DIEP 2013

Lahela-good news on the bone scan.....woo hoo!  

Kat....the kitties ARE precious......Meow!

Lucy.....I am sorry about surgery hiccup.......think of it as extra time to be really, really ready.  I didn't have stage 2 until almost 9 months later.......(good things come to those who wait?????)

Here's a pic of the Three Musketeers........Movie.....Jeannie......Liefie

Love love love the picture!!!!!  Where were you all? Is it a very recent pic?  It made me weepy to see it. I don't know why.  Maybe because it's so comforting to know the friendships forged on this site are real!!!  And, go beyond the words on these pages. 

Thanks for sharing the pic, Movie.

Goldie, so touching! Yes, these are real friendships, not just in cyberspace but in realspace!

Thank you ladies for sharing in my insurance woes. In the grand scheme of things its just a blip in the road. I will use the extra time to let the foobs settle more and get in better shape myself.

I have high deductible insurance and to add to that I have an in network deductible and an out of network deductible. Trying to get the insurance to cover the Dr as in network but due to my plan they wouldn't give me an answer until after surgery.  Didn't want to have stage two without knowing if I would have to pay both deductibles for 2013 and again for 2014. My Dr is an angel. He is in private practice and if I told him I could only pay $10 a month forever he would say ok.  

Jeannie- enjoy the parade. I have a friend who has lived in many many places and I asked him once what was his favorite and he said Seattle!

Love the picture!

goldie, maybe it's because you were "on the ball the majority of the time..."

you are so right, blue!

goldie....I agree, that stress could be playing a huge part in your "issues". I'm not meaning you haven't done well in getting through stuff, but, you've been struggling with decisions, consequences of decisions, and waiting for "the next" big thing. All of this on top of dealing with bc itself. Stress can "taint" how we handle the everyday demands of daily life, how we react to people, comments and situations, how well we sleep, and how "restful" that sleep actually is, and even how we perceive pain. Yes, discuss these things with your doc, and in the mean time, have you tried relaxation techniques? Belleruth Napersack (sp?) has some free downloads that could be very helpful for you. She has guided meditations on stress, sleep, pain....all kinds of situations. Sending you huggles.

Goldie, I pray that you can have DIEP sooner & have those painful implants taken out!  You don't need 3 more months of this unbearable sensation & you can't live on pain meds. Pain can make your life totally miserable, as you are finding out.  Good luck for getting a sooner date for surgery!  

Goldie, I'm so sorry you are suffering such discomfort. Hopefully you'll get in sooner and everything will be smooth sailing. xxx

Goldie - I like what Tammy said. The problem is you've been 'all the ball the majority of the time'. You've got such a full plate, and you can only carry around a stacked tray of cupcakes for so long before something falls off.  Pretty scary for you to be doubting yourself, but you've been handling a lot of stress and pain for a long time.  Your brain is probably exhausted from dealing with your life. When you cross your finish line you can re-stack your cupcakes. 

And I really don't mean for the cupcake analogy to sound glib. I read your posts in bed in the wee hours of the morning and I pictured a tiny blonde bombshell smiling and carrying an oversize tray. And every time I've read your posts over the last year I've been impressed by how very clear and articulate you've been. That hasn't changed. 

I'm so sorry for all your discomfort, and that you're not sleeping.  I wish you pain free days.

Janet

Goldie, honey, "mean" is probably the last word I would ever attribute to you! Burdened, suffering, uncomfortable, tired, anxious - they all describe you and they are the reason you're not the social cheerleader all the time. But you don't have to be! Just be what you need to be for you. You are the one who really counts in this. Sending loads of love your way.

I feel the same way and I can't even blame it on pain or meds. My dad calls and goes on and on about his mailman, the weather, his left toe hurts...whatever!  I have zero patience and attention anymore. I am just worn out. 

I never call anyone back because I don't have anything to talk about and I just don't seem to care anymore. :P

Goldie - I'm late chiming in here, but I had some similar issues re forgetting a couple of things that I would never otherwise forget, and at the end of the day, I just chalked it up to the overall amount of stress of this process ( and how overwhelming it is - Janet, I love the cupcake analogy - and I love cupcakes).  I have also found that at times, I simply don't care.  When that happenned  a couple of times at work, on work issues, I figured I better take some extra time off in connection with this surgery to get my head back in the work game.  So when the first resident I saw suggested a 12 week recovery period, I hung on to that and asked my surgeon to put that in writing for work,  Please be kind to yourself - it has been a long road so far for you and you have more ahead of you.  

I'm  heading out of our latest blizzard tomorrow for the sunny south.  Spent about 4 hours in the car today driving fhrough our current snowstorm - including to the MO.  Saw the RO yesterday and the MO today, and the good news is no change in treatment plan based on the surgical pathology.  There was a tiny bit of additional IDC on one side, but not  enough to change anything . And the DCIS on the other side had great margins. I can breathe a sigh of relief getting on the plane tomorrow.

Take care everyone, and stay safe and warm!

Ridley

Ridley, all good news from your docs!!!  Great news. Thanks for the pep talk. I need them. I feel better knowing I am not the only one losing my mind...lol.  I hope you get out on your flight to the warmer climate.  Take in some sunshine for the rest of us freezing our tootsie's off.

Jeannie. thank goodness for caller ID is all I have to say!!!  It does save me from talking to people who go on and on about nothing.  I use to be so good at listening, or pretending I was listening.  My husband loved to watch me in action. I could fold the laundry, make dinner, make a bed, dust the book shelves,  and still not get a word in sometimes, but by gosh, I was going to be productive while I listened.  Now, I find it hard to hold the phone with my shoulder while I do all that stuff, so....no patience for it anymore.  If I know you, your mom didn't even realize you cut her off because you probably did it so sweetly. 

My brother in law, who is going through chemo for his second cancer (he was a first responder for 9/11), immune system has been compromised and he now has shingles for the second time.  He, and I can talk forever.  We joke about our cancers, because we get it, and we can talk about other things too, but it doesn't seem trivial when I talk to him.  My husband feels left out, when we are all on together, but nobody gets it like somebody else that is going through it too. I will say that my BIL has made it through all this because he was so physically fit when this all started.  He is 70 and still plays Ice Hockey twice a week, and skies, long distance bike rides, etc.  Those are his hobbies.  And, today he went out and shoveled snow.  Ladies, we have to keep moving, and eating right. 

Bluebird, Lahela....I am so glad we all get it!!!!  These feelings are normal, for us.