Lucky lucky lucky....

I've finished my treatment and while there have been a few tough moments nothing comes close to that dreadful day driving to the Dr's office after getting the phone call the afternoon before. Trying really hard not to panic until I had something to panic about, while at the same time thinking about what I'd want for a funeral, convinced that it was probably stage 4 and I was doomed doomed, doomed.

It was a relief to hear it was only a bit of cancer, invasive but caught early. Even when it turned out that "Roger" was more aggressive than anyone had picked, I still thought Man, I've dodged a bullet and I'm incredibly lucky. 

I can hear you saying "WTF" she's had cancer! Well, I'm still standing and I reckon I'm extremely lucky...

• Lucky I paid to have my mammogram, the one that picked up my sneaky little tumour "Roger", lucky I didn't just wait another year for the free one
• Lucky I had health insurance, I was so close to cancelling it, what if I'd had to wait for surgery?
• Lucky my surgery went well
• Lucky I had no sickness with chemo
• Lucky the government now pay for 12 months Herceptin
• Lucky I sailed thru radiation
• Lucky I could work most of the time
• Lucky that I had oodles of sick leave because my work place let you accumulate up to 80 days (I've still got sick days left!)
• Lucky my home town now has chemo and radiation treatment available here and I didn't have to travel to Waikato Hospital
• Lucky to have awesome support from family and friends.

What I've learned along the way

• Not all Breast Cancer is the same, there's so many different types, stages and different treatments
• Not all chemo makes you throw up, and they have great anti-nausea drugs....take them, before you need them!
• Chemo isn't a weight loss plan...damn it!
• There seems to be a cancer etiquette in the treatment room, like no one talks about what they're having treatment for or how they're doing, if you do talk it's more likely to be about anything other than the big C
• Hormone treatment sucks
  Of all the stuff I've had done this is actually the worst. The muscle aches and pains are getting gradually better so maybe I will stick with it, I've decided 1 year at a time - that's do-able right?
• I will now flash my boobs at anyone
  I'm so proud of the fantastic job my surgeon did, the scars are minor. He should give me commission
• I had no idea of the HUGE emotional roller coaster the whole thing would be. Just when I thought I was doing great and keeping up my sense of humour, I would be hit with an emotional tsunami over something trivial, usually at traffic lights for some reason
• There's a place in NZ that can make your ashes into fireworks
  ... and that my friends is what I want you to do when the time comes, when I'm an old bag of over 80 still rocking my awesome boobs
• You can laugh while having procedures, some things are just funny!
• You can laugh at cancer jokes, while going thru it.
  My brother sent me the most un-pc one ever, and it saved me during one of my tsunami turns. 
• It helps to have un-PC friends, ones who say stuff like "You can't die, who am I going to go on holiday with" or "That sucks, have a beer"

Physically I still have a slight bruise on my left hand from the last herceptin, my left big toenail is still growing out from the weird blood blister chemo reaction, my hair has grown so much I need a proper haircut - I still have chemo curls and I'm rocking the grey. I still have my boobs, with 3 scars, and 3 small blue tattoos. My right armpit has a very mild loss of sensation from the lymph node biopsy scar just below my armpit to the top of where "Roger" was. I've gained weight, I don't want to know how much.

Mentally, I think I've coped well, and I'm determined to shake this off and get on with living, so I reckon I'm home and hosed and so this is the end of my cancer blog.
Thank you everyone for what you have done for me.
Isla for coming to all those early appointments, insisting I stay at your place after surgery and after the first few chemos, and everything else.

Jessie for giving up her room, Gads, Kat and Tom for putting up with me invading your space and Kat and Tom for hacking my hair off.

Ali & Mum for being there and words of encouragement, Shirley and John for the calls, txts and jokes, all the rest of the family too for your checking in on me.

Andrea and Delwyn for the care parcels every chemo week, then every herceptin not missing a single one - my god you two are awesome.

All the other friends and workmates for the beers and laughs and hugs and txts just when I needed them. Told you I was lucky!

I may give an update a year from now, maybe not. I may be too busy living my life.

I am now about to head off on my travels, you can read all about it here, when I get around to working on it....

http://madcowmoovements.blogspot.co.nz/
And so the final words go to Six60 Only to be, just for the lyrics.. "Ain't it good to be alive"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZGWX3sjk46A

Bet you thought it would be Kylie...