Dis Breast Cancer Survivors Part IV - GAGWTA

[luvmarypoppins]

Linda - Happy Nurses Week! Thanks for all you do!

Anyone hear from Sha? I miss her posting. Maybe I will send her a text to see how she is doing and see if she will be in the world when we are there.

Diana - I feel your neighbor pain. We had such nice neighbors and then they both died (the parents) and the 18 year old inherited the house. Needless to say, his older brother moved out and then there were non stop parties, drug deals, rotweillers, pitbulls etc, mortar shells going off on 4th of July. I used to just stay i the house and pray on fourth of July. Not just us but other neighbors called the town, the police, animal control etc. Nothing, nada, zip. Finally I think he lost the house in a short sale. Now we have great neighbors who keep their dog and dog poop in their own yard. They have summer swim parties but I like listening to their salsa music if I am outside in the backyard etc. I dont know them really but they seem nice and take care of the place etc. Just worried when their boys turn into older teens. etc Hope it works out for you

Pats Mom - visions of you swimming with the dolphins now, enjoy every minute.

Peggy - how are you feeling? Hope you can enjoy the week end.

Cheryl - suppose you are making plans for the upcoming trip. How is Lulu doing?

Laurie - glad your dds mri was good. I am going to make the adrs today. the only places I want and cant get our Le Cellier dinner and of course Be Our Guest dinner. I am going to send an e mail to the concierge at the Beach Club. I dont expect them to do anything about those adrs but I am mostly asking about the water and beverage stuff. I get so violently ill from the water there.

I am going to make the adrs today. I am thinking of citricos, yachtsman, hollywood brown derby (you got us hooked on that place), cape may buffet because you know dh has to have his crab legs, and then probably chefs de france, kouzzina (want to try this since dh wants something new and he went to Greece last summer, so he should like it and hmm,, maybe Kona or Coral Reef. I am only doing 1 big meal a day. only other lunch is maybe LTT.

I am sure it will be challenging with your dd and the vegan thing. there is a chart on allears.net about vegan and the choices look kind of slim. I guess she could take some of the vegetarian options and adapt them minus some ingredients etc

Well lately it seems like there are no hours in the day. My head spins. We just got back from a memorial service for a sweet lady from church. She had melanoma that spread and she had my ent operate on her for some of her issues. She didnt like him too much either but we both loved the nurse practicioner. Then I find out I am invited to another baby shower as soon as we get back from FL. Then all this week ds3 has been helping clean out the garage. We are going to drop off about 6 boxes tomm. at the church. The garage sale is sat. We also donated one huge bag of clothes so far too. Its never ending. Dh is leaving thurs. 11 days. Ds wants to go to disneyland when he flies out there for the week end so we shall see.

GAGWTA

 

[CherylDan]

Spring has finally come, after what can only be described as the longest winter ever! We finally, as of this week, are starting to see leaves on the trees. Yay!

Spent the day yesterday helping DD28 get moved into their new apt in Chicago. Really nice location just off of Michigan Ave (where all the great shopping and restaurants are). The building is very nice, and the apt was just completely remodeled, but it is soooooo much smaller than what they had in Boston. They are going to have to be creative in the storage and organizing department. As any city, I guess, the better the location, the smaller the space. It will be nice having them close by again, albeit about 100 miles.

My little LuLu is doing pretty well, still limping occasionally. It is getting so hard to keep her from trying to run and play! Three week check-up is on Tuesday, I'm hoping she will get the all clear.

I was just watching a preview for Gatsby....looks like it might be a good movie to go see, starts in a few weeks.

Lots of trip planning going on here! Looking forward to hearing all about them.

Laurie, glad to hear your DD is recovering nicely. That's too bad about her phone. I just saw a bit on the news about how prevalent phone theft is these days, it's now known as apple picking.

LMP, did you get all the ADRs you wanted?

Peg, there's nothing quite like planning a trip to keep your spirits up! Like we all say here, Disney therapy should be a covered expense.

GAGWTA!!

 

[luvmarypoppins]

Cheryl - hope Lulu gets a good vet report today. Glad to here your dd is closer to you.

Laurie - glad to hear K. is doing well and resting up

Peg - how are the taste and digestive issues going? Hope they are improving or at least tolerable

Well I made the adrs. Of course its last minute and we really got everything we wanted except Le Cellier dinner. Got everything I mentioned we wanted in the previous post, Cape May, Brown Derby, Chefs de France, Kona, Kouzzina, Yachtsman and Citricos. So it should be good.

Whats everyone planning for mothers day? We are just going to church and I dont know about the dinner since it will only be 3 of us. Last year we had a bbq. I am thinking of chinese maybe. Just take out. I dont like going out on holidays.

 

[luvmarypoppins]

So how is everyone doing today???

What is everyone doing for mothers day?? I just found out the 3 of us will now be the 2 of us, oh I guess ds 1 forgot to mention he is going to coach a basketball tournament in Kingston or Providence Rhode Island. Dh and ds3 are probably going to Disneyland that day they said or maybe the day before, how nice of them. So you can tell how my mothers day is going to go, l

Just called to reschedule my oncologist visit. Yikes, they pushed me into the end of July. I said wait, I already got pushed from May to June etc. So she squeezed me in June 20th. When they say squeeze there that means waiting in the waiting room a long time, oh well, so be it. She doesnt do anything anyway but I know we will be discussing a big test I might have next year. I really dont want it because its just more radiation exposure, so we shall see.

I just need to book the town car and wheelchair and I am done with the planning, except maybe stalking the adrs to switch something and try to get Le Cellier.

GAGWTA, have a great day everyone. Thinking of you all.

 

[Feralpeg]

Happy Mother's Day (early) to all! Hope everyone is doing well.

I'm finally able to taste food again! Yea! To celebrate, Kendall took me to Carrabas for an early Mother's Day dinner. It was very nice!

We are planning for a quiet Mother's Day. Kendall is starting a new job on Tuesday. I have my next infusion that day. We just want a couple of quiet days prior.

It never rains but it pours. Kendall has to see a urologist on Monday. They think she has a bladder ulcer. Apparently, this is very common for women with endometriosis. She's also having a lot of headaches. Her gynocologist wants her to see a neurologist. He doesn't want to take her off birth control because it keeps the endometriosis at bay, but he may have to. The headaches could be a side effect of the birth control and it would make her more likely to have a stroke. Not good. Her rheumotologist diagnosed her with fibromyalgia. Of course, that's a catch all when they can't pin it down to anything else. For someone only 25 years old, she's a mess! Oh well. One step at a time!

At least worrying about Kendall takes my mind off my issues. lol!

Have a great weekend, ladies! Thinking of you!

 

[PlutoPony]

Well, I guess it's inevitable these days but it looks like my insurance is denying an MRI for surveillance of the breast site that had a mastectomy This would be the first look at that side since surgery 18 months ago and chemo after that. Did a mammo of the native (untouched) breast earlier this year and everything is fine there. But with an implant after mastectomy, a mammogram won't show anything behind the implant - right? So how else are you supposed to look for a return of cancer? Or are they saying that the odds of cancer returning are so slight that any surveillance isn't necessary?

Any words of wisdom on how I can approach this? Has anyone else run into this and what's been your doctor's response to not having an MRI done in this situation??? Btw I was Her2+, you know the kind that is fairly prone to reoccurring .....

 

[Dancind]

Plutopony, I don't know about this one. If no one else is able to answer your question, I think a terrific resource is the breastcancer . org boards. There are so many posters there, and they have seen and done it all.

We are leaving in the morning for 10 days on the Central Coast in CA. Must figure out how to pack for a week in Morro Bay area (60s), then 3 days in Paso Robles (90s)! Did not know that the official name of the latter city is "El Paso de Robles". We will be staying on the ocean in a cottage in Los Osos, visiting Hearst Castle and a couple of parks, possibly Solvang, the Farmer's market in San Luis Obispo, and attending a wine festival.

Peg, hate to harp here, but Kendall is sounding more like my daughter. She had horrible periods and pretty constant headaches, along with IBS. She quit gluten about 16 months ago and those health issues are resolved, along with some others. It needs about a month to really get out of your system. Kind of amazing how much havoc a little bit of something you are sensitive to can wreak on your body. I quit it too, mostly in support, but was shocked to find that I'm almost as sensitive as she is.

Then again, the headaches could be from the BCP just like the doctor said, which is even more scary. My DD can't take them at all, they actually make her act bipolar. Did I mention she's sensitive?

Stay healthy and happy while I'm gone, Warrior Ladies!

 

[Feralpeg]

Peg, hate to harp here, but Kendall is sounding more like my daughter. She had horrible periods and pretty constant headaches, along with IBS. She quit gluten about 16 months ago and those health issues are resolved, along with some others. It needs about a month to really get out of your system. Kind of amazing how much havoc a little bit of something you are sensitive to can wreak on your body. I quit it too, mostly in support, but was shocked to find that I'm almost as sensitive as she is.

Then again, the headaches could be from the BCP just like the doctor said, which is even more scary. My DD can't take them at all, they actually make her act bipolar. Did I mention she's sensitive?

You aren't harping. I appreciate anything that might help. Unfortunately, she already tried a gluten free diet for about six months and it made not difference. I wish it were that simple. She also underwent a series of allergy test recently. Nothing showed up as being a problem. I'm at a loss. Thanks for trying!

 

[snappy]

Happy Mother's Day all!

Sorry, PlutoPony.

Sorry I can't help you. I don't have an implant, but a free tram flap. I do not even have a mammogram on that side.

But I can understand how if you have previously been having that yearly MRI, that suddenly not having it would be unnerving, especially since you are Her2+.

I am hoping another poster will come and be more helpful than me.

Dancind, I hope your trip is wonderful. It sure sounds wonderful.

GAGWTA!

 

[luvmarypoppins]

Pluto Pony - sorry no advice as I have a different kind of cancer, but wishing you all the best

Diana - have a wonderful trip. Cant wait too hear about it!

Peg - how nice of Kendall to take you out. I hope she likes her new job. Glad you are finding the food issues subsiding

Laurie - interesting thread on the restraunt board about vegan dining. What did your dd eat last time, or did you just have food for her?

Hope everyone had a nice mothers day. Mine was what I expected. D2 and I went to church. Then we cooked a brunch for lunch and then he cooked me a nice steak dinner. He gave me a card from him and ds3. Ds1 called me. After he got home from RI, he asked where his dinner was and if I was really watching the tv, typical thoughtless him. Same old, same old. DS3 and dh called me from Calif.

Sat. ds3 kept sending me e mails, videos etc. from Disneyland I told him to finally stop it because it was upsetting me. I did like the mary poppins parade video of course. They also went to California Adventure.

Now they have changed my meeting tomm. to next tues. What is wrong with that? Well its the day dh is coming home, so not good, oh and add in that is when we were planning to celebrate my b day but now one of the ds has a final. Its so funny with us, with everyone there just never seems to be a good day etc. Someone is always doing something. Like that week end ds3 will be lifeguarding. It always seems like we celebrate something whenever, never the actual date. Anyone else do this too?

GAGWTA

 

[snappy]

MaryAnn, DD17 has been a vegetarian for the last couple of years. That was not too bad. Dropping off all seafood, dairy and eggs is more of an issue.

I have read through the one long vegan thread. I suspect she will eat alot in the kitchen in our villas. Although I do have a number of ADR's. I generally make a couple trips to Target to stock up on stuff for the fridge, particularly drinks, fruit, water. The girls will have their own little kitchen in the studio side of our 2 bedroom at the boardwalk. I don't generally cook in the regular kitchen but I am still on the Ideal protein diet so I might try and do the breakfast. I will finally be allowed carbs during the trip. I am looking forward to some grits and really good bread and eating my breakfast on the balcony facing the boardwalk. I sure hope they give me the top floor again, much bigger balcony.

We will be leaving 2 weeks from today. She will be done with her finals a week from tomorrow.

I am ready for a vacation. My sister and her husband and my brother are all down in Sandestin on the Florida panhandle gulf coast. You cannot imagine how they are torturing me with pictures. The water is aquamarine green blue.
The winds are calm. Looks like the perfect place for a nap.

Sorry your mother's day was a bit of a letdown. I ended up having mom over and we grilled, although I did do fresh veggies and salads as required by my diet. It was a nice day, DS 24 was in from New Orleans.

DH surprised me with this high end tea maker that is just unbelievable. He paid an arm and a leg for it but it actually dunks the tea basket up and down in the water to brew the tea. I did not know anything like this existed.

My blueberry tea forte tea is tasting mighty good these days. I think I had about 8 cups today, lol.

I may have to start growing tea leaves.

I give him a lot of credit, he observed how much tea I have been drinking on this diet (found out warm liquids help fill you up so I abandoned my iced blueberry tea for the hot stuff). Nice to get something that I will really use.
I teased him that it is fortunate he did not buy me another vacuum cleaner. That is not going to happen, he knows me far too well, lol.

GAGWTA!

 

[carrie6466]

May I join you? I had a bilateral mastectomy on 3/28/13. I had tissue expanders put in, but no fills yet, because I am not fully healed on one side. It's really kind of depressing. I thought I'd be so much further along by now. I had stage 1/IDC/multi focal dcis on right and multi focal dcis on left all dcis was stage 3 high nuclear grade. It's been a long few months here. I just found out I won't be getting chemo but started Tamoxifen last week. I'm 46. The oncologist says she'd like to see me on it for 10 years.

I had a trip planned for August that I figured would fall into my swap surgery mess and I'd have to cancel it. But, alas, that was not to be. My plastic surgeon will not be seeing this through. He's retiring in 4 weeks, so I've had to find another. The new one isn't available until early June, so it'll all work out. But I asked the new one about August vacation and he said fine, because by the time he does the fills and gets me an OR, we can wait until Sept. So there is my story.

 

[slg]

For those of you who haven't heard about Angelina Jolie, she presents a powerful message:

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/05/14/opinion/my-medical-choice.html?_r=1&

 

[luvmarypoppins]

carrie - welcome, I cant comment too much as I have thy ca, but I hope your healing continues and how wonderful that you have a disney trip to look forward to. That planning kept me going too. Wishing you all the best

Laurie - guess what I just read on another thread. Since the cali grill is closed their sushi chefs have come over to Kona and are making the sushi at the Kona Sushi /Cafe Bar.

Peg and Pats Mom - how are you both feeling?

Proud mom brag ahead -Linda you would appreciate this- ds3 got to be nursing student of the day yest because his instructor said he wrote the best psych care plan she had ever seen!

No more talking to dh for a week . Ds2 has finals next week and he has yet to pick up a book to study. I am sure he wont make the deans list like last semester. This boy sorely tests my patience.

GAGWTA

 

[snappy]

Congrats to your DS3, Maryann! That is awesome feedback from your son's prof.

Thanks for the heads up on the Cali grill sushi chef. I always get sushi at Cali grill. I bet they can do a veggie version. I will get an ADR from there. Do you think we could get the sushi at both Kona and that little separate sushi bar to the left of the entrance to Kona?

Thanks so much. You getting ready for your trip?

 

[Feralpeg]

Good news! I had my fifth chemo on Tuesday. This was the first for Taxol. So far, I'm feeling great! No nausea. I can still taste things! I will have Taxol each Tuesday for the next three weeks. Then, I am done with chemo and ready for radiation. I can't believe I'm getting so close to the end of my treatments. It hasn't been fun, but it has gone by fairly quickly. I am so lucky!

I went to DTD for the first time in a long time. Kendall and I walked from the West Side to the Marketplace and back. I was worn out by the time we finished, but it was nice getting out and listening to the Disney music during our walk. Now that the flu season has passed, I feel much better about going out in public. Can't wait to visit one of the parks!

 

[snappy]

Peg, that is wonderful! So glad you are feeling great. Is Taxol generally easier to tolerate?

I am waiting to hear with my cousin that lives here in BR the results from her breast biopsy. The breast surgeon has a new policy that they won't call with results, but they did ot tell her that during her consultation last week. Her biopsy was Monday of this week and they want her to wait until her follow up visit on Tuesday. A nurse at the hospital is looking to see what her rights are to her own records! Really!!!

My cousin is doing a workaround by calling her OBGYN and asking her to find out. She thinks the surgeon might get miffed. I think it is a stupid policy. I actually really like this surgeon, and know her well. She talked to me when I did my BRAC tesing year before last.

I am praying she gets good results. She has not even told her parents or even all 4 of her sisters. Although her daughters know.

GAGWTA!

 

[Feralpeg]

Peg, that is wonderful! So glad you are feeling great. Is Taxol generally easier to tolerate?

I am waiting to hear with my cousin that lives here in BR the results from her breast biopsy. The breast surgeon has a new policy that they won't call with results, but they did ot tell her that during her consultation last week. Her biopsy was Monday of this week and they want her to wait until her follow up visit on Tuesday. A nurse at the hospital is looking to see what her rights are to her own records! Really!!!

My cousin is doing a workaround by calling her OBGYN and asking her to find out. She thinks the surgeon might get miffed. I think it is a stupid policy. I actually really like this surgeon, and know her well. She talked to me when I did my BRAC tesing year before last.

I am praying she gets good results. She has not even told her parents or even all 4 of her sisters. Although her daughters know.

GAGWTA!

The doctor had told me that the Taxol would be much easier to tolerate, but I was leery. He was right. What a nice change. I wasn't sure I could do much more of the other. The doctor also told me that my hair would start coming back in during the Taxol treatments. It would be slow, but it would start growing back. I just hope my eyelashes also come back soon!

I hate that they make people wait for results. It is so hard not knowing. I hope she gets good results soon!

 

[smiley_face2]

My goodness I have missed a lot! Been having a real issue with depression, so have not felt like communicating. the dr has tried me on 2 different meds but they have both given me such severe side effects with my stomache that I can't take them. So now I am going to try some kind of sleeping pill. she thinks if I can turn off my brain to go to sleep and get a good nights sleep it will help a lot. It seems no matter how tired I am which is all day long, when I get into bed I can not go to sleep because I can't stop my mind from thinking about all sorts of terrible things.
I am glad to read about you ladies that are doing all the travelling!! I think as long as you have a home, and some sort of future pension no matter how small, then using you money to do the good things in life before it is too late is far more important!!
Peg, I just about couldn't make it through my first rounds of chemo it was so bad, and the taxol was so much better! and my hair did start growing back then too, and by the time I was finished I was quite fuzzy! lol...one thing though was all the hair that grew on my face! very find blonde hair thank goodness, but I was quite the chia pet for a while!! lol....and my eyelashes did take a bit longer to come back, then they came out 2 more times a few months after, the second time not as much but still alot, and that was a year after I had finished the chemo! they are still a lot sparser than they were but are not falling out anymore. My hair came back in very different, at first it was pure snowy white and curly!! gradually I got some color back in it, and it is down to my shoulders now and quite wavy which is nice.
I know how you feel about Disney....we went right after I had finished my chemo, like 2 days after!! lol...I had hardley any hair, and my eyelashes had come back but that was when they decided to fall out again I was weak as a kitten, but it was an awesome trip! the next one was right after I was finished radiation, we took our 2 grand daughters to Disneyland. That was hard because I was still so weak and tired but we did great! We took our daughter and her son down in the summer after that, then we were back again just hubby and I in February. We are planning a trip to take another 2 of our grand daughters for the end of november.
Dancind.....you are in my favorite part of the world!! If we could move there we would! Been to Hearst Castle 3 times now for the different tours, Love it!! the Farmers market in SLO is on my list for next trip and I have an Inn picked out to stay at in Paso Robles! There are some guided park tours you can do in Morro Bay! some are free but there is a kayaking trip I want to do, it is in late afternoon, you have dinner on the beach then kayak back at sunset

 

[snappy]

Sorry about your difficulty with sleeping and depression, Smiley. Hoping you can catch some ZZZZ's soon, and that it does indeed make a difference.