Freaky.Deaky

This freaks me out every time.

Every. Time.  

Commencing Phase 2

Aka Operation Swap Out

It's official. The next surgery is scheduled for Sept 7th. Time to change the expanders for silicone. Then on the road to normal. I realize that's relative. Can't wait!

How sad is this?!?

This is a reenactment. I was sitting here on the couch with the laptop - and picked up the phone to finish reading an article I'd started this morning while waiting at the park for my walking partner.  I figured my crazy technology obsessed self should be forced to admit that there's clearly a problem...  Here's the video proof:




It's pathetic really.  Oh well, at least the TV wasn't on...  :)

Fill 'em up! And other randomness.

It's that time again.  Time to take the girls in for another fill up.  Sure they were topped off a month or so ago - but they had to take some of the saline out while the stitches dissolved.  (I was allergic.)  Now we get to fill 'em back up!  Why am I excited about this?  Well, they will be full - which equals more comfortable when you're talking tissue expanders.  But more importantly I will be a giant step closer to my next surgery!

So Friday morning I head in - and I hope to leave with full expanders and an idea of when the next surgery is.    Looking forward to having it, healing from it and getting this body back to doing what I tell it to do!

On a different note:  I've changed the title up there (I would insert an up arrow here, but I don't have one, so squint your eyes really tight and imagine it)  I can officially ramble to my heart's content without feeling guilty - 'Cause if the name warns you that I'm rambling and you choose to read it anyway, well then - you knew what you were in for.

I am also officially trying this whole vegetarian thing now.  I was already working toward it in baby steps.  But I really like animal based foods.  I love bacon and cheese and butter and greek yogurt.  But I also love veggies and fruits and grains.  And since I read and tried Clean, I have felt a huge surge in energy.  I needed that!  Then I watched Forks Over Knives (twice!) and figured I should probably go for it.  It definitely took some mental preparation.  But I'm getting there.  And it's going well.  I am technically focusing on making my food 95% plant based foods - thus 5% or less animal based (watch the movie, that'll make sense).  That means I'm not forbidden to eat anything in particular, I just have to make sure I don't get crazy with it.  (yes, most of you know what voice to read that in.  If not, go here.)

Another shameless plug for my other blog:  OurCurrentPlan.blogspot.com  Go here.  Follow me.  Keep up to date with the boatiness that will one day ensue.  :)

Thanks for following and commenting and blogging!  I love hearing your thoughts and reading your rambles.  Have a great week!

Oh, to be on a boat -

- where I would hopefully not be able to hear/read all of the Chic fil A hooplah.   There are certainly more important things to focus on in life.

Check out the other blog to see where we are in the process of our current plan...

Tips!

I'm thinking I should log the things I learned from my first surgery (bilateral mastectomy w/placement of tissue expanders) so that I can remember them - and maybe even help someone else that stumbles on this little blog :)

1st and foremost - T-rex arms are a nuisance but they CAN be accommodated!  (I may or may not have walked around growling like a T-rex and waving my forearms maniacally, as my elbows were initially held close in to my rib cage due to lack of range of motion.)  So here are tips that will make round 2 much easier!

1.  Move the coffee cups down to the bottom shelf - or even the counter top!  Coffee is muy importante - for me and those around me.

2.  Keep a small, light weight stool in the kitchen.  I kept a small one around and just kicked/slid it throughout  the condo so that my tinyarms could grab things that were just out of reach.

3.  My rocking chair became my best friend.  It is fairly shallow so I didn't have to lean back so far.  (sitting on the deeper couch and trying to lean back seemed/was impossible for at least a week.)

4.  Keep the ground coffee where you can reach it!  (see #1)

5.  Comfy button front shirts are crucial!  Make sure they are long and baggy so they cover the ugly drains that you'll be toting around for a couple of weeks.

6.  I will have my honey shower with me before bed each night next time.  Showers wear you out - just like when you have the flu.  And no matter which fabulous relative agrees to help you shower - it's still awkward.  So M. gets the job this time.  And I'll be able to slip into bed and sleep as soon as my hair is dry.

7.  My motorized bed is magical and was worth every penny - no changes there, I'm just thankful I know I'll get decent sleep without having to resort to sleeping in a recliner as I've heard others are forced to do.

8.  It ALL passes.  The weird tingling that you get when your nerves grow back DOES go away.  As do all of the other odd pains and sensations.  In fact, immediately after surgery I was having improvements daily.  After a couple of weeks my improvements were more likely to be weekly.  And now I notice improvements every couple of weeks.  In fact, 4 months out, I think I'm almost normal.  I still don't have full nerve sensation in the general region of the incision - but I'll be having another surgery anyway, which will jack up the nerves all over again.  At least now I know they'll eventually heal, for the most part... :)

9.  Drains suck.  And while they seem to last forever - they really are gone in a couple of weeks or so.  You may not want to hear that they are horrible, but they are.  And then they're gone.  

10. Take your pain meds - the sleep is crucial to healing your body!  I tried to get off of them too quickly - and when I went back to taking them before bed, I noticed another big jump in my recovery.

11. Get massages!  They will be awkward - so find someone you know.  I still can't lie on my stomach, but massage therapists (even the ones that were strangers) are happy to work around it.  Just explain what you can't do - and they will do everything they can to accommodate.  

I have a feeling this list will get updates...

Playing the Gene Game

How did I forget to update on this?!?  I got my genetic test results back - the initial BRCA 1 and 2 results, that is.  Still waiting on the BART.

You should see my family tree.  There is SO MUCH cancer.  (Not to mention other weirdness going on that most of you know about but I won't discuss here... You should've seen the genetic counselors face when she looked down at my loopy tree!)  But it's all different kinds of cancer.

My results were negative.  Yay/boo?  I'm glad they were negative, as that means I don't have a crazy high risk of ovarian cancer (well, still need the BART results to be sure - it's a more specialized test).  That means no ovarian removal surgery.  Woo hoo!  I personally think I'll have reached my yearly quota on surgeries as soon as I finish with The Girls.  But clearly there is something going on with our family.  They just haven't narrowed down that gene yet.  One day, maybe they will.  Won't that be a cool day?  You know what will be an even cooler day?  When they figure out what causes cancer in the first place and how to cure it.  Technically, I guess they kinda have.  If you catch it early you can get rid of it - as illustrated by ME over the past 4 months :)  But anyway - if they knew what gene it was then ALL of my crazy sisters/cousins/nieces/brother/nephews etc could be tested for that single gene.  While they wouldn't be out of the woods, it would be a much less scary trek through said woods.

Off to clean my house with chemical free cleaners I'm slowly converting over to in order to reduce my exposure to potential carcinogens...