Priority # 1
A new year is upon us… 2012.
Hubby and I are trying to rid ourselves of any negative energy from 2011 and make space for new beginnings, new hope, and positivity. New Year’s Day we were busy little bees – cleaning the house, throwing out the old, sorting and settling all our medical bills (which will be a whole blog entry of its own at some point!), organizing, and purging… Hence, no new blog entries for the last few days. We’ve been a bit busy.
What are my specific goals and intentions for 2012?? This is something i’ve been pondering since my diagnosis back in November… And I think it all comes down to self care. Looking out for # 1 (as my homegirls and I like to say). 🙂
For the last 3 years my life has been consumed by taking care of everyone else but me (a trap many of us women fall into!) Through it all, everyone kept saying, “What are you doing for yourself? Make sure to take care of you…” But I honestly couldn’t figure out how to do it amongst the insanity of moving a half a dozen times, being essentially homeless for 6 months, taking care of my terminally ill mom, my new baby, a depressed husband, and organizing all my parents’ affairs. I put myself on the back burner for too long. Now I see this breast cancer diagnosis as a big slap in the face reminder to put myself first.
So 2012 is all about taking care of me. Exercise… meditation… eating well… therapy sessions… quality time with those i love… doing things that bring me joy… dancing… being in nature… taking regular trips to NYC… And in taking care of myself I will beat the odds, go on to live many many many more years, and be an even better parent, wife, friend, daughter, and human being.
In terms of treatment decisions… Taking a couple of days to just sit with my options and talk it through with family helped immensely. And I have decided to go with my local oncologist. I just like his vibe and feel that he is behind me in my vision to kick this cancer’s ass (versus the Columbus team who made me feel like the cancer was going to kick my ass). And as my NY doctor said – chemo is chemo. It doesn’t matter if I’m getting it in a posh room in Manhattan or a simple office in Ohio – the process is the same.
So tomorrow is the BIG day. My first chemo session. I’ll be taking 3 drugs (Herceptin, Taxol, and Carboplatin) and they say it’ll take around 5-6 hours to pump it all into my body!!!! I’ll be sure to bring my iPod and lots of good reading materials!
Until tomorrow… Wishing everyone a Happy New Year!! And reminding you to make your own self-care a priority. NOW. Before life slaps you in the face.
Peace and love. – T
Great advice, and something we all need to be reminded of…
thank you, Terri xox
Great to hear that the decision has been quickly reached and that chemo starts tomorrow. Sending you good thoughts and strength as you begin this part of the fight. You just concentrate on YOU — I especially liked reading that you will be doing things that bring you JOY — what better medicine can there be than that? Keeping you and all your family in my prayers —
John
Yes. Yes. Yes. YES! On all counts…putting yourself first, allowing all of us to care for you, for starting treatment, and kicking cancer’s A**!
Good luck tomorrow…
Much love,
Eryka
Terri,
Like Carol, I work with Peggy who is your aunt’s sister-in-law, and I can’t tell you how glad I am that she shared this with all of us. This damned disease touches everyone – some directly and others through friends and family. My Mom is a 2-time survivor; I am a stage 3 Ovarian survivor; so while I am not you, I feel and understand a lot of what you are going through. It is a rollercoaster with so many ups and downs – way too much scariness (God help us for the Internet – be very careful about what you read…)
Chemo is different for eveyone, so while many will share their experiences, they may not be YOUR experiences! Each body reacts differently, but you will know with the very first one how you will need to prepare for the next one. And I know what you mean about having chemo – you just want to hurry up and kill every single cancer cell in your body and the faster the better!
Good for you for making your decison on where to begin your treatment! I’m sure it wasn’t easy but it IS empowering. When you get cancer so much is out of your control, so when you can, take charge no matter how big or small it may seem to you!
So prayers and blessings to you as you begin the next chapter. Stay strong; stay positive (this is huge) and take it one day at a time. Be good and forgiving to yourself – you are an amazing woman!
Keeping you in my thoughts…
Karen
Still sending good thoughts to you and hopes that the day went as well as could be expected.
Be sure and get plenty of rest. I’m sure it will be frustrating to you that you may not have the energy to be as active as you are used to, but I feel it will be your body’s way of conserving energy for healing. Listen to your body.
Sending hugs and healing thoughts still…..
Kim