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Edie shared an experience
Clinical Trial (Frozen Head): Every chemo treatment they would put a frozen blue cap on my head. The theory was that it would slow the cells down and prevent hairloss. I did have minimal loss so it may have worked... I don't really know.
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Edie shared an experience
Drug or Chemo Therapy (Chemotherapy): I had Cytoxin, Methotrexate and Flouroracil (CMF) chemotherapy. Because I had a port it was a pretty easy experience. I found myself having a hard time with Zofran for nausea... it didn't work for me. Again, I had to do this without the benefit of the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA)... so I was literally taking my chemotherapy on a Friday and back at work on Monday.
The hardest part for me was the exhaustion. I was always tired.
I didn't lose a lot of my hair but I had cut most of it off before I started. I think that was a wise choice. I still have some side affects 19 years later that I attribute to the chemo... for example my gums are still dry and that period of my life is a bit of a blur... shrouded in "chemo-haze"... but all-in-all since I'm still here, I can't complain.
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Edie shared an experience
Procedure or Surgery (Breast Reconstruction (Flap)): Because of a bad experience with my mastectomy medications I did the flap reconstruction without any pain meds.... that was tough! BUT once I had gotten myself to the point of being able to stand straight and all of that, it really wasn't bad.
The cool thing now is I am 48 years old with C-D cup breasts that are the envy of many women... they see me able to go braless at this age and don't even know it's from reconstruction.
This is one of the few things in my life I can say, "Knowing what I know now, I'd do it all over again - in a heartbeat!"
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Edie shared an experience
Procedure or Surgery (Mastectomy): The surgery itself wasn't too bad. But I had an incident afterwards where they gave me improper pain medication dosages... that was a nightmare!
This was all before the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA). So for me, I literally went back to work as soon as my drains were out. I couldn't fully use my arms yet... but I was riding the train into work and giving it my best.
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Edie shared an experience
Oh No (Diagnosed): I found the lump only one month after I had gotten engaged. It took 6 Fine Needle Aspirations (FNA) to get an accurate diagnosis. I was only 29, had never had kids and was in a high-pressured job.