 
  Grace was admitted and had this external fixator attached to her leg in
  surgery the next morning.  She was hospitalized for 6 days. 
  
  
  

  
  

  
  
  

  Gracie’s leg a day or so after surgery

  
  During that time was when I was diagnosed with stage Ia breast cancer -
  which is the best it can be for cancer (caught real early).
  
  
  

  

  Here
  I am the day I found out — My Friend, Sue, took this picture. Here is
  where I stayed for 6 days when Gracie was hospitalized.

  
  Grace got out of the hospital completely needy — wheelchair bound and
  had to have everything done for her. My surgery to remove the tumor was
  that next Monday (15th). My mom came down to help out as  Grace
  need to be  lifted and carried and I was not going to be able to
  do it (during the day when my hubby was gone). 
  
  
  

   

  My mom helping Gracie in the shower

  
  The surgeon
  thought he could go in and just do a lumpectomy to remove the cancer
  and some follow-up radiation, but the post-op tests revealed that I had
  a second type of breast cancer (ductal). 
  
  
  
  Another lumpectomy on the 22nd, test showed that it was all over my
  breast and (got this news on Dec 24 – what a horrible time for that!)
  that my tumor was very agressive  and I needed a mastectomy and
  chemo as an assurance that even though it (after CT & PET scans)
  had not spread anywhere, there was like a 40% chance that it had spread
  into my blood stream where it could deposit somewhere (thus the reason
  for the chemo).  
  
  
  

  

  Gracie and I on Christmas Morning
  

  
  
  I cut my hair real short on the 29th.  Chemo started January 5th
  and went for 4 sessions 3 weeks apart ending on March 5.  
  The first one was pretty bad; I felt pretty sick and was down for about
  5 days, but subsiqeunt ones were much better – maybe feeling nauseous
  only a day or two.  My hair fell out two weeks after the first
  session — in handfuls!!  That was something that even though you
  prepare yourself for, when it happens it completely blows you away!!
  

  

  January 22nd
  

  Gracie’s got her fixator off on our
  anniversay, March 3rd.  She had another month of physical
  therapy.  She limped for a while, but now you’d never know.

  

  This is her in August – you can see the pin hole scars in her leg.

  
  I chose in April to have a double mastectomy (because, I mean, who
  would want to go through this again!). So as of April, I consider
  myself to be cancer free as having gone through the chemo and
  mastectomies, assuming the chemo has done what it was supposed to do,
  which was kill any microscopic cancer cells floating in my body.
  

  
  Here’s me recovering from my mastectomies.

  
  
  At the time of the mastectomies my surgeon also started
  reconstruction.  Now I only have one procedure left for that and
  I’m done.  Then just 4 more years of onocologist appointments and
  tests , then they’ll consider me cancer free. My prognosis is very good.
  
  
  
  My hair started to growing about 3 weeks after my last chemo. 
  It’s about 3 inches long now, growing almost 1/2 inch a month (growing
  really fast).  It came in thick, and curly in the back — which is
  so funny because I’ve always had pretty much stick straight thin
  hair!!! 

  

  Me in September. 
  

  
  
  My family and friends worked overtime to help me this last year with
  meals and driving me places and taking my children here and there etc
  etc etc . My mom made several trips down her in the last year to help
  me during each surgery and recovery.  It is so humbling and I feel
  very blessed and loved.  God’s grace and mercy held me up through
  every twist and turn.  I felt much peace over the last year
  concerning my diagnosis and treatment — not that I haven’t had my down
  times, but those, by the grace of God, have been few and far in
  between.  I have laughed and joked about it a lot.  Humor is
  a good thing.
  
  
  
  Well that’s about it. 
  
  ~Me
  

  • 12:44 pm
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