Follow The Rainbow

Look at all the pretty colors! 

If you have thyroid issues you may recognize one or more of the above prescriptions.  This is the assortment of replacement thyroid hormone doses I’ve been on in the last 9 months. Let me tell you, its no fun.  Since my radiation treatment I’ve had my medication dose monitored every 6 months as well as my tumor markers.  Now that I’m pregnant I have to have these monitored monthly.  Since I’m less than 5 years from my initial treatment I’m still under active cancer surveillance which is a little more than nerve wracking when you have a baby on board!

Four months into pregnancy and I’ve had my med dosage increased twice. This is fairly normal from what I’ve been told but it is critical that mom and baby have sufficient supplementation over these months as we both grow.  That means in addition to my monthly OB appointments, I have monthly Endo appointments.  I also have monthly blood draws to monitor my TSH, T3, T4 and the all important tumor marker TG.  Every month I wait anxiously for the call that says my tumor markers are still undetectable and for the verdict on a new dose of hormone.  This month alone I have an Endo appointment with blood draw, OB blood draw, neck ultrasound appointment, 2nd Endo blood draw, and the most anxiously awaited OB anatomy ultrasound appointment.  That’s a lot to deal with.

But… if it means that we can have a healthy pregnancy for momma and baby, it is perfect.  I know as we get further along in the pregnancy the appointments will increase and I welcome that.  It means an even closer watch and more opportunities for reassurance.  Instead of looking at these appointments with fear or dread I will welcome them and be thankful.

I am well. Baby is well. We are blessed.

A Day of Thanksgiving

As I was getting ready this morning, I overheard a news piece about the busiest travel day of the year.  And then it struck me that this time next year, I will be one of those doing the travelling. I may be heading home by plane, I may be heading home by car but it will be a lot longer than the 20 minute drive I have tomorrow.  It will be such a different experience.

With the weather calling for rain, sleet, & snow in the next few days I find that I am thankful that I will be so close.  I am also thankful that I have a family that makes getting together a priority.  I am thankful that we will have plenty of food to eat.  We will be cooking 55lbs of turkey, 20lbs of potatoes, 5lbs of stuffing and a whole lot of other yummy stuff!  And I am thankful we can get together in a warm home and that I will be seeing 27 of the people I love most.

I have a lot to be thankful for this year, but I want to know…

What are you thankful for?

To Mom & Dad

I know I've said “thank you” countless times over the past months… It just never feels like enough.

How can I begin thank you for being there for me through everything?

I know at times all of this was just as hard for you to take in as it was for me. I know I have given you information overload with all my research and been frustrated when I couldn’t explain all I had read.

You were there to visit when others weren’t. There to go with me to support groups and Dr appointments, there to listen even I didn’t know what to say, there to listen to and calm my fears, there to remember the things I forgot.

You did my laundry, got my groceries, cleaned my house, dropped off my mail, took out the trash, cleaned up after the “kids”… called the doctors back, relayed information when I couldn’t, recognized when I was past my limits before I totally crashed, and risked radiation exposure to drive me to and from treatment.

You were with me when I laughed, cried, worried…

So “Thank You” mom and dad… I don’t think I will ever be able to adequately express how very much you both mean to me.

Gratitude

I am grateful that my place finally sold and that the buyers wanted to me to be out quickly, causing me to move when I did.
I am grateful that I had to move into an apartment where the grass gets mowed, repairs are done for free, and I won't have to shovel in a few short months.
I am grateful for the aching muscles that came from hauling things out, up, and in.
I am grateful that when trying to rub out a kink in those aching muscles, I noticed a lump at the base of my neck.
I am grateful for a doctor who came in on his day off to see me after the urgent care said I needed follow-up within a couple days.
I am grateful for the referral to an experienced surgeon who said the lump needed to come out because it was pressing on my carotid, esophagus, and trachea - even though he thought everything looked benign.
I am grateful for his skilled hands that did the biopsy painlessly and removed the lump very carefully from my neck and recurrent laryngeal nerve because he knew my voice was important to me.
I am grateful for the experienced eyes of the pathologist who recognized that something just wasn't right about the cells under the scope.
I am grateful for the experts who were able to confirm what the pathologist discovered.
I am grateful for doctors who listen to my fears and recognize the fact that I can indeed be an active participant in my healthcare plan.
I am grateful for the various support systems, websites, books out there available to young adults dealing with cancer.
I am grateful for my parents and my friends who have listened to (& read!) my thoughts, fears, and triumphs because they are making this easier to deal with.