You Can Get Back to Normal After B/C!
Comments
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Great to hear!Christmas Girl said:Hello, Sunrae!
Good to find you here, and so glad you're doing well! :-)
Kind regards, Susan
I'm so happy to hear that you are doing well. I have to be honest, I'm one of those perky "cup is half-full" kind of people, but I too feel that I am living a "new normal." I have gotten my strength back, become a nationally ranked swimmer, gotten my coaches certifications, going back to grad school, yada yada yada. I'm doing all the things that give my joy. And then I went in for a simple procedure on Tuesday (bladder sling) because my bladder dropped after my hysterectomy. (Let's all remember this happened to me under the age of 40.) I'm not normal.
So everything went fine, and then in the middle of the night I got up to use the bathroom. My husband heard a crash and found me unconscious on the bathroom floor, eyes wide open and dilated, not breathing. It took 1/2 minute for me to regain consciousness. He rushed me to the ER and my heart rate was 42 bpm. I stayed in the hospital until Friday night. I will have to follow up with the cardiologist and neurologist this week.
My surgeon came to visit me (at a different hospital from the one where I had the surgery) just to look at all the scans. His fear was that the cancer had returned to my brain so he wanted to see the CT scan and MRI. We did a little celebrating when those came back fine.
Life is full of ups and downs. The point is to move on from the downs and don't let them overtake you. There are things I will always have to be concerned about from now on. Okay. Be smart but focus on the positives. Life is good and it is up to us to make it even better...0 -
Pitt such a surprise to hearpitt said:Great to hear!
I'm so happy to hear that you are doing well. I have to be honest, I'm one of those perky "cup is half-full" kind of people, but I too feel that I am living a "new normal." I have gotten my strength back, become a nationally ranked swimmer, gotten my coaches certifications, going back to grad school, yada yada yada. I'm doing all the things that give my joy. And then I went in for a simple procedure on Tuesday (bladder sling) because my bladder dropped after my hysterectomy. (Let's all remember this happened to me under the age of 40.) I'm not normal.
So everything went fine, and then in the middle of the night I got up to use the bathroom. My husband heard a crash and found me unconscious on the bathroom floor, eyes wide open and dilated, not breathing. It took 1/2 minute for me to regain consciousness. He rushed me to the ER and my heart rate was 42 bpm. I stayed in the hospital until Friday night. I will have to follow up with the cardiologist and neurologist this week.
My surgeon came to visit me (at a different hospital from the one where I had the surgery) just to look at all the scans. His fear was that the cancer had returned to my brain so he wanted to see the CT scan and MRI. We did a little celebrating when those came back fine.
Life is full of ups and downs. The point is to move on from the downs and don't let them overtake you. There are things I will always have to be concerned about from now on. Okay. Be smart but focus on the positives. Life is good and it is up to us to make it even better...
Pitt such a surprise to hear from you and happy that you posted. Please keep us updated on your current health status. We know that chemo can cause heart damage. Cypress Cynthia recently posted some info on that. I'm celebrating your scans that is certainly positive!! Wishing only good things for you and all the pinks. You look as beautiful as ever in your photo and you are always an inspiration to me. Hugs0 -
Sending ((((((hugs))))) and prayerspitt said:Great to hear!
I'm so happy to hear that you are doing well. I have to be honest, I'm one of those perky "cup is half-full" kind of people, but I too feel that I am living a "new normal." I have gotten my strength back, become a nationally ranked swimmer, gotten my coaches certifications, going back to grad school, yada yada yada. I'm doing all the things that give my joy. And then I went in for a simple procedure on Tuesday (bladder sling) because my bladder dropped after my hysterectomy. (Let's all remember this happened to me under the age of 40.) I'm not normal.
So everything went fine, and then in the middle of the night I got up to use the bathroom. My husband heard a crash and found me unconscious on the bathroom floor, eyes wide open and dilated, not breathing. It took 1/2 minute for me to regain consciousness. He rushed me to the ER and my heart rate was 42 bpm. I stayed in the hospital until Friday night. I will have to follow up with the cardiologist and neurologist this week.
My surgeon came to visit me (at a different hospital from the one where I had the surgery) just to look at all the scans. His fear was that the cancer had returned to my brain so he wanted to see the CT scan and MRI. We did a little celebrating when those came back fine.
Life is full of ups and downs. The point is to move on from the downs and don't let them overtake you. There are things I will always have to be concerned about from now on. Okay. Be smart but focus on the positives. Life is good and it is up to us to make it even better...
Pitt, I am so sorry to hear that you are having problems. I held my breath until I read scans are fine--yay! I will bump up my recent post about heart disease and breast cancer. I am not an athlete, but, when I had a mild heart attack in 2008, I had no risk factors other than having survived cancer and the works (mastectomy, chemo, rads, tamoxifen, etc).0 -
Wise words, well said!CypressCynthia said:Sending ((((((hugs))))) and prayers
Pitt, I am so sorry to hear that you are having problems. I held my breath until I read scans are fine--yay! I will bump up my recent post about heart disease and breast cancer. I am not an athlete, but, when I had a mild heart attack in 2008, I had no risk factors other than having survived cancer and the works (mastectomy, chemo, rads, tamoxifen, etc).
Thank you for posting! I've tried throughout this journey to focus on the positive. Some days it's harder than others but I felt it was essential if I was to win the battle that started just over a year ago. I've now been declared in complete remisission. Yes, I'm still taking the pills, still eating my apple a day, still seeing way too much of my doctors. When we started this fight one of the first things we did was make a list of all the survivors we knew. It kept growing and we kept focusing on that. I think life is a new normal for me. I still don't have my stamina back but keep trying and am comfident that I'll get there. I think normal will roll around again when the chemo brain is gone. (Please tell me that it WILL happen!) For now I just try to stay positive, call on the pink bus for tests etc., and stay in touch with all the pink sisters on this board. The journey is different for each one of us even though many things are similar, and I can't help but think that the "recovery" will be too. How thankful we are that we have the medicine to treat this beast and that it's not an automatic death sentance any more.0 -
Hi Cindymamolady said:Thank you
Thank you for the positive side of things. It seems once people get through the rough spots, some stop posting. So we don't always hear the up side.
I for one am looking forward to normal, boring, uneventful for a bit. At least till the holiday season. Last year was a dud so I told my husband we are going crazy this year. I think I made him a little nervous.
Cindy
I agree! Boring & uneventful is a good thing! Going crazy for the Holidays is a wonderful thing to look forward to! Good luck!
Renee0 -
Before chemo I had such askipper54 said:Wise words, well said!
Thank you for posting! I've tried throughout this journey to focus on the positive. Some days it's harder than others but I felt it was essential if I was to win the battle that started just over a year ago. I've now been declared in complete remisission. Yes, I'm still taking the pills, still eating my apple a day, still seeing way too much of my doctors. When we started this fight one of the first things we did was make a list of all the survivors we knew. It kept growing and we kept focusing on that. I think life is a new normal for me. I still don't have my stamina back but keep trying and am comfident that I'll get there. I think normal will roll around again when the chemo brain is gone. (Please tell me that it WILL happen!) For now I just try to stay positive, call on the pink bus for tests etc., and stay in touch with all the pink sisters on this board. The journey is different for each one of us even though many things are similar, and I can't help but think that the "recovery" will be too. How thankful we are that we have the medicine to treat this beast and that it's not an automatic death sentance any more.
Before chemo I had such a sharp mind, even tho I was always bad about remembering names. After all my treatments were done, I just felt fuzzy most of the time and found myself saying things I wasn't even thinking. Now that feeling is lifting and I finally feel like I've got my mind back again, at least most of it. I guess all this adds up to why I feel like I'm pretty much back to normal. I finally got past the awful feeling I had every time I saw my chest in the mirror, the left breast normal and the right side with a scar starting past the middle of my chest on the left side and going all the way across my right side and under my arm toward the back. I couldn't bear for my husband to see me like this for awhile but gradually I allowed him to see what I was missing. Now neither one of us pay much attention to that side and with my prosthesis in place, it looks good. I feel normal and I want people to treat me normal. I have such a supportive family and a wonderful circle of friends and that has really helped me in my recovery. Everyone has to work thru this difficult time in their life in the best way for them and at their own pace. And we're all different and special in our own way. And yes, chemo brain does go away. At least I think it does. LOL0 -
I feel like Traci and not a Pavlov's dog yetTraciInLA said:So glad to see you here, Sunrae, but feels different for me
Sunrae, I'm SO glad to hear that your health is finally on the upswing. You went through so much during treatment -- I remember feeling just sick for you as you had one complication after another after another....I'm so happy to see your smiling face here again, and hear such good news from you.
But I have to say that my experience after treatment feels different. I completed active treatment 18 months ago, and, physically, I've fully recovered -- I have my normal energy level, and am back to all my previous activities. I'm very grateful for that. But my life changed forever the day I was diagnosed, and I'm one of the ones who works every day to find that "new normal."
Before my diagnosis, I never thought about cancer -- I was too young to worry about breast cancer, right? Now, every morning when I get undressed, I see the radiation tattoos and the scars, and remember (just for a minute) what I went through. Every single day, I take my Tamoxifen, and remember that I'm still in the fight. Before my diagnosis, I had 2 doctors' appointments every year -- only 2 a year! Now I walk into an office that says "oncology" on the door every 3 months.
I don't worry every day anymore the way I did when I was going through treatment -- but cancer is still a daily companion that wasn't there before when things were "normal."
Of course, everyone's journey is different, and we walk together wherever the journey takes us -- FWIW, I just thought I'd share my own experience.
Traci
I did not want to start pity party, I feel like Traci and not a Pavlov's dog yet but I am almost there. Before cancer I saw my doctor once a year. Hundreds of tests and side effects never ends. My medical charts are now in several boxes now, however it does not mean that I do not have a happy life. While Yes, we can have a new normal being happy and productive, the reality is I have to work much harder in order to achieve the same result.0 -
Oh Pittpitt said:Great to hear!
I'm so happy to hear that you are doing well. I have to be honest, I'm one of those perky "cup is half-full" kind of people, but I too feel that I am living a "new normal." I have gotten my strength back, become a nationally ranked swimmer, gotten my coaches certifications, going back to grad school, yada yada yada. I'm doing all the things that give my joy. And then I went in for a simple procedure on Tuesday (bladder sling) because my bladder dropped after my hysterectomy. (Let's all remember this happened to me under the age of 40.) I'm not normal.
So everything went fine, and then in the middle of the night I got up to use the bathroom. My husband heard a crash and found me unconscious on the bathroom floor, eyes wide open and dilated, not breathing. It took 1/2 minute for me to regain consciousness. He rushed me to the ER and my heart rate was 42 bpm. I stayed in the hospital until Friday night. I will have to follow up with the cardiologist and neurologist this week.
My surgeon came to visit me (at a different hospital from the one where I had the surgery) just to look at all the scans. His fear was that the cancer had returned to my brain so he wanted to see the CT scan and MRI. We did a little celebrating when those came back fine.
Life is full of ups and downs. The point is to move on from the downs and don't let them overtake you. There are things I will always have to be concerned about from now on. Okay. Be smart but focus on the positives. Life is good and it is up to us to make it even better...
Liz,
Sorry for your health problems. I was wondering how have you been. Congratulations for your achievements, please take care of yourself0 -
Hi Sunrae! It sounds likepitt said:Great to hear!
I'm so happy to hear that you are doing well. I have to be honest, I'm one of those perky "cup is half-full" kind of people, but I too feel that I am living a "new normal." I have gotten my strength back, become a nationally ranked swimmer, gotten my coaches certifications, going back to grad school, yada yada yada. I'm doing all the things that give my joy. And then I went in for a simple procedure on Tuesday (bladder sling) because my bladder dropped after my hysterectomy. (Let's all remember this happened to me under the age of 40.) I'm not normal.
So everything went fine, and then in the middle of the night I got up to use the bathroom. My husband heard a crash and found me unconscious on the bathroom floor, eyes wide open and dilated, not breathing. It took 1/2 minute for me to regain consciousness. He rushed me to the ER and my heart rate was 42 bpm. I stayed in the hospital until Friday night. I will have to follow up with the cardiologist and neurologist this week.
My surgeon came to visit me (at a different hospital from the one where I had the surgery) just to look at all the scans. His fear was that the cancer had returned to my brain so he wanted to see the CT scan and MRI. We did a little celebrating when those came back fine.
Life is full of ups and downs. The point is to move on from the downs and don't let them overtake you. There are things I will always have to be concerned about from now on. Okay. Be smart but focus on the positives. Life is good and it is up to us to make it even better...
Hi Sunrae! It sounds like you are doing so well and I am so happy for that. I have heard others talk about a new normal, but like you, I am back to being normal, I think. Just don't hold me to that! lol I love my life and I am enjoying it!
You take care and be happy!
Hugs, Kylez0 -
Never the same has different meanings to different people
For me it means that I will never take anything in life for granted again. I inted to kick cancer's A$$. If this is impossible for some reason then I get to meet my Lord and Savoir early. Either way it is a win/win for me. I have been able to let go of so many petty things since my diagnosis.0 -
I made this same statementlaughs_a_lot said:Never the same has different meanings to different people
For me it means that I will never take anything in life for granted again. I inted to kick cancer's A$$. If this is impossible for some reason then I get to meet my Lord and Savoir early. Either way it is a win/win for me. I have been able to let go of so many petty things since my diagnosis.
I made this same statement not long ago. I just finished radiation almost four weeks ago and my mastectomy scars and radiation burns are starting to finally heal up. I've been poked, sliced and diced and charred for the past eight months. These last two weeks have been wonderful. My tissue expanders give me the feeling of still having breasts and the body and mind for the most part has withered the storm. I feel like my old self is starting to return physically. Psychologically I will have a new norm... all those future blood tests and scans will always keep me guessing.
But I'm alive, and that's what this is all about right? It's all about living each day to the fullest and not letting our cancer take that from us.
Hugs,
Lorrie0 -
Sunrae
such a powerful message! It's true that life can get back to a new "normal" after cancer just like other life changing occurences. I've had a new "normal" twice in the past 5 years. Life does go on and we have to make the best of what we have to work with. Thanks for sharing how well you're doing.
{{hugs}} Char0
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