Results and Release

Thank you so much for your continued prayers and asking how I am doing.  I wanted to update you on two things.

First, I officially got discharged from physical therapy.  My cording issues are gone which is a huge praise.  I can go in for follow-ups as I feel that it is needed.  There is always a chance that cording can come back, but I don’t feel any of it currently.  I have mentioned before my physical therapy practice is called Turning Point and solely serves breast cancer patients.  They are a non-profit organization and so their love, support, and service to their patients is just more personal and real.  My sweet therapists (Grayson and Anita) have become friends and are very dear to me now.  If you are local to Atlanta, they are having a fantastic fund-raiser event called The Pink Affair (<– Click for details) in March.  We will be attending and would love to have you at our table.  I also was asked to write a patient perspective article for their monthly newsletter.  You can read it by clicking here.

Second, I got a call last Friday from Dr. Howard’s nurse (my GYN who did my latest surgery).  I assumed since it was a week after the surgery she was calling as a courtesy to check in on me.  Nope.  This is what she said, “I wanted to let you know that everything came back benign and negative.”  Insert chin drop and confusion here.  I had no idea what she was talking about.  I inquired.  She responded, “Well, since you are a breast cancer patient we check for traces of ovarian cancer, cervical cancer, cancer of the uterus, and even traces of carcinoma (my breast cancer).”  Ok, well that’s good to know.  I had no idea anything was even being tested.  I’m sorta glad I wasn’t anxiously awaiting results all week.  I guess this is something I should have assumed or known, but nothing was ever mentioned to me.  I thanked her.  Hung up the phone and sat down sorta in a stunned shock.  These are the things that still make me swallow hard.  It is still surreal that I am a cancer patient.  That my answer to the question, “Have you had any changes in your medical history in the last year?” is, “Yes, fought breast cancer this year.”  Or when the form asks, “Have you ever been diagnosed with cancer?” that I now check “Yes”.  It’s all a part of the new normal that 2016 has brought to our family.

Lastly, I have lots of follow-up appointments over the next two weeks.  Today, I had my annual dermatology check (they removed one small mole).  If you do not go to the dermatologist at least every 18 months (or have never gone) I would highly recommend it be something you schedule!  Tomorrow morning I have my 3-month check-up with my plastic surgeon from my reconstruction surgery.  Then in a couple weeks I have my 3-month check-up with my oncologist, my post-op appointment with Dr. Howard from this last surgery, and my follow-up with the podiatrist regarding my foot and if I get the boot off.  (I am able to walk on it now without pain, but too much movement or pressure is still painful).

I will let you know how the appointments go and if there is anything interesting that come from them.  I’m praying for them to be as boring and routine as possible!

This was a lot of boring news, so I’ll end with fun Halloween pictures of the fam.  Garrett refused to put his costume on so he wore Skeleton PJs.  Hamilton was Commander Cody and Luke was Captain Rex.  I have no idea who those characters are or which Star Wars episode they are in, but they both loved their costumes.  I hope you had a fun Halloween weekend whether you dressed up, trick-or-treated, passed out candy, or just stayed home and turned the front porch light off.  The weather here was beautiful (I wore shorts) and was an etched memory for our family.

Until next time…

AJ

And just to show my boys faces…