I have been guilty of mentally thinking of life will be better when throughout my life, in some phases more than others. There have been times when it seemed to me that life was about to start - real life. but there was always some obstacle in the way, some thing to be gotten through… Continue reading Choosing Happiness Now: Embracing Life’s Journey
Our scars can destroy us, even after the physical wounds have healed. But if we survive them, they can transform us. They can give us power to endure and strength to fight. The Batman The subtext of The Batman movie is not dissimilar to the cancer journey. In this case the sadistic killer is cancer.… Continue reading One Year… I’m still here
Hello friends... Wow, what a year I have had. This past year my milestone age didn't really sink in with all of what that means. I've had a singularity of focus - battling breast cancer. On this last day of this year, I'm feeling like time is catching up with me. Usually when I hit… Continue reading Milestone Reflection: Battling Breast Cancer and Setting Goals for the Future
I'm having a gratitude moment for my husband. He's my favorite person and partner on our humble road of life together. He's been a rockstar with the challenges we've faced this past year in handling everything in our lives and caring for me so that I only had to focus on getting through cancer treatment… Continue reading 10 Reasons Why I Love Being Married to My Amazing Husband
Here I go again, comparing my life to someone else’s life. How easy it is to get lost in self-flagellation when comparing one’s life with the curated lives we see on social media. How easy it is to get lost in examining what we feel are our failures in those moments, in comparison to someone… Continue reading Curated Lives vs. Authenticity: Rediscovering Happiness in My Unique Story
...A few days late. It's been a taxing time. But I'm still here. I'm recovering from chemo and radiation. I'm three weeks back to work. I'm feeling exhausted, still have neuropathy, and chemo brain is challenging. I know it's going to take time. I hope all is well with all of you. Photo by George… Continue reading happy mother’s day, peeps
I read the following in an online support group and it describes this experience pretty accurately (sorry, I don't know who the original author is)... This still makes me cry every time I read it…I’m almost 3 weeks post chemo…but it is SO relatable and describes our journey pretty accurately. CANCER: THE MOUNTAIN LION IN… Continue reading Mountain Lion in the Fridge
"Dreams are postcards from the subconscious, inner self to outer self, right brain trying to cross that moat to the left. Too often they come back unread: 'return to sender, addressee unknown.' That's a shame because it's a whole other world out there - or in here depending on your point of view." Dennis Koenig… Continue reading Day 195: Morning Fog
Day 171 I'm in the mindset that it only gets better from here. I'm in the nadir of my last chemo cycle, so I'm feeling pretty down - exhausted, weak, and have neuropathy and chemo brain. But I feel better days are on the horizon. I just have to get through the next thing, radiation.… Continue reading Day 171, 10 Days Post Last Chemo, Stay Golden Ponyboy
There's an unreal-ness to having the diagnosis, even now, nearly six months in, there's a separateness for me like it's not really real. I know it's real but maybe it's more of a lack of acceptance. I just keep doing the next thing but I'm aware of this otherness. It feels like all the beautiful… Continue reading How it feels to have cancer…
Bloganuary writing promptWhere can you reduce clutter in your life?View all responses I have several areas in my life that could use a reduction of clutter and I've been thinking about it for a while. I still have remnants of my old life that need to be sorted through. There is too much stuff lurking… Continue reading Reducing clutter!?!
Daily writing promptDo you play in your daily life? What says “playtime” to you?View all responses The great thing about reaching middle age and being an empty nester as a GenX’er in my mid 50s is that I’m very skilled at occupying myself with play/fun. And the great thing is that in my present life… Continue reading Bloganuary: Do you play in your daily life? What says “playtime” to you?
Happy New Year friends! I'm almost halfway through chemo and I'm looking forward to being on the other side of chemo and radiation hopefully by April. Be safe out there if you're joining the revelries tonight. I wish everyone a most excellent 2024.
It's day 18 of my first chemo cycle and the challenges this week have been memory issues, nausea, fatigue, hair loss and irritated skin. In three days, I will be having my second round of Docetaxel (Taxotere) and Cyclophosphamide (Cytoxan). This week has not been as bad as week one and two, but I'm far… Continue reading Skin Care Challenges
It's eleven days post chemo and I've been too sick to even think about looking at a screen until now. The side effects have been rough. I hope all is well with everyone out in the world as I peek back into it. It feels like I've missed a lot. I need to crowd-source a… Continue reading Crowd Sourcing
The following quote reminds me to be gentler with myself and to understand that illness has things to teach. It serves a purpose. The illness that I currently feel is my body defending and freeing itself from the cancer. I am not my cancer. The cancer is a foreign invader. I am the organism thrashing… Continue reading Embracing the Battle
Before I took a break for my surgery and recovery, I was contemplating my grandmother's birthday back in September. She would have been 111 if she was still alive. She passed 34 years ago this past August. I think about her and how important my relationship was with her. In those moments that seem ordinary,… Continue reading Generations…
I need to vent... This kid is really not all right. I'm a week out from surgery. It's been a rough week. It feels awful when people are dismissive about the seriousness of breast cancer in general. Also, for me, the pathology from surgery isn't even in yet, so we don't know how much it… Continue reading Well Meaning Wishes
Hi everyone. I've put together a little guide with some links at the bottom of what's it's like navigating breast cancer. If you have been diagnosed with breast cancer, you may be wondering what your treatment options are and what to expect from them. I'm sharing what I've learned about common tests for diagnosis, surgery… Continue reading Navigating Breast Cancer
The past three weeks since my last post have been a whirlwind of learning and further defining my breast cancer diagnosis. I'm in the realm of there is no normal and have learned that everyone's breast cancer is different. Re-cap To re-cap my journey to date, in April my sister was diagnosed with stage 4… Continue reading Tests, tests, and more tests
Our Humble Road 