Stopping by to say hello

icemantoo said:

Welcome back

Rae,

 

Sorry to hear about mom. Glad to hear you are still NED . More so that you started with less than perfect baggage. Come back and be an example to the Newbies that start with Stage 2 and can see from you that they can look to you as an example of being NED for 2 and 1/2  years.

 

 

Icemantoo

So lovely to hear from you Rae and even more so to hear you're still NED. 

I'm sure yourMom enjoyed a lot more time and better quality of life for all the care you gave her. 

You must be feeling a bit of a vacuum now that she's gone and I hope you'll take up iceman's suggestion and spend a bit more time here again, helping to encourage and inspire all those newcomers (and us oldies too!).

Its nice to hear another success story and to see such a happy face! 

I am sorry for your loss. It is a path travelled far too often for all of us.  Be thankful for her life, her company and the lessons she passed on to you! Treasure her memory.

Warmly

Michael

Hi Rae,

Really sorry to hear about your mom, but its good to hear you are doing great.  I too have been a bit scarce around here, but working on a comeback, I hope you'll stick around and help cheer up the new members with your wonderful smile.

God bless you too.

Gary

Condolences on the loss of your mom; sincerely sorry.  You can take comfort in your selfless caring for her  despite your own problems. I'm sure she's guiding your NED status from a better place. Good to have you back!

rae_rae said:

Thank you

Thanks for the well wishes. It's nice to see all of your smiling faces as well. Between my busy job and chronic migraine issues I've been having, I feel I have less time now than when I was caring for my mom, but I do miss her. For those that are new and don't know my history (and for the old and faithful that have forgotten), I will share with you and you can read my profile as well.

I was diagnosed in July of 2010 after have symptoms - clear cell carcinoma, stage 2a, grade 3, 9cm tumor, left kidney. Lots of necrosis which means it was growing quickly.  One small area (1mm) of breakthrough. It was butting up against my spleen and pancreas. Radical nephrectomy in October of 2010 with a nick to my spleen and to the tail of my pancreas which required a specialist to stitch it up and also follow up with me during my six day stay in the hospital to make sure it was healing. 

BP dropped to 74/42 after surgery. I was given two units of blood and still struggled to get my BP up the first night. I had an epidural for pain which was removed on day four. I had a fever on day two, three and four and my oxygen levels dropped to 74%. We eventually got that all sorted out (lots of coughing up junk). I caught the Norwalk virus the day my staples were removed and ended up in ER. I was very ill for four days. Ialso had a migraine the night before surgery and vomited all night and the next morning. Needless to say, my surgery was not the high point of my life.

The next year brought chronic fatigue mainly due to anemia and B12 deficiency, a recurrence scare and eventual road to feeling "normal" by late 2011. It is truly a unique exerience for each person. It's been two and a half years and my life is back to normal. You do eventually get past the worry of each little ache and pain and thinking about cancer every day. It took almost two years for me to get there. Of course, I still have reminders such as the giant scar and the nerve pain along my scar, but it's a gentle reminder to stay vigilant with my check ups. I have had CT scans every six months and now my next one will be at a year. It's nice not to think about it for awhile. 

For the newbies, all I can say the worry and the fear are understandable, but it won't add one day to your life. You eventually adjust to your new normal, whatever that may be. Life is nothing, if not ever changing. Accept the change and keep moving forward.

God Bless,

 

Rae

That's an excellent summary Rae with first-class advice for all newcomers, as well as reminders for those long-timers among us who don't remember every twist and turn of your story.  With your last sentence, in only seven words you've captured the crucial message:

Accept the change and keep moving forward.