Dis Breast Cancer Survivors Part II -GAGWTA!

[snappy]

Happy Mother's Day everyone. Its such a bittersweet day for me, and I am kind of depressed. My kids and hubby and I went out to our favorite little boca diner for breakfast right near the beach. It was really nice and layed back. Tonight we are meeting my dad for dinner. It will be best to be together.

My dad is having surgery on Thursday now that he has great doctors (he got rid of his managed care plan and hired a VIP doctor and got a great medicare supplement so he can have the best). Manged medicare programs here in South Florida are THE WORST because there are so many old people and they really do try to hustle you out of the hospital too early, plus the great doctors don't take patients from those programs. The VIP doctor thing is a real big deal around here, you pay a fixed fee per year and the doctor only takes 300 patients into his practice, you get an appointment same day, a yearly detailed physical, call backs 24/7 year round within 30 minutes, etc. I wish I could do that. For my dad its so worth it because it means someone is managing his care well now that my mom is not here to do it. And you can't take your money with ya, so I'm glad hes putting it to good use!

Laurie, thanks for the thoughts! You are such a great person and I can't wait to see you again in October!

Linda, I finished the book you sent me and it has made an immense impact on me. It brought me great comfort about my mom. I miss her so much! Thanks from the bottom of my heart!

Happy Mom's Day to everyone, thanks for all your kind words and posts. I hope everyone has a healthy and glorious day.

Maureen, I am certainly "looking forward" to seeing you and your sweet family again. Be sure and bring along that handsome son of yours.

I suspected today would be difficult for you, with your loss so recent. I am glad your dad has the right doc now. That is so sad about senior health care in Florida.

Both college students are home and they brought lots of stuff back. I hope the drier does not give up the ghost at some point today.

DD18 got awesome grades and should retain all her scholarships, . DS20 got a C in French that is troublesome. We'll see how the English grades come in. It looks borderline for him retaining his scholarship but it is only worth about $3200 a year, much less than the Tulane ones.

Another thing to worry about. . . DD18's boyfriend invited her to go with him to London in July to meet his folks. Even DD18 is worried about this one.

Laura, DD18 just has a waitressing job but is is adjacent to campus, she makes very good tips and there is a lot of competition for the job there. They told her she can take a few weeks off but can't keep her on the roster if she takes the whole summer off. She won't be commuting. . . she'll be staying with her roommate whose father lives near campus, and with my New Orleans friend when her roommate travels from New Orleans. I have to say I am not ectastic about it since she'll need her car down there.

So as usual life is never dull here.

We have not heard from Ann lately, hope she is well.

DD18 may be trying to set me up but she said she might go to Disney with us next week. The more the merrier, I say.

Naj and Snappy got into another fight yesterday, NAJ is now an outside dog and may need a new owner. Snappy has another cut and I needs to see the vet tomorrow.

Snappy seems happier with Naj outside, that is for sure.

 

[annrae]

Wishing all of you a very Happy Mother's Day! We all had brunch together this morning and it was really nice to have our new little one with us. Our oldest GD graduated from College yesterday!

Please take care everyone and although I do not post often, I think of all of you almost on a daily basis. We will be in WDW for New Years Eve this year. We are leaving for Disney on Dec. 30, spending 4 days at the Boardwalk and then a 4 day cruise - with our entire family (and the baby). Will any of you be there at that time.

Have a good week and hugs to all of you. Barbara

 

[jessaboo]

Hey there, just was looking for the breast cancer board and I found you guys!


How are you?

I'm speaking at Columbus, Ohio's Komen Race For The Cure @ the survivor ceremony; anyone going?

 

[luvmarypoppins]

Good morning everyone

Bingo!! - Yup, I got the lucky B12 shot today!! The nurse said it lasts for a month. And yes, I did have to pay the nice $20 co-pay and didnt even see the dr., he wasnt there anyway and then the clueless office manager nurse who I cant stand and I have seen people comment on her at ratemydoc or something like that and they say she is rude etc. She says, oh you look familiar, whats your name etc., I tell her my name. I wanted to say, well I have been a patient here for over 20 years so I guess I should look familiar to you, Gheesh!! Another reason why I am not liking my pcp, not to say I was ever that fond of him anyway. Glad another nurse I like gave me the shot.

Tomm, is the big day at the stomach surgeon. I just dont want him to say the "S" word - more surgery!! I dont know what his game plan will be for the constantly draining wound. He said 2 months and its been more than that. So I would appreciate any prayers for tomm,. for sure. Dh is going with me, because if he says surgery, I think I am going to freak out.

The week end went well. A lady at church said, Oh I didnt know you were sick etc. This is the lady who I was suppose to cook a meal for in sept. when I had a big thread on the CB about cooking meals for sick people. She didnt want to use the word cancer. I see alot of people at my church manage to tiptoe around that word with me. I took a 2 hour nap yest. I am expecting something like that today too since I couldnt sleep last night. Too muc h pain. We went out as a family sat. night so it was fun. Ds 1 got me stuff from starbucks and kit kats, ds2 got me a prayer and inspirational journal type book from Borders he said and ds 3 got me some shell wall hanging and york peppermint patties. He got a card and what he wrote turned me into Niagra Falls ladies, well I have never been there, he wrote mom, I am so glad you are still with me, keep being strong and keep fighting etc. Mush sistas, I tell you I turned into mush!!

Thinking of you all and I will give an update tomm.

 

[Tuffcookie]

ds 3 got me some shell wall hanging and york peppermint patties. He got a card and what he wrote turned me into Niagra Falls ladies, well I have never been there, he wrote mom, I am so glad you are still with me, keep being strong and keep fighting etc. Mush sistas, I tell you I turned into mush!!

Aww, Maryann, I don't blame you for turning to mush! That is the sweetest thing your DS wrote!

Hope you all had a wonderful Mother's Day. It's so strange to not have my own DM to celebrate with. I miss her every day but especially on special ocassions.

BTW, I WAS able to get my hands on one of those referral cards for the APs. A DISer in Kansas had one and she mailed it out on Wed. It arrived Saturday! Just in time for my friend who left for WDW Sunday!!!

Everyone, have a blessed week!!! For all the bad, don't forget to count your blessings!!!

TC

 

[NHAnn]

I'm here Laurie...thanks!

GAGWTA....and a belated happy mother's day !!

I've been popping in to read but my laptop is sounding pretty bad with lots of humming and it takes ages to respond to clicks and load things.....it takes me a long time to navigate around let alone post.

My life is hectic these days.... I so want to plan a Disney trip but it's really not in the cards short term. Youngest stepson is getting married next month...I haven't a thing to wear and need to get the rehearsal dinner invites out. Rush rush rush.

Maureen... I thought of you and another friend of mine who had their first after the loss of their own mom....it is just the second year for me and I did get awfully weepy when accompanying DH to Hallmark on Saturday for his last minute card for his own DM.
I had a lovely day though, a repeat of last year...DD and DH took me to breakfast and then DD took me shopping for annuals/plants for the yard and porch Avery and family visted a bit in the afternoon and had calls/cards from the other stepchildren/grandkids. Got a really cute card from my sister Kathy...with a Disney touch. The front showed "the 7 dwarves of motherhood": Huggy, Fussy, Worry, Guilty, Naggy, Saintly, and the Enabler. Inside she wrote "I think you've got them all down pat!"

Like Annrae, I think of you all daily!!

 

[laurabelle]

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

jessaboo! Glad you found us! I'm not in Ohio, but look forward to hearing about your day...when is it? How long have you been at this cancer thing? I'm a 10yr survivor!

Maureen- I'm so glad your dad is in with good dr.s. I'll keep him in my prayers for Thur.

Maryann- I'm sorry you are in pain and having trouble sleeping. I hope the visit with the surgeon goes well. I know what you mean about people not saying the word cancer to survivors... My own mother has done it to me more than once. I know she means well but it's kind of odd.

Ann- Your sister is too funny!Congrats to your stepson! Things must be happy and hectic there!

Barbara- Congrats to your GD!

Laurie- How's Snappy? I'm sorry things aren't working out with Naj...I know you must feel awful about it. It sounds like a job your dd wants to keep. I hope she does go to WDW with you!

I wonder how Kelly (Mickeymost) is doing? It would be nice to get an update.

For Mother's Day my family wrote things they love about me...obviously they wanted to see me cry!

 

[snappy]

Laura, what a beautiful idea, to write things they love about you. I bet they were very long lists. Genius!!

Jessaboo, come back and tell us your story. I don't know if we have anyone on our thread from Ohio, but some of us are planning to go to Orlando in October, God willing.

Absolutely love that card, Ann! How very original people can be when coming up with greeting cards.

Barbara, the New Years trip sounds great. Are you staying DVC? I don't think that time frame will ever work for us as my brother Tom from New York always visits Louisiana at that time.

It sounds like everyone had a nice day Sunday. I was getting gifts from DH and kids all day, the candles I have been looking at but not buying for myself, Wood wicks (2 of them!), a lovely rose scented and a very good scented vanilla sugar one), fish for my aquarium that was decimated not long ago from the ick, again my favorites-clown loaches, and a little baja shark like the one we got when we bought our first aquarium in 1994.

Later I got some beautiful new and unusual plants to spruce up the acquarium.

And I also got a boatload of the one thing I asked for, bales of pine needles to put int he flower beds. They look so pretty stacked up in the Yard, LOL!

The family really went for the stuff I love, not elaborate but obviously they targeted the things I love.

Snappy is back home and although she has stitches, they were able to do the debriding without general anesthesia. She seems fine. We are separating the two dogs 24/7 which is tricky.

We are going to seek commando dog training.

Maryann, I hope the visit to the surgeon goes well today and you get a solution to healing that does NOT include surgery. Please keep us posted.

Good to see you posting, beadylady, I hope your mother's day was wonderful!!

Trying to work out ideas for DD18 to go with us to WDW without staying the full 10 nights. Her boyfriend will be back in the states May 26th so she does not want to stay until the 29th. Brother!!!

I am still washing the mounds of dirty clothes. Will it never end?

GAGWTA!!

 

[luvmarypoppins]

Good afternoon sistas!!

Laura - that sounds so sweet about your reasons you are loved from your family

Laurie - I hope your dd gets to spend some of the time wtih you on vacaton and that the dog training goes well

Ann - sounds like you had a nice day. I would have loved a card like you got, too funny!!

Barbara - we usually go the lst week of dec. but this year it could be the 2nd because I have read they have major discounts on the ornaments and t he shirts then, I love that time of year and we always go to the candelight processional and the MVMCP.

O.K. my new number of the day is 50 as in 50/50. Hmm, yest, it ws B12 but now the surgeon said I have a 50/50 chance of having more surgery. He said there is too much tissue in the belly buttton and they usually see this with people with feeding tubes , of course it would happen to me too, so for the next 3 weeks, he did this today too, he will have me come in once a week to try and debride the wound and I guess if enough tissue is not coming out to close it up then he will do an operation and he said it will only be a one day thing in the ambulatory place, oh yeah, easy for him to say, I dont know how much more of this I can take and right now my belly button is killing me., He said you dont usually feel anything from the tissue down there, yeah right!! And the wonderful bed scale was right in the hosp. I lost another 20 lbs. being on that horrible diet. I think I might have gained maybe 2 back. So keep praying that I will not have to have this possible operation. I guess it would be in June sometime or at the beginning of July, oh there goes the summer.

Thinkingh of you all. GTAGWTA

 

[jessaboo]

I found out that I had cancer when I was 15.

Had a lumpectomy.

Had a reduction Sept. 22 of last year.

I'm 20 now.

 

[MerryPoppins]

Barbara, we hope to arrive early to mid-January. Looks like we may just miss you.

Jessaboo, you were 15? Wow! I bet that was hard to face at that age.

LMP, look at that glass half full. You have a 50% chance that you WON'T need that surgery.

Boy, senior health care in Florida must be strained. Glad your dad has a better doctor and I'll be thinking of him. Let us know how it goes, okay?

Laurie, sorry the dogs are still at it. Poor Snappy.

I know I didn't respond to all. Can't let the post get too sexy or I can't post it. So GAGWTA!

 

[luvmarypoppins]

Good afternoon sistas

Well my belly button hurts, ouch and its making me grumpy!! I guess I will be looking forward to this next tues too.Dh said he actually thought he would faint this time watching the procedure. Hmm, I have had some pretty interesting in office biopsies before and he was fine. I dont think this was even as bad as those.

Well what little surprise did I get in the mail? A bill for over $4,000 from the surgeon. Of course, I am freaking out and crying. I call dh. He says ignore it!! What?? Um, no I dont ignore things like this. I am thinking it was for the emergency surgeries where I was dying by the date and procedure which was not fully listed. I think the bill was almost $6,000 and they said the ins. co. paid like $1,200. All I can say is wow. I know this wasnt approved but gheesh, when you have 15 min. to live etc. So I will see about getting this straightened out. I know we never even get bills like this. The ins. co. always pays everything to the dr. etc. I know even if they dont pay it we can appeal it which I did with one of the biopsies that was over $3,000. I am just too upset to talk on the phone with these people right now. I wish my dh would have been more helpful. My voice is not the greatest to talk etc.

O.K. Enough of me. I hope you are all o.k. and having a great day. Thinking of you all. GTAGWTA.

 

[laurabelle]

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

Maryann- Ouch. Sorry you're still hurting. We got a big honkin' bill for something the hospital billed wrong when I took hubby to the ER on Valentine's day. The ins. co. wouldn't pay. We still are not responsible for it, but it's a PITA none the less.

jessaboo- Congrats on 5 yrs! I can't imagine finding BC at 15...I was dxed at age 36. My oldest dd is 15 now. Do you have a family history of it? I don't...

Laurie- Well everyone just wrote one thing, they were actually really silly, but I'm such a sap I cried anyway.

 

[MerryPoppins]

LMP, try not to worry too much about the bill. It'll all work out in the end. I don't see how they could blame you for not getting approved, so if you appeal it's sure to get straightened out. Sorry you're so sore. What we don't go through to get well, right?

I seem to be able to post on the DIS more if I use Google Chrome, but I still have to keep it short. IE just isn't very cooperative at all. Wish I understood what is going on with my computer.

It just keeps raining here. Today the sun is out, but they said to expect strong storms again tonight. Everything is green, but we can't even cut the grass. Crazy weather.

This weekend is Baccalaureate (or however you spell it) and the school choir's big spring concert. It's called Mostly Mozart and my DD auditoned for one of the solo/duet slots. She was selected to do a duet, so she's very excited. It's something she always knew she'd like to do her senior year. Then next week is full of recognition receptions, senior picnic, and graduation on Friday. My life is crazy busy right now.

Thinking of all of you. GAGWTA!

 

[Candy30]

I haven't read the whole thread but you all seem like a great, close-nit group. I love the support that I have read for not just the cancer but LIFE!
I wonder if you don't mind that I join your thread. I do not have BC but I do have Cancer.

GAGWTA

I have a mother that has survived BC for 20 years. My father passed from Colon Cancer 5 years ago. I was diagnosed with Lymphoma 6 years ago at the age of 32. It was in remission for 2 years and now continues to return. So I have to have treatment every 6 months. 2 weeks ago I got my first port since the drug destroys my veins and it was very emotional for me. I still can't figure out why it bothers me so much. Anyone else have this issue?

I am the mother of 2 very brave and supportive children and a great, loving husband.

Now that you have my resume', Can I stay PLEEEEAAAASE?

 

[jessaboo]

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

Maryann- Ouch. Sorry you're still hurting. We got a big honkin' bill for something the hospital billed wrong when I took hubby to the ER on Valentine's day. The ins. co. wouldn't pay. We still are not responsible for it, but it's a PITA none the less.

jessaboo- Congrats on 5 yrs! I can't imagine finding BC at 15...I was dxed at age 36. My oldest dd is 15 now. Do you have a family history of it? I don't...

Laurie- Well everyone just wrote one thing, they were actually really silly, but I'm such a sap I cried anyway.

No family history. It was a phyllodes tumor.
Just a genetic fluke. :]

 

[MerryPoppins]

Of course you can stay, Candy. You don't have to have breast cancer, or even cancer to hang out here. Besides, I think the more people we reach out to support, the better we feel. At least that's the way it seems to me.

 

[snappy]

I haven't read the whole thread but you all seem like a great, close-nit group. I love the support that I have read for not just the cancer but LIFE!
I wonder if you don't mind that I join your thread. I do not have BC but I do have Cancer.

GAGWTA

I have a mother that has survived BC for 20 years. My father passed from Colon Cancer 5 years ago. I was diagnosed with Lymphoma 6 years ago at the age of 32. It was in remission for 2 years and now continues to return. So I have to have treatment every 6 months. 2 weeks ago I got my first port since the drug destroys my veins and it was very emotional for me. I still can't figure out why it bothers me so much. Anyone else have this issue?

I am the mother of 2 very brave and supportive children and a great, loving husband.

Now that you have my resume', Can I stay PLEEEEAAAASE?

Welcome! Glad you found us!!

 

[Pea-n-Me]

Welcome Candy and jessaboo.

Maureen, so glad to hear the book helped you.

Not feeling too well this week, nothing serious. Following along, though.

GAGWTA

 

[laurabelle]

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

Candy30- Did you bring candy??? If so, you can stay! Seriously, cancer schmancer, whatever variety, it all sucks doesn't it?!? Yes! It's the little seemingly insignificant things that set me off too. I'm glad you found us. We can certainly veer off the subject of cancer here, and that's a good thing!

Jessa- I think Ann's sister had a phyllodes tumor...not BC though.

Linda- I hope you are able to rest and feel better soon. I know this is such a crazy busy time of year...

Melissa- How exciting for your dd! I bet you're enjoying every moment it!

I keep seeing Farrah in the news and my heart sure goes out to her and her family. It's especially hard thinking of her son in jail at this time...

Seems the latest plague I am being smitten with is boils...yep, it's a Methotrexate side effect. I expect locusts will be next...

There's a candy theme here...last night after dinner we had a little dark chocolate and I set a new goal for myself, try to have chocolate every day for the rest of my life!