Tuesday was a bit of a madcap rush around blur of a day.
But I can assure you that I totally rocked the 'two specialist appointments at two separate hospitals within two hours' gig.
Totally Rocked It!
My first appointment was at Medical Oncology at the Canberra Hospital. Despite having to wait an hour to see the resident oncologist (to get me started on Tamoxifen), I still managed to make it to the other side of Canberra to see my surgeon at Calvary...with five minutes to spare.
Thank you Parking Fairy for the celebrity car park!
My surgeon is a Prince among men. Apart from doing a magnificent job as a surgeon, he's respectful, kind and compassionate...which is exactly the qualities you want in the person who is removing and reconstructing a most beloved body part. His Fellow surgeon is also a really nice bloke, so genuinely lovely and engaging. So far, my reconstructed breast is looking good. Still losing skin but no longer flaming red and excruciatingly painful. I won't know if the implant has been damaged for another 3 - 6 months. I have to see my surgeon again in February and he will book me in for my other mastectomy (and replacement of my implant if it is damaged), sometime before May.
Do you know what that means?
I'm on HOLIDAYS people!
No more extreme treatments for the next six months. Just need to pop a pill once a day and look after myself really well. I am hoping that I get let off lightly when it comes to the side effects of Tamoxifen. For those who aren't familiar with it, Tamoxifen is an antioestrogen. My cancer is oestrogen receptor positive which means that it feeds off oestrogen to grow faster. Tamoxifen is supposed to inhibit these hormones and reduce the risk of the cancer returning. The side effects can be pretty bloody awful, the worst being cancer of the uterus, stroke or clots in the lungs. Female bodies just aren't designed to do without oestrogen. Here's hoping that the worst that I have to contend with are hot flushes and a low libido...which I've had since chemo anyway. I will have to review with my oncologist if the side effects are worse than that and become unbearable. But we'll face that if and when the time comes. No point worrying about it now.
It's been 8 months of treatment.
8 months.
In that time I haven't been to the gym or been walking or done Pilates and it has caught up with me.
I dropped 8 kilos in the first two weeks of Chemo. At the end of chemo my appetite returned but exercising was too much for me to manage during radiation and the weight gradually crept back on. I'm now four kilos over my comfortable healthy weight...which doesn't sound like much but feels a lot.
I have no desire to be a Skinny Minnie, I'm an Aussie Size 12 and like having curves. My goal is to simply feel comfortable in my clothes, but more importantly, improve my shockingly poor fitness levels & flexibility. Since chemo my body has been so stiff and sore. Partially a leftover symptom from chemo and partially from lack of exercise. Tamoxifen can cause weight gain and fluid retention so I need to be proactive on that front too.
So to jump back into good health and harmony, I've started September off with daily early morning walks and Pilates a couple of times a week. Added to that, I'm boosting my diet with green smoothies and a couple of vitamin supplements for my hair, skin and nails.
I'm feeling better for it already. Didn't realise how much I'd missed that wonderful hour of me-time, breathing in the cool dawn air and pounding the pavement to the beat of my iPod while the neighborhood stirs to waking.
Cheers to healthy, balanced living!
And cheers to crazy fast growing hair!
xxx
Em
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