MIDDLE-AGED WOMEN 40-60ish

Meece

five years ago I had my first breast MRI.  Face down with arms straight over my head for close to two hours.

The next ones the had earphones like they used to use in airplanes.  The type that were hollow tubes (no electrical wires) and they played music, a song for each segment.  Still arms over my head but about an hour.  

The last one I went to didn't have music but the past two times I had it, they had a "bed" that made it so you didn't have to lie flat, and your arms are bent sightly lower than the table.

That and it now takes less than 30 mninutes.  They also have a sort of tube you look into which shows the end of the machine, so you don't feel so confined.  They always use earplugs so your ears don't hurt.  The only "tingling I've had was that I couldn't get my wedding ring off and it vibrated.  I have also had head MRIs, the noise is the same with them all.

They've come a long way, baby!

cookiegal

I would take a PEM or PET any day of the week over this. Glad that's behind me though. Looking forward to a fun weekend...hope others are doing the same.

Meece

When I had my pre-chemo PET, the Pet Scan machine broke mid scan.  ghey had to take me out of it, and send me acrossed town to a different machine because I already had the radioactive stuff in me.

3jaysmom

Elimar...that hummingbird is gorgeous!!!thank u for that!   3jays mom    ladies, i hope ur mem.day holiday is great...what does it mea "baiting?"

Meece

Where was that used, 3jays?

cookiegal

I went to the US open the day of my pet scan and set off the alarms!

The cop said to me, "did you have a stress test?"

I said, "No, but I have had almost everthing else"

He said (Insert Brooklyn accent here)"Didn't think youse looked like a terrorist."

Meece

That is too funny! 

cookiegal

hi again...hope everyone has fun or meaningful things to do today.

Little experiment, I spent time with a friend and her tourist buddy yesterday. I decided to see what would happen if I never mentioned cancer. After all this visitor is not going to be in my circle of friends, she just wanted a day of eating, museums, and shopping, why should she need the psychic weight of my cancer.

It was interesting, we talked about "normal gal stuff", shoes, restaurants, it was kind of fun to be trivial for a few hours. She did at one point say how lucky I was to have 6 months not working, and I almost said, believe me you don't want time off for this reason, but I held my tounge.

I think it was the start of a new normal. I won't lie or cover up the cancer, but I don't need to drop the c bomb with every aquaintance.

I must admit, I am a bit paranoid about the results of this mri...maybe it's just remembering waiting throught labor day weekend for my biopsy results.

Hugs to all!

cookiegal

Oh...one question. I have been marinating our meat in balsamic before grilling to cut down on carcinogens, but hubby says he hates the taste.

Any other ways to do this?

barbe1958

Marinate in red wine.

NativeMainer

cookiegal--I remember the first time I had a day without talking about the beast.  It was at work, faculty meetings and planning for the upcoming semester.  I felt like a real, productive person again and it was WONDERFUL!  The first time is a big step, and you should enjoy it as much as you can, and you should be happy with yourself for putting one over on the beast.  And now, more such days will come! 

PauldingMom

Tell me more about carcinogens. Does this occur when you use a gas grill? or just when you use a charcoal grill?  We grill out about once a week but I like my meat medium rare so it never gets a chance to get dark. 

Meece

I heard that it is the char that is on the meat.  I don't think it maters what fuel was used to make the char.  I may be wrong.

Kleenex

Cookie - love that you had pringles after the MRI. So healing. I love pringles.

I'm with Meece - I've heard that it's the charred portions of the meat as a result of the grilling process that's the problem. I hadn't heard that balsamic vinegar or anything could prevent that.

ANOTHER band trip weekend: road trip to Austin to take my daughter and the rest of her quartet down to UT for the State Solo and Ensemble Contest. They're freshmen, so we didn't have high expectations, and although they did fine, we won't be seeing them on Ellen any time soon. Four families cooperating in high heat and humidity to enjoy tourist activities and serve as an entourage for our spoiled musicians. It was refreshing to supervise only my own children. I choked up with pride as my daughter offered Alex the tuba boy a bandaid and some neosporin for the puncture wound he mysteriously developed in the Story of Texas museum. (I'm thinking it was likely a wronged Indian lurking in the exhibits with poison arrows.)

OG56

I miss you ladies and am so glad everyone is feeling better (((Cookie))) I have been on the road traveling again for work and those control freaks have me locked out of here on my work computer! I am packing and getting ready to fly home to Omaha to see my family but the intent is to care for my Dad he is having shoulder surgery again because the screws came out from the one he had last summer! So, I will check on you all when I get back in two weeks. Stay out of trouble and who wants the virtual man while I am gone because my Mom and Dad won't let us sleep in the same room when I am there so whats the point!!

Love and Hugs,

Linda

faithandfifty

Kleenex. I'm making flight reservations for Austin in the next 24 hours.

Thanks for the head's up about that whiley exhibit. I'll bring my own Neosporin. So you're predicting that it will be hot while I'm there in July?? Who'd a thunk it?

I also get to go to Vegas in July. Oops. Can't possibly make two references to weather in the same post..... I'll get a reprimand. (Love ya, E.)

My DH & I are under the same roof -- so I'm willing to take a pass on keeping our virtual man company. Will take a rain-check for later. Oh, for Pete's sake. That should not be held against me, E. That is just an expression.

elimar86861

Faith, If you are wondering whether I'll comment on that, looks like a 60% chance of no. 

faithandfifty

Elimar. It only took you thirty minutes to find a weather reference on your thread.

I know how to lure you into the fray.

Love love and more love

xx00xx00xx00xx

3jaysmom

hey ladies, hope all had a great memorial wkend. spent some time babysitting my granddaughter, Finley. missed boating outing sun. just too hot for 2 long...they spent 6 hrs on a sand bar, with a djay..sounds like i missed some fun, but had sunpoisoning from being  in pool 2 long last week with fischer.  having some neurological problems. getting cked out later this wk., they watch 4 t.i.a. s with my ms. can't do anything , they watch. i knew better than get so overheated (sigh) so much 2 consider these days! im back in my version of hell, getting a new fitter for my new l.e. gloves. about 1/4 in too long on three fingers, and theyre arguing about sending them back. walked out on owner 2day, he was screaming at me. spoke 2 ins. she's making next appt. thwey have 2 fix it!  anyway,    meece, the hummingbird was at the beginning of this thread. elimar has it it was beautiful.. what's baiting? noone answered that yet.  light and love 3jaysmom

Meece

I think they meant that you set up your post for a response. You spent time swimming with FINley and FIScHer. There was a play on the aquatic terms of your post.  Everything is just fine. 

Kleenex

Ooooooh, Faith - make sure you pack the "clinical strength" deodorant with your upcoming travel. You'll be losing any and all water weight. Vegas could be over 110 in July! You really should swing through DFW this weekend or early next week: we'll be in the triple digits. You could "warm up" for the Vegas trip. And of course, there's a week of early marching band next week. OUTSIDE.

OMG! Weather, weather, weather! Interesting that this is a thread where it's perfectly okay to discuss complications from unsavory cancer treatments, or to share tips on hiding one's Cheeto addiction from one's family, but we can't talk about the weather. Hmmmmmm.

Patriotgirl

Bermuda77,

I love your post!  I, too, am very faithful and have been calm through this journey so far.  Tomorrow is my first chemo treatment which I have dreaded.  I have not been able to shake my paranoia that somehow cancer is a big industry/conspiracy, etc.  My mind has identified chemotherapy drugs as poison but my mother felt nudged by God to tell me not to think of them as poison but as healing agents administered for Him by His qualified servants.  I immediately felt at peace with that concept and am no longer angry or fearful about starting this tomorrow.  God bless us all!

NativeMainer

I've been in Vegas in the summer--very hot but very dry.  Easy to get dehydrated because you don't realize how much you are sweating since it all dries in minutes.  Get something to drink every hour--something that is NOT alcohol, you can have that in between! 

faith--good luck in Austin!  

smithlme

Who's discussing weather on here???? I am going to go totally off topic, like I usually do, and tell you all what a friend of mine and I have decided to call ourselves. We spent Memorial Day weekend at a fund raiser for the Komen walk we are doing in October. We have a team name and all that, but we don't like the usual names like survivor, warriors in pink, etc. So.....we decided we are Pink Ninjas. It sounds more fun and after several hours in the heat, we were acting pretty ninja-ish! Now to get the t-shirts made....Do NOT mess with the Pink Ninja!

OK...I'm back to "normal", whatever that is!

 Linda

NativeMainer

Hey--can I get one of those "Do NOT mess with the Pink Ninja" shirts???????/

smithlme

We need to find someone who can make them. Cafe Press does t-shirts but their quality isn't very good. I'm guessing any t-shirt place can do the lettering, but I'd like a picture of a pink ninja kicking booty!

cookiegal

Good luck Patriot Girl!

I am having my first zometa tomorrow, and I am a bit freaked out. It will be my first time in the chemo chair.

Two friends who have had it say the pain is AWFUL, but they are both stage 4 so maybe it hit them harder. I'm glad to be shoring up these prematurely brittle middle age bones.

Went to LE therapist today. Good news- bad news. My arm is really good, 3 cm less than last time, same as healthy arm. Bad news, the therapist thinks while my arm swelling was not LE, she thinks my breast swelling probably is LE.

All the more hilarious since I had a reduction, and when my boob swells, it's pretty large. So she said to wear a slightly compressive bra and do manual drainage on the breast, not the arm. If it's not LE, it's a very late side effect of radiation.

Oh but she did marker me up with diagrams of the lymphatic system to aid in the massage!! 

And I got my hair cut, which is only relevant because, I guess my hair thinned during radiation, but now it's growing back in, giving me a little bit of a mullet effect. With all these short wavy 3 inch hairs fighting with my regular longer straighter hair.

So who knew, I would still be discovering novel side effects 9 months out!

Have a fun evening everyone!!

I leave you with this thought. (My new tag line?)

"C is for cookie, not cancer"

Meece

Does that mean we all had Breast Cookies?

3jaysmom

hey cookie, i had "regular " chemo  cytoxin adromycin, and 2 more i dont remember..and followed by taxoteres..22 sessions in all. i threw up once on 1st set, and got flushed from time to time,  but never any painns. if u have a port,, they give u a cream 2 put on it. if i didnt use that once, i had burning on injection, but thsts all. i hope ur exp. goes well.

SurvivorInTN

Hi all....so glad I've come across this thread for 40-60ish 'maw'.  I'm 51....new here.  Diagnosed Feb. 23 this year stage IIb DCS. Had mastectomy....one lymphnode out of twenty infiltrated.  I have had 2 chemo treatments out of 4.  Then on to taxol, 12 weeks, once a week.  My diagnosis didn't come as a complete surprise.  I had had breast cysts since I was 28 yrs. old.  I know they 'say' there is no correlation to BC and cysts but I wonder...I have had to shave my really thick hair as it was coming out, alot.  Wig, ugh, I hate wearing it, even though it's cute and people who know me but don't know me well enough to know I have BC have given me lots of compliments on my new do. *snicker*  I am so encouraged to read all the above posts and will make it my daily routine to read new posts here....I appreciate all the encouragement I can get and hope I can be an encouragement to you all!  Have a wonderful blessed evening.  Hugs from TN