Best News Ever!

Feb 28th

I woke up in a lot of pain across my whole chest area. Didn’t really sleep at all.
I’m not sure if the pain meds are even working..?? I can’t lay all the way down because I wouldn’t be able to get up and I have drain tubes in me in the sides so I can’t lay on my sides either. So I’m propped up but laying on sheets and I manage to keep slide down during the night and have to try to push myself back upright which really hurts. For the first two weeks you really are not to do anything really. Doctor said, do not lift anything over 5 pounds and absolutely no house work! Now what woman wouldn’t want to hear that right?? It’s very hard to move around as well. Just pretend you were a 38D bra size and someone forced you to wear a 28A size. Like it would cut you into right? That’s how I feel times 100. Ouch is right.

I went to see my plastic surgeon this morning and he said every thing looked great. They removed two of the drains …one on each side. So I still have two left with hopefully will come out next week. The tubes are about 18” inside you and about 18” outside that drains into the grenade looking thing that you empty out once you mark how much drained into it. When the nurse removed the two tubes she told me to take a deep breath and then exhale fast. When I exhaled she pulled them out. Felt a little weird but it was really fast. Wasn’t near as bad as I thought it would be.
I will see my plastic surgeon again next week. If he removes the last two drains we will moved forward with the next steps.

March 1

I didn’t sleep again last night. Just can’t get comfortable at all. I had to get up early to see my surgeon today and get the results from my surgery and of my lymph node test. I’ve been praying that the lymph node test comes back clean with no cancer. This would mean no radiation which I do not want radiation.

I will say this. One of the worse days if not the worse is a doctor telling you you have cancer. But….one of the best days and it is the best day of your life is when a doctor tells you you are cancer free and that’s when what my doctor told me today!!!!  Praise God!!  He said that he only removed one of my lymph nodes during surgery and the test result from that came back clean and that I wouldn’t have to have radiation. He said they got clear margins thought everything looked great.  I sat there wanting to get up and squeeze him with the biggest hug ha ha. I even told him that I wanted too but I hurt to bad. He said my next visit I could hug him. I tried not crying while sitting there after getting the good new but I teared up some.  He told me that now it was time for me to get back to living!  My friend was with me.  I made my appointment to see him in 3 months and then we left. We got in the car and we were both very happy but almost tongue tied as to what to say.  We pulled out of the parking garage and my friend just bursted out into tears of happiness’s and of course I did as well.  It was truly the best news ever!

I’m so grateful and thankful to my team of doctors and staff.  Through it all they always kept me positive this entire time.  I couldn’t have made it this far without my caretaker, my friends and family.  My journey is not over by any means but right now the word “cancer” is not in front of my face.  Healing is. I will heal from this surgery and when I’m healed I will have the final surgery and will continue my chemo of herceptin every three weeks until October.  I have a second chance at life and I am so very very lucky, grateful and thankful.  I so appreciate the doctors and staff but I also know that God must have not been finished with me here because he put his healing hand on me and I will forever be thankful to him.  He heard all the prayers from everyone and answered them.  So, thank you to all of you who said a prayer for me or sent me positive healing thoughts.  Today makes the first day of the rest of my new fabulous life!!  Please continue to pray that the rest of this journey goes well and soon this will all be behind me, behind us!