Healthy, athletic, and groovy girl. Taking my life back after cancer. Focusing on nutritional health, exercise, healthy changes and steady choices in life that are "doable". Cancer-free 3rd year and feeling like my old self, but way better (not because of it; in spite of it!).

FEB 2013: Talking now about nutrition, exercise and diet. Moving away from the cancer-talk life, and moving toward the new life after all that; Love, Life, and Healing! There is life after cancer treatment. Exercise and a realistic approach to changing my diet, bad habits, and battles will be the focus of my new posts. Thanks for joining me in changing your life for the better. Making "permanent life changes" is what keeping healthy is all about!

During Cancer: 

Sept 2009: In shock over my breast cancer diagnosis: Sept. 11, 2009: IDC and DCIS. 1.7 cm tumor of left breast at 3 o'clock. Sentinel lymph nodes to be extracted at surgery with tumor.

Oct 24: Update. Another tumor found on sternum side and must think about mastectomy now. Maybe they should just take both? When I grow up, I want to be an old woman.

Oct 26: 2nd Biopsy was negative for cancer! So we may still do the lumpectomy with radiation chemo to be determined if the sentinel nodes are positive for cancer. If negative, we will do 5 years of tamoxifen and 6 weeks of radiation. So many ups and downs...a ball in a pinball machine. Nothing is for certain except I am here today and I am fighting, and learning, and growing, and loving more than ever before.

NOV 6...we will get it out. We got it out! And waiting for path report on Nov 16 to determine chemo or no chemo...whew. Gonna have margin clean up in Decemeber.... Lymphs were dirty, so must have chemo beginning January. Sucks.

Jan 14th scheduled for margin clean-up. Then chemo to begin in mid-Feb. I am ready. Let's get this show on the road! Jan 28: Had a great margin. Technically cancer free and will buy cancer insurance with chemo and tamoxifen. Hoping for the chemo to go smoothly and quickly. Ready for radiation after that, then it will probably be August before we can say we got it done.

Feb 23: Ready for first chemo infusion. Hit me with your best shot. Went well. Let's see what happens in the next three weeks. March5: Feeling okay from chemo, mouth sores#1. Chemo #2 will be in 2 weeks. March 14: Happy Birthday to me! Then March 16: Boo. Chemo #2 March:19 so far so good. doped up, keeping ahead of the pain of chemo #2. food tastes bad, water tastes worse. but keep drinking it! 8 glasses a day. "solution to pollution is dilution!" Chemo #3: Ouch. is all I can say. April 28th: Last infusion Chemo #4 was today. I feel the effects of all the chemo's together. Big fatigue, everything hurts. But I am excited and happy that I am done with this part, now off to radiation. I will have a month and a half break to feel better before then! Almost done..whew. This little synopsis makes it sound so quick...

June 3: ready for rads with tattoos positioned. June 15:Day 7 of radiation and my skin is beginning to burn.I have to do 30 days....oh boy. July15: Very burned, brownish-red skin in armpit and under breast. Very hot, itchy and hurty. Sleeping with nothing touching the skin, using creams, and aloe for the whole area. Last week of radiation July 20: The pain is inside too. Stretching sensation when I move, very burned and raw skin, and so much fatigue. Different from chemo, but the same weakness in legs and arms. Neurapathy has started in my left habd and both feet, way after chemo. Will take vitamin B-12, and L-Glutamine for it, we'll see if it helps. Exercise is still not possible, can feel every bounce in the skin.

July 27: Last day of radiation and active treatment. Now it is time for healing and thinking.

Aug 4: After radiation and active treatment, the skin is still recovering, and the docs say the rads are still working inside. Still have fatigue, worse now, but slowly getting better. Instead of being pooped after walking the dog, I am tired every three days or so. I take naps when I can, or sleep in when I can and that helps. Listening to my body and giving it what it needs.

in September 2010: A diagnostic MRI and Mammo will be scheduled to see (not see!) any tumors or suspicious growths. Then Tamoxifen will be in my life for at least five years. I will only be 40 in 2015, so I hope there will be other medicines available for me then that will take me into, at least, my 70's. Thank you Doctors, nurses, physicists, oncologists, and BCN, and peers at BCN, for making this terrible thing something tolerable.

October: First Diagnostic mammo shows nothing. Thank the Universe. Second one in 6 months. What should I do in the mean time? Live and laugh and love and eat and run and breathe and pray and smile. Walk the dog, travel, hike. Make some big changes in my life.

Jan 2011: Happy New Year! All's well. Take vitamins, go to work, getting my groove back and making the best of it! 2011 is off to a great start!

April 2011: Blood counts are still low, have a little anemia and a little fatigue. Running, and stopped lifting weights for arms to keep lymphedema at bay. Doing gardening and planning for a Spring/ Summer trip to Berkeley. Looking forward.

July 2011: Decided after much thought and rare side effects from the tamoxifen, to forego taking it for a few months. Took it for 7 months and had chronic fatigue syndrome that I am finally beating. Some lingering chemo side effects are numb tips of fingers and toes, but so mild I don't feel it at all at times. Hair is coming in blacker, and fuller and healthy. During the CFS, I stopped exercising and could not do much, but since, I have resumed exercise 3x a week, just to 30 minutes of cardio and an occasional dance class. I am working part-time editing from home, and making the best of it all. It is only now, with the help of this blog, that I have been able to look back on the last 2 years and process what I went through with the surgeries, chemo and rads. I said it before, but this is really the turning point now. I feel like me, but a different me. And I feel good. This Fall will bring new career choices, travel to distant lands and the best times with my wonderful husband. O'hala.

Oct 2011: 2nd yr mammo is clean. Doing Pilates, running and trying to get chemo weight off. eating better. I never ate worse than during chemo; when you can eat whatever you can keep down. If I never see a cantaloupe again, it would be too soon. Working hard at a new endeavor. Making peace with the past, forgetting old and useless pains and memories, and moving towards the future. Loving the people in my life and my new friends here at BCN and around the world writing about women's health. Still have residual pain at surgery sites, but manageable. Still working towards healing. MRI for March 2012.

January 2012: Happy New Year! And excited to continue my work-out routines, keep up with my appointments and feeling better. Still have a little stamina issues, but as I work out more, it is getting better. 

March 2012: This year, I gave up red meat. I am limiting the amount of tofu/soy I eat. I had a bone scan for some pain in my back, and it appears to be fine and not related to cancer. The pain persists. I am working out, running, Pilates, and yoga. I am retraining for a new career, and trying my very best to live hard and play hard. and love.

June 2012: Finally working and still going to school for my new endeavor! Very excited that summer is here, escaping to the beach when possible, and eating healthy and making sure to keep my appointments. Now, I am in charge of keeping up with my check-ups. It's going okay. I feel like the storm has passed and I am just now picking up the pieces and saying, "Hey! I remember you!".

Dec 2012: Year 3 Mammo is clean and all is well on that front. Finishing up my school program and going to the gym and yoga and finally seeing some results! Rememering that I must take care of my own Appts. because docs are more int eh background than the center of my life. I am so grateful for that!

FEB 2013: Launched my new blog about nutrition, exercise and diet. Moving away from the cancer-talk life, and moving toward the new life after all that; Love Life and Healing! Exercise and a realistic approach to changing my diet, bad habits, and battles will be the focus of my new posts. Thanks for joining me in changing your life for the better. Making "permanent life changes" is what keeping healthy is all about!