Good news from my Beaumont oncologist yesterday -- all of my blood components are back in the "normal" range! That confirms that my body reacted badly to the chemotherapy (bad news) but that it is bouncing back (and maintaining) on it's own (excellent news!).
And with that, I move from being a cancer patient back to being a cancer survivor.... I'll have check-ups every three months, and also a bone scan, CT scan and breast MRI in the spring.
The hardest thing for me will be to "exhale" and relax between now and those scans.
My mantra is to tell myself, "Everything is fine today. Enjoy. Tomorrow will take care of itself." That kind of mindset is easier said than done, but it is something I am determined to pull off. Prayer, meditation, housekeeping, good diet, exercise -- all things that I believe will foster an "internal calm." Today, post-Christmas clutter, I am working on the housekeeping aspect! :)
Many folks have suggested a celebration because my treatment is finished.... To be honest, I'd rather just "exhale" and move on with my daily activities. Cancer has become a way of life at our house, not really something with a beginning or an end. It will be a long time before anyone in my family will be confident enough that the cancer is gone to "celebrate." So, lets just help each other remember to laugh and smile and celebrate each day. Our family needs that, and probably to some degree, so do you!
Thank you all for your prayers and cards and meals and gifts and good wishes and... This has been a very hard year, but I am lucky to have my health again and to have the love and support of so many friends and family. God bless each of you!
Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. I thank my God every time I remember you.
In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. Philippians 1:2-6
2 comments:
Joan, Thanks for the post. God is good - mysterious at times - but good. I'm catching up on life (in a different way) and reading your post from Texas. I think about you everyday and want you to know I will continue to pray for you and your loved ones and thank you for the prayers for your friends. Really - isn't that what this life is all about? Cheers, Mary Williams
Hello,
Like yourself, I am also a cancer survivor and after reading about your current struggle with breast cancer, I wanted to let you know about an initiative by the Michigan Department of Community Health to raise money for breast cancer and prostate cancer research in the state of Michigan.
What we're doing is a simple campaign called the Michigan Breast & Prostate Cancer Income Tax Check-off to encourage residents of Michigan to indicate on their state income tax form an amount they'd like to donate to cancer research. By checking the donation box in the Voluntary Contributions Schedule on the state income tax form, all of the funds raised will go towards services and cancer research within the state of Michigan.
If you'd like to share this with your readers, visit http://www.michigancancer.org/taxcheck-off.cfm. On the site, there are badges for bloggers to grab and share to show their support. These can also be placed on Facebook/MySpace pages to help spread the word.
Let me know if you have any questions or if you want some more information. The more people know about this, the more strides we can take towards conquering cancer.
Sincerely,
Ellyn
Post a Comment