My Cancer Journey

After reading what England's Princess Kate said I had to share it. We do not talk much about life after cancer treatments because we believe everyone is tired of hearing about our cancer at that point. After writing about "the long tail of chemo" many told me they did not realize the difficulties we go through even after the treatments are finished. It is not only the sometimes life long aftereffects of chemotherapy that are difficult. We are reminded every day by scars, medication, looking in the mirror, and fears when we have aches that we would normally dismiss as normal. We never completely return to our old normal.  A dear friend said that, "it’s such a miracle to survive, but almost impossible to put behind us". The most difficult change for me has been how it has affected my brain. Very recently I had an experience that normally would make me laugh and go on with my day. This day however, I cried and could not make myself do anything but go back home, res...

Eleven weeks after my last infusion of Kadcyla my body still seems to think I am receiving treatments. Some of the side effects still occur about the same time they did when I was getting treatments. They are not as severe, and do not last as long, but they happen almost like clockwork. My energy level is pretty much back to how it was pre-cancer. Sleeping has never been one of my superpowers, but it got worse when I started getting the infusions. It is sometimes difficult to fall asleep, and sleeping beyond 6:30 in the morning is late for me. Even though I try hard, my body very rarely lets me nap.  The brain fog is almost gone. It feels terrific to be almost back to my normal self. Not having so much brain fog so nice, but it also means my obnoxious self comes out more frequently. Now Craig must deal with me not agreeing with him all the time again. On the good side, I am better able to control my temper. It is easier to keep myself from getting angry and frustrated. The migraine...