This is the post where I tell you the surgery went well, I'm recovering as expected and there's not really anything dramatic to share, health wise. Plenty to share, certainly, but I feel I need to get the health story out of the way first. Once my uterus was removed and sent to pathology (sorry is that a bit TMI?? It's all so 'whatevs' to me now), they confirmed I had Adenomyosis and fibroids and the surgeon found an odd set of mishaps in my pelvic cavity that were unexpected but easily Continue Reading
The Other Side of Tomorrow
Everything is about to change. Since my last update about Adrenal Fatigue back in January, I've deliberately held back from writing. In fact I've held back from a lot of things. Almost everything really. I've focussed on my health, my family and a small number of close friends who've supported us while we bunker down for a while. After selling our house at the end of last year, we slipped into an awesome house-sit opportunity and have settled into life here for 12 months. It would have Continue Reading
Adrenal Fatigue
I miss writing. This is the first thing longer than a shopping list that I’ve written in 6 months. I’ve carried stories and blog posts around in my head for days at a time, but in the end it was too much effort to capture them. Even an hour at a keyboard sets me back two weeks. My arms, shoulders, wrists and neck stiffen up and stay that way until I shell out for another round of osteopathy or figure out which elusive combination of stretching and resting will relieve the aches. There’s Continue Reading
I stopped working. Now what?
Once I made the decision to stop working, everything happened rather quickly. Six weeks later and I'm officially unemployed, with not a client to speak of. Everyone was lovely and accommodating and I'm feeling good that I was able to organise transitions for my clients with minimal fuss. I can hardly believe it was such a difficult and agonising decision. It's such a relief to be free of it all; and now here I am. I've spent a couple of weeks taking it easy and trying to read my body. One Continue Reading
On Life Catching Up With Me, and Letting Go.
Life caught up with me a few weeks ago. I was sitting in the car outside the physio, everything aching as usual. I stared blankly through the windscreen and suddenly I was just exhausted. I tried to turn the keys in the ignition, but the effort was beyond me. Tears rolled down my cheeks and I felt a tightness in my stomach and a shortness of breath that might have been a panic attack if I had that kind of thing. But I don’t do not coping. I cope and I manage and I get things done. I don’t Continue Reading
What I’ve Learned About Relaxation
Since Scott’s Cancer Diagnosis a year ago, I’ve existed in a state of low grade anxiety. Even when things were going well, I was still tense, living on adrenaline. Keeping it together was really my only priority, and often that meant taking care of everyone else except me. Scott’s in remission now and he’s back at work. The kids are OK. So, earlier this year I decided to take some time off. For 3 months I’d take on no new responsibilities. I would embark upon a relaxation regime to Continue Reading
After Adrenaline, Nothing
Last year I ran on adrenaline. I worked extra hours on adrenaline, did the school runs on adrenaline and trawled back and forth to the hospital on adrenaline. Adrenaline got me through preparing and weighing out 3 streams of meals, 3 times a day (plus snacks) for my family's insane unique dietary requirements. I even leaned on adrenaline for the occasional night out or social occasion. Yes, adrenaline was my friend. But as 2016 dawned we started to drift apart. No more cancer. No more Continue Reading
Life after Cancer
This is life after cancer. Sitting together in the sun and feeling joyful just because. Going out for breakfast and catching a glimpse of normal on the horizon. Crying at night after an ordinary day because the exhaustion and the worry and the relief are still there in every moment. Hearing of someone else’s tough times and feeling it in your gut because you know, now, what it’s like. For Scott, there’s no more surgery, no more treatment, no more cancer. The tumour was lodged at the base of Continue Reading
Cancer Free
I guess the first thing to say is that Scott is now cancer free. It's a bit of an anti-climax, the way that moment creeps up on you, but it's still nice to say. "My husband doesn't have cancer anymore". He had PET scans after chemo and radiation and they found no sign of cancer. The doctors still recommended surgery to remove his rectum, just in case there were any tiny cells that could trigger a recurrence. It was a tough decision, but we're so glad he made it. After Scott's surgery, they Continue Reading
Post Operative
It's been 2 weeks since Scott went into Peter Mac for surgery to remove his rectum. He was calm and in good spirits. We expected a 4 - 5 hour operation and a 4 - 5 day stay in hospital. Things haven't really worked out that way. The surgery took more than 8 hours, and although it went well, there were complications and he'll probably be in hospital at least 3 or 4 more days. When I found out he was still in theatre 7 hours after going in, my brain collapsed. For the next few hours my Continue Reading