Scattered Thoughts . . .

Sheila's followup appointment with the surgeon was the other day so we were back at The Breast Care Center at the hospital. Sheila still has weekly appointments for her ongoing treatment plus daily therapy to do but the followup appointments at The Breast Care Center are slowing down.  As expected, Sheila is healing well. Her lymphedema looks good which means it is no worse than what is "normal" for patients in similar situations...    scarring is minimal and healing nicely...   and she is beginning to regain some of her energy. This newfound energy is in spurts at this point but it is some very welcomed energy after months of exhaustion and seemingly nothingness in her life.  Life sort of stood still for many months during treatment... and, in hindsight, feels a bit like it was a whirlwind at times. But, this was a period which we both see as nothingness and blackness on our calendar.  The imaging was normal so that is great. There is some fluid w...

Friday, we were back at the hospital again for a followup with the surgeon.  Sheila's recovery from her surgery a week prior to this appointment has been relatively uneventful for which we are both very thankful. I definitely want to point out that Sheila's surgeon has done an outstanding job on this partial mastectomy as well as the biopsy and in effectively managing a slightly different and perhaps slightly creative protocol to avoid Sheila's history of problems stemming from anesthesia. In previous surgeries, Sheila has had significant problems with anesthesia and this new surgeon and anesthesiologist really came through in finding a solution to Sheila's rather unique problems.  Additionally,  Sheila's incisions are healing nicely and she is getting more and more comfortable each day. In our appointment on Friday, the surgeon cleared Sheila to begin doing more physically demanding things again as she feels up to it. Naturally, this is good news.  ...

After showering this morning, I came back to the bedroom to find Sheila propped up in bed and reading.  Considering the circumstances, it seems she is feeling quite well but not well enough to be frustrated by the inactivity. I'm not sure boredom has stepped in yet either because she is probably still catching up on much needed rest and sleep.  What I have noticed and understand all too well is her careful search and selection of different positions in order to find some comfort and less pain. Right now she is taking her first shower since before the surgery so I expect her pain to increase after this little bit of activity and pressure. Any movement, so far, has been quite painful and she is still moving quite slowly. As I mentioned in previous blog entries, the area where the surgeon removed a few lymph nodes hurts the most and this still holds true this morning.  All in all, however, I think she is doing quite well considering the past week and a half... and...

The surgery for Sheila's recurrence of breast cancer was yesterday so the day was spent at the hospital. For me, it was a day of just waiting and waiting... for Sheila, her day was a bit more hectic, invasive and painful. This time around, Sheila's opposite breast has a tumor shaped sort of like a bell or a Hershey's Kiss and measures 10mm x 15mm (approximately a little less than 1/2" x 5/8"). The imaging was showing no signs of the cancer being beyond the perimeter of the tumor so that was quite good news. Regardless, some lymph nodes needed to be removed and biopsied as well just to be sure the cancer has not spread into the lymphatic system. The team of doctors seems to be quite positive though.  So, before sunrise yesterday morning, we headed to the hospital to start the pre-op stuff for surgery. Here, Sheila is getting dressed (well...  undressed, really) for surgery... Discussing some of the proposed day's events with one of the nurses as she pr...

Yesterday morning, we arose at o'dark thirty... unfortunately, not all that bright eyed and bushy tailed... so we could head north to check into the hospital for Sheila's third surgery related to recurring breast cancer.  I don't think either one of us slept all that well. I admit that I was a bit anxious and I know Sheila was a bit anxious too. Plus, I was concerned about oversleeping since we needed to get up so early. We arose on time, however, and were headed to the hospital within 45 minutes. We arrived at the hospital before sunrise and long before anyone else so we were treated to an empty parking garage and a front row parking spot... We headed directly to the Registration Desks to check in for today's surgery. While checking in, we had a nice conversation with the registration administrator about yoga, strength training, the kids, the grandkids, cruises and visiting Disney... After registration, we made the short walk to the end of the towering lo...