Dis Breast Cancer Survivors - GAGWTA!

[Pea-n-Me]

This news was kind of a bummer re: pink ribbons and breast cancer research monies:

http://news.bostonherald.com/localRegional/view.bg?articleid=104362

 

[laurabelle]

~~~***GAGWTA sistas***~~~

Welcome Sandi! I'm glad you found us...more than that, I'm glad you were listening to your heart and protected by your guardian angel!

Hollyann- Whoooo hoooo!!!

Ann- I get pissed off about these stupid waste of
funding research projects! I mean give me a break, left handed or
right handed (I'm a righty btw) or eating fries as a kid (believe me,
growing up going out to eat fast food was a rare treat!) Who approved
this??? Who is funding it??? I don't want to contribute to this
idiotic research, sheesh! There are so many truly important areas to
research, why are they wasting money and time on this??? (rant over)

I went to my gyn/onc appt. this morning. She did another pap and an endometrial biopsy and I go for a pelvic ultrasound tomorrow. Biopsy results will be in next week. Nothing else to report, just waiting and trying not to think about it too much. Today is dh's birthday, and we'll all go out to dinner. I'm planning on having one fabulous glass of red wine...that should do me in!

 

[Lessa of Pern]

It's been a rough day.

had my chemo this morning. my chemo nurse and I had a talk about a few symptoms that are bothering me.

when I got my bloodwork done this time, I had a lot of bleeging and bruising. the next time I get blood drawn I need an extra test to time my clotting. this means I have to have the bloodwork at the hospital instead of at the lab.

and my blurry vision -- she suggested I see the opthamologist. it's probably neuropathy from the chemo, but we can't be sure of that.

and, oh, yeah...my white blood cells are "doing something funky" (her description, not mine), so my next cycle of chemo will be in 4 weeks instead of the usual 3 weeks.

oy.

 

[MerryPoppins]

Oy is right, Lessa. No fun. Sorry it was a rough day. Here's hoping it gets better.

 

[Pea-n-Me]

all around.

 

[Hollyann]

Lessa and Laurabelle - you're in my heart and prayers....as are all the GAGTWA sisters!

Extremely tired tonight. I took a pain med - didn't take any meds today and had a very busy, tough but rewarding day at work.

Laurabelle - enjoy your glass-o-wine! I'm meeting with the family tomorrow to have dinner to welcome my parents back from their summer away. My indulgence will probably be something fried!

Take care ya'll....sleepy tonight.....

 

[NHAnn]

Oh lessa....tomrrow will be better...sending P and PD

Good luck tomorrow Laurabelle and ugghhh...another "wait" for results....enjoy the wine.

I had a glass with dinner tonight and am having MAJOR hot flashes tonight! Maybe it's not the wine, maybe it's Red-Sox-induced stress!!

 

[laurabelle]

~~~***Middle of the Night GAGWTA sistas***~~~

Lessa- Sorry you've got to add to your list of one more thing to test for, ugh. Is there some reason you don't get Neupogen or Neulasta shots for your counts? Wondering, since you just had chemo yesterday and your WBC is funky... why don't they give you the shots to boost it so you can stay on schedule?


Hubby's birthday dinner was yummy and my glass of wine was lovely, but I'm such a lightweight sistas! We finished dinner around 7:30 and by 8:30 I was asleep...of course since I only sleep 5 hrs/night, I was up at 1:30. I missed watching Lost.

 

[Pea-n-Me]

Hi Laura!! Sorry you can't sleep...

~~~~***From another Middle of the Night GAGWTA Sista***~~~~

 

[Lessa of Pern]

I will have to ask about the Neupogen or Neulasta shots when I go for my next cycle.

I woke up in the middle of the night, couldn't get back to sleep even after I took the TUMS for the heat burn. home from work today -- not only was I tired from lack of sleep, but my face was bright red so I took a benadryl, which always makes me sleepy, and I needed a compazine, which certainly doens't help me stay alert.

I think a nap is in my future.

 

[laurabelle]

I just got this email from a sista:

FYI: CDC was invited to serve as an expert at the Writer's Guild Association panel on genomics this past February. Health, Hollywood, and Society (HH&S), an organization partially funded by CDC that provides entertainment industry professionals with accurate and timely information for health storylines, coordinated this event and it was well attended by writers and producers from various TV shows. Maren Scheuner served as the CDC representative and family history and breast cancer was included as part of the panel discussion. She was also involved in a briefing with staff of the hit TV show ER. HH&S informed us several weeks ago that ER will be airing a 3-part series on breast cancer on the following dates: 10/6, 10/13, and 10/20. Although we are not privy to the exact storyline, we are hoping family history is included as part of the message. If you get the chance, tune in!

 

[laurabelle]

Lessa, you could ask about the shots now, this would actually be the best time to get it...
I hope you are able to rest today.


I had my p&v u/s. It was weird because the tech was asking me questions and she said has anyone in your family had cancer, and I said yeah, I had bc. Then she asked me if I was on Tamoxifen, then a few minutes later she asked me if I had anything removed and I said, no it should all be there! A few minutes later she said she found my right ovary but she was having trouble finding the left one and I told her it should be there! I guess she found it... she never said she didn't! It hurt at one point... she said that hurt? and I said yeah. She was professional but not especially friendly/talkative so I couldn't get anything out of her, she just said they'll send the report to my doc. Anyway, trying not to read too much into it....at least that's over with.

 

[laurabelle]

Hi Laura!! Sorry you can't sleep...

~~~~***From another Middle of the Night GAGWTA Sista***~~~~

What were you doing up???

 

[Disney Debbie]

GAGTWA! Been absent for almost a month now! But for good reasons. We went to Bryce, Zion and Grand Canyon and finished up in Las Vegas for vacation two weeks ago. I spent the week before working like a dog to go - and the last two weeks to catch up! But it was worth it! We celebrated our 23rd wedding anniversary but even better - we hiked the Narrows at Zion Canyon. It was really a big adventure for us - we aren't particularly outdoorsy but sure do love it out there. But we did it on a Tuesday - and as we were hiking I realized that one year before - I'd been having my 4th chemo and was as bald as could be! What a difference a year makes!!! The whole trip was just wonderful and I felt like I was really celebrating life!

 

[Laurajean1014]

Welcome back Debbie!

How is everyone?

 

[snappy]

Sounds like a great trip Debbie, I am jealous.

Keeping my fingers crossed on your biopsy results, Laura.

Lessa and everyone, hope y'all get some sleep tonight.

GAGWTA!!!

All I can say is I sure hope that October turns out better than
September did.

Anybody ever had a twitching eye? My left eye started twitching last week when things were a bit stressful in our house to say the least. It is still doing it, not constantly, but enough times during the day that it is bothersome. I realized that my BP was up, went in this week twice to have it checked. the doctor doubled the dose on my ace inhibitor. The doc did not seem to think the twitching eye had anything to do with the BP though. He said to do deep breathing and such to relax. If it gets worse, he said to go see an eye doc. That sounded a little off.

I am trying to destress but I am not sleeping right so I am tired (sound familiar ladies?) I am thinking about using the Ambien again (I took one last week during my worst night). No trouble going to sleep, but I wake up at 1 am with all kind of worries.

 

[NHAnn]

Laurabelle....glad the test is over and hope the results come soon. Keeping you in my prayers.

Debbie...welcome back! Sounds like a wonderful trip!

Laurajean, nice to see you....any decisions/news on your treatment plan?

Snappy... I've had bouts with those nasty eye-twitches all my adult life, in times of stress. The eye doc comments sounds a little off to me too

TGIF tomorrow...and GAGWTA!!

 

[laurabelle]

~~~***GAGTWA sistas***~~~

Debbie- Sounds like a wonderful trip! Isn't it funny how we measure time now...I realized about a week ago, that the surprise trip I'm planning for my girls is going to happen right around my 7yr cancerversary! We went to WDW right before my dx! In fact, I scheduled my lumpectomy around it, I had it the day after I came home. The kids were 2 & 4yrs old then. Going back to MVMCP... my oldest remembers the parade, my youngest doesn't remember any of it. I'm so grateful to be here to take them back...7 yrs later!!!

Laurie- Go ahead and take that Ambien if it helps you sleep! I took it for almost 2 months, and believe me, I'm not addicted, lol! I stopped a few days ago, because I was able to fall asleep on my own. With the steroids, I just can't STAY asleep longer than 5 hrs, Ambien or not, so I stopped taking it.

Hey Laurajean! How are you???

Thank you for all the prayers...it means the world to me, and I do feel them! I am worried, but I have peace too! I try not to read about other cancers, I really only know about MY cancer, know what I mean? But I did a search yesterday on endometrial biopsy and read about uterine cancer, just in case...

Tomorrow is our race, and we had our pre-race party last night. Our team did an awesome job raising money: $17,521!!! I'll be there hangin' at our YSC table, there's no way I can even walk the 1mi, but I have other sistas who aren't "racing" either, so it will be fun times! We have our own t-shirts and we put Lisa Porter's website www.lisawillsurvive.com on the back in her honor. She was so moved... It's going to be a great day!

 

[Pea-n-Me]

What were you doing up???

Same thing I'm doing now - eating my "dinner" at work, LOL!

 

[snappy]

Wow Laura, that is an incredible amount to raise. How many people are on your team? I would love to hear more about your fundraising ideas. My sister is on a team in La Place, LA. They raised over 12 grand. My sister and her husband sell those little crosses, they do lots of bake sales throughout the year. They also do big raffles, one of the cousin's husbands (the one with breast cancer) owns a very well known meat business and has a great raffle each year.

Have a great time tomorrow. Hope you can take some pictures and post them here. Your pics are the best.

Lessa, did you get that nap?