Is there a July 2011 group?

Hi ladies - Sorry I've been MIA so long. It has been a busy few months for me through work (I went back to full time work at the beginning of the month) and taking care of things at home (like taxes - grr!). I wanted to check in today because today is my 1 year anniversary of my diagnosis. I am celebrating the fact that I'm alive and cancer free and that I've made it through the hell of the last year. I will try to come back on a bit more often going forward. My energy is still lagging and going back to work full time hasn't helped, but the world doesn't stop, so we have no choice but to move with it! I also wanted to share that I had my mammogram March 20th and it was clear! I will be going for my MRI in August since my onc wants me to do both due to my age and risk. I also wanted to say that I got my nipple tattoo last Wednesday! I had the nipple reconstruction in December, but the tattoo completes all of the reconstruction, so I'm finally able to say I'm done with that! Hope you are all doing well and I will come back to follow-up with you and see how you're all doing!

Dexxy - I had mixed feelings on my diagnosis anniversary. On the one hand, I feel like I've been robbed of the last year of my life, and in my prime, when I should have been starting a family. On the other hand, I am extremely thankful to be alive and I hope that I (and all of us) have gotten all of this cancer crap out of the way!

 Hope all you ladies are doing well! I'll post a 7 month post chemo picture soon. My hair is nearly 2 inches now, but it's curling, so it looks a little bit shorter. I've calculated the growth rate to be about 0.33cm/month. Maybe I'll have about 4 inches by the end of the year.

Hey, Where is everybody? Hopefully, busy getting on with your lives and about to celebrate your canerversary. Monday is my one year out mammo and am keeping my fingers crossed. Thinking about all of you and wonder how everyone is doing. What do you think of this new format? Which reminds me. I should post a new picture of me with my new, curly hair.

dexxy: I am 43, so far my period has not come back. My hot flashes are much better and MO says sounds like my hormones are coming to rest. In my place (don't want anymore kids) I hope it stays away.

Here's a pic of me and my baby sis at the Kentucky Pegasus Parade. It was a few days early but close enough to 5 months out. I dyed it reddish brown. And it's curly now, so hard to manage for me, I am used to letting my hair dry naturally, almost never used a blow dryer for 40 years or so LOL. Now I have to put gel in it when it's wet, dry it, then use a palmade and sometimes mousse. And hairspray, I never used any of that stuff before  

I was in the parade, here's a youtube link,  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bEgakjzj-k4&feature=youtu.be

you can see my sis, Karen and me around 2 min. 12 sec. I am in a large brimmed pale pink hat and a flowered shirt with black capris. They invited us all back to next years survivor parade because there was a weather advisory and they almost cancelled the parade, many survivors left and missed out, we weathered the storm and stuck around. 

I also went to the Kentucky's first lady's breast cancer luncheon with my mom and dad, and the following day there was a huge 2012 cancer survivor celebration with 950 attending. They had a hat and shoe contest, I won the wildest infield hat and got a $50 gift card to Zappos.com

misswim, that pic is awesome, you look very happy. Congrats to all that reached their 1 year cancerversary. I found out end of May when the radiologist told me during the ultra sound, but I was officially dx June 6...guess that's the day I go by.

I am flying to Miami May 23rd, for 6 days, for our cleaningforcancer.org black tie gala event, then visiting my good friend of 25 years in Orlando. I get home May 29th, and on the 31st fly to NY, my cousin had her sx today, 6 hours, they took out her appendix, ovaries, uterus, 8 inches of bowel and scraped tons of scar tissue, where the chemo killed the cancer. They did a 2 hour "chemo wash" inside her abdomen. Her husband and sister will take care of her for the first 2 weeks, then I'll be there for 6 days to help her with recovery and hopefully get her in good spirits. 

I really hope we all remember to stop by this thread and update and say hi once in a while. Love you guys!

xoxoxo 

Good news khs!!! So glad everyone is checking in, miss you guys

congrats khs!

Rabbit thinking good thoughts for your cousin

all is well, just trying to figure out if I want to take this dang thyroid meds!

Rabbit, prayers to your cousin. Where in NY will you be?

Just completed the Avon Walk for Breast Cancer. What an incredible experience. I walked 39.3 miles in 2 days. I am still exhausted!!! Thought of you guys the whole time!

Thanks all for the kind thoughts and prayers for my cousin, Julie. Also say a few for Nadege, 26 yrs old and a pacemaker, pretty scary. 

Cathy_C, I put on 20 pounds since around the middle of chemo...I had put on 15 through chemo, but another 5 since my last chemo in Dec.

misswim, I bet that walk was awesome! I will be staying at the Miracle House in Manhattan, my cousin lives in the upper West End of Manhattan.  Julie's apartment is tiny and she's worried she will be kicking her husband out of bed because he snores, and if he's sleeping on the couch, I'll have nowhere to sleep...so the Miracle House is $50 a night and about a $12 cab ride to and from her place. MUCH cheaper than the hotels, nothing decend under $200 a night.

I wonder when the brows and eyelashes start to grow back to the norm? Mine definitely looked much better a few months ago.

Off to sleep

xoxoxo 

Hi Phillybird---I have really curly hair now too. Always wanted curly hair. Right now it's really easy to maintain. I also like the fact that when my natural color (salt and pepper), showed up I liked it well enough to stop dyeing my hair. Other than changing shampoos it's been really low maintenance. My eyelashes are not fully grown out yet either. Went to a department store and had my eye makeup done so I could learn how to do eyeliner to compensate for the lack of lashes. Hope everyone is feeling well these days.

Happy birthday yooper! I just had my 41st in April. It sure does bring a different emotion having a birthday now, for me it was just a feeling of great peace and pleasure. I am so thankful for each day. I was very thankful before, but now it is more of an attentive, intentional thankfulness.

Happy Birthdays to Yooper, J-Bug!  I celebrated my 51st with a trip to Spain back in early April.

Tomorrow will be one year from my diagnosis, and I am trying really hard to stop obsessing about the past year, my curls, the tamoxifen, etc.  Because, it is not good for me and I have so much other stuff on my plate.  And because whining does not become me, and it scares my hubby.  I think that we all deserve a huge pat on the back for what we've been through and for being able to move on.

Have fun in NY, Rabbit.

The new mantra is - Embrace the curls!

Happy belated birthdays ladies. I am glad this thread is getting active again! I have missed you guys.

Hi! I'm a little concern I finished my chemo November 29th and rads February 28th. My wbc are still really low (2.6) Should I be concern that my bone marrow won't recover?  For my own peace my MO has ordered a bone marrow test. Wondering how is everyone doing?

At the begin she said it will get back to normal, but then she started to show some concern because it has taken normal than she expected. She consulted with another MO and she told her that she has had some patients whose WBC has been slow getting back to normal. Because average woman don't have mastectomy and radiation it's hard to compare.

Two weeks after chemo, my WBC was already 3.7, but after rads was 2.4 (I had terrible wounds during rads, but who knows if I didn't heal because my WBC where already too low). Three months later is 2.6. Now, she said that could be a prolong recovery or a SE of Tamoxifen, but she asked me if I wanted a bone marrow biopsy  for my peace of mind and also she can also refer me with a hematologist.

I have also had to confess that I have not eaten as much protein as I should and I stopped all my multivitamins during and after rads (I was having a really bad acid reflux). I visited my naturopath last week and he gave me Vitamin A, C, D, zinc, calcium and others to prepare my body for my breast reconstruction. I am also taking astragalus and noni capsules as advice from other woman with low WBC on other forums.

 I will see my PS on June 26th and have another blood test on July 9th. If my WBC are still low they will give Neulasta to prepare my body for surgery and not delay my recovery. Now the big question is when I will have my bone marrow biopsy. I hate being worried about this when I should be prepare for surgery. Thank you!