I've calmed down quite a bit since my panic about all the denseness in my life! Whew. That really was scary to me, even though on an intellectual level I was pretty sure it was cysts. Emotionally, it was another story.
So fast forward to this week and I'm hanging out with Sis up north, listening to crickets at the moment. Last night a barred owl let out a blood-curdling screech that made me jump off the couch. This morning, my neighbors began tearing up their asphalt driveway and excavating for ledge. At 7am. Not very neighborly now, right? I marched my half-awake self over to their driveway (they did wake us up after all, just like they did last summer...), growled good morning and told them it was too early. The sad thing is they worked until 5 pm, and I know it will start up tomorrow at....7am. The neighbor said, "I'm sorry.", and I wanted to yell back at her, "No you aren't!", just like I do with the kids at school. As if saying "I'm sorry" exonerates you from any responsibility.
A tangent. I am down to single digit numbers of weeks until I return to school, so I'm a little annoyed when heavy machinery wakes me up at the time I'm usually already in the car and en route to school. Just sayin'.
Sis goes back next Wednesday. Better her than me.
Not much else going on. I do have my prescription for Pravastatin to take to help lower the CRP thingy, but I haven't started it yet. I'm a little leery--side effects include memory loss (oh hell no) and muscle pain. Sigh. I did find a couple more articles supporting its use for CRP, and Dr. N seems to think that since I've done everything else I can to lower it but nothing has made it budge, time for some pharmaceutical help. I suppose that if I don't want to have a cardiac event later, I should take it. Try it?
Thursday, August 16, 2012
Tuesday, August 7, 2012
Density
Oh July was so good right up until the end, and then Reality slammed me on August 1st. Or 2nd. I've lost track of which day.
I had a bone density scan and a mammogram on the 31st, great way to end July.
Dr. N called me on the first and left a message, saying that my bone density was normal (Yay for all that milk drinking I've done all my life) and my mammogram was normal (strange I thought that she'd have the results back so fast, but whatever--I'll take normal.) My other bloodwork was fine--cholesterol came down, triglycerides came down (thank you Wii!), but the damn cardio reactive protein is still way too elevated, so she really wants me to go on a statin to see if it helps. Grr. So overall, I was ok with those results. And still undetectable.
However, Dr. N called me the next morning to tell me that she had in fact read the wrong mammogram results, and that mine were "abnormal", so I would need to be done again, this time with mammography and an ultrasound. Apparently there was a spot that was denser than the rest, and it was hard to tell what was going on. Thus began 5 long, agonizing days of waiting until my appointment this morning. Dr. N told me that about half her patients get callbacks, and percentage-wise the chances of having breast cancer were....I stopped her and reminded her of how she gave me the same speech about thyca. She got a good laugh out of that one. But can you get cancer twice in the space of two years?
I haven't felt this anxious since the thyca diagnosis. I hadn't found any lumps or bumps, but there was a spot that felt "cysty" to me and actually caused some pain. I've always had issues with painful cysts that come and go with my cycles, and I didn't really think anything of this. Intellectually I could tell myself that, but emotionally my mind went to the Dark Place of Bad News. Plus I'm still not sure about the role of menopause and estrogen on my cyst cycle, so how could I even be sure of what I was feeling? Too many what ifs circulating in my brain.
I am overjoyed to report that there is in fact a cluster of cysts, and nothing more serious to worry about. Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhh.
The mammographer was great, and it turns out is a thcya survivor of 13 years! We swapped stories and for some strange reason talking about thyca calmed me down as she poked, squashed and rearranged for the best images. It was, um, painful to say the least, but that just made me more convinced that it was a cyst in there, lurking in the denseness. Our stories were eerily similar, but she hadn't tried to go gluten free yet. Said she was thinking about it.
After the pics, I had to have an ultrasound. The tech was reassuring and done in minutes, but then called me back in to say that the doctor wanted to redo the ultrasound himself. Oh shit. The guy was overly cheerful and I really wanted to smack him, but I held back. Plus I was completely exposed and it would have been an awkward situation sine I really needed him to figure out what was going on in there. After what seemed an enternity of scanning and more gel, he said, "I'm looking at a bunch of cysts, and I don't see anything to be worried about in here." Can you say huge sigh of relief? Once he was done and told me to come back in a year, I burst into tears. Real tears with real crying--I think I scared the poor technician to death! What a relief. Amazing how emotional you can get with this stuff.
Mr. Wonderful came with me and was looking pretty anxious when I was called in, and he looked even more worried when I came out with a smile on my face. We promptly went out for breakfast to celebrate (too early for wine, but I will have some later!). How this man puts up with my health stuff I'll never know--it's so hard to tell him every time something new comes up, to see the worry on his face as I can tell he's trying to keep me calm. I do get some pretty good hugs and cuddles though.... :) In sickness and in health, right?
I hate the way I let this stuff put my life on hold for a few days--I seem to plow ahead, aiming to get to the next date before I can figure new stuff out. I knew this was on the 7th, so it's almost as if I have to get past the event on that date before I can plan beyond it, if that makes any sense. I didn't exactly curl up in a ball for the 5 days, but it was always lurking in the back of my mind.
So. I have a green light to enjoy the rest of the summer, which I plan to do. Not sure how, but now that I've made it past this morning, I can start planning stuff again.
Thanks to St. Peregrine for keeping watch this time....
I had a bone density scan and a mammogram on the 31st, great way to end July.
Dr. N called me on the first and left a message, saying that my bone density was normal (Yay for all that milk drinking I've done all my life) and my mammogram was normal (strange I thought that she'd have the results back so fast, but whatever--I'll take normal.) My other bloodwork was fine--cholesterol came down, triglycerides came down (thank you Wii!), but the damn cardio reactive protein is still way too elevated, so she really wants me to go on a statin to see if it helps. Grr. So overall, I was ok with those results. And still undetectable.
However, Dr. N called me the next morning to tell me that she had in fact read the wrong mammogram results, and that mine were "abnormal", so I would need to be done again, this time with mammography and an ultrasound. Apparently there was a spot that was denser than the rest, and it was hard to tell what was going on. Thus began 5 long, agonizing days of waiting until my appointment this morning. Dr. N told me that about half her patients get callbacks, and percentage-wise the chances of having breast cancer were....I stopped her and reminded her of how she gave me the same speech about thyca. She got a good laugh out of that one. But can you get cancer twice in the space of two years?
I haven't felt this anxious since the thyca diagnosis. I hadn't found any lumps or bumps, but there was a spot that felt "cysty" to me and actually caused some pain. I've always had issues with painful cysts that come and go with my cycles, and I didn't really think anything of this. Intellectually I could tell myself that, but emotionally my mind went to the Dark Place of Bad News. Plus I'm still not sure about the role of menopause and estrogen on my cyst cycle, so how could I even be sure of what I was feeling? Too many what ifs circulating in my brain.
I am overjoyed to report that there is in fact a cluster of cysts, and nothing more serious to worry about. Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhh.
The mammographer was great, and it turns out is a thcya survivor of 13 years! We swapped stories and for some strange reason talking about thyca calmed me down as she poked, squashed and rearranged for the best images. It was, um, painful to say the least, but that just made me more convinced that it was a cyst in there, lurking in the denseness. Our stories were eerily similar, but she hadn't tried to go gluten free yet. Said she was thinking about it.
After the pics, I had to have an ultrasound. The tech was reassuring and done in minutes, but then called me back in to say that the doctor wanted to redo the ultrasound himself. Oh shit. The guy was overly cheerful and I really wanted to smack him, but I held back. Plus I was completely exposed and it would have been an awkward situation sine I really needed him to figure out what was going on in there. After what seemed an enternity of scanning and more gel, he said, "I'm looking at a bunch of cysts, and I don't see anything to be worried about in here." Can you say huge sigh of relief? Once he was done and told me to come back in a year, I burst into tears. Real tears with real crying--I think I scared the poor technician to death! What a relief. Amazing how emotional you can get with this stuff.
Mr. Wonderful came with me and was looking pretty anxious when I was called in, and he looked even more worried when I came out with a smile on my face. We promptly went out for breakfast to celebrate (too early for wine, but I will have some later!). How this man puts up with my health stuff I'll never know--it's so hard to tell him every time something new comes up, to see the worry on his face as I can tell he's trying to keep me calm. I do get some pretty good hugs and cuddles though.... :) In sickness and in health, right?
I hate the way I let this stuff put my life on hold for a few days--I seem to plow ahead, aiming to get to the next date before I can figure new stuff out. I knew this was on the 7th, so it's almost as if I have to get past the event on that date before I can plan beyond it, if that makes any sense. I didn't exactly curl up in a ball for the 5 days, but it was always lurking in the back of my mind.
So. I have a green light to enjoy the rest of the summer, which I plan to do. Not sure how, but now that I've made it past this morning, I can start planning stuff again.
Thanks to St. Peregrine for keeping watch this time....
Wednesday, August 1, 2012
Jumpin' July
I can't believe it's August 1st. As in one whole month of summer is gone, and there is only one to go.
Where the hell did July go?
This is the first time I've been able to sit and write a bit--I'm sitting at the car place waiting to find out what is wrong with my beloved Pilot. After 2000 miles cavorting all over New England and Atlantic Canada, it started growling--tired maybe? And it just got too loud and shaky to ignore. It's not the muffler since it's coming from the front of the car. So I sit and wait.
July was a-m-a-z-i-n-g. There was so much going on! This could take a while to describe, but I figure I'm stuck here, so....
July 3 and 4
Tall ships! Boston hosted some tall ships for the celebration of July 4th and the 200th commemoration of the War of 1812, meaning the importance of the role of the USS Constitution...yeah, I need to go back and reread the details about that war. For me, it meant that I got to spend a day trekking all over Boston with my nieces and sisters-in-law--we walked from North Station to the Seaport via the North End and waterfront, and ended our day at Legal Seafood. Did you know that they have an amazing gluten free menu, and that it includes fried fish?? They fry in chickpea flour!! Oh, it was sooooooo good. I thought I was forever lost to the joys of fried clams.
And then I got to spend July 4th on board the above mentioned USS Constitution with Sis and Mr. Wonderful, watching our friend in his role as commander of the USS Constitution! Oh, it was awesome. The USCG Eagle sailed behind us, there were Blue Angels flying over us...just spectacular.
Where the hell did July go?
This is the first time I've been able to sit and write a bit--I'm sitting at the car place waiting to find out what is wrong with my beloved Pilot. After 2000 miles cavorting all over New England and Atlantic Canada, it started growling--tired maybe? And it just got too loud and shaky to ignore. It's not the muffler since it's coming from the front of the car. So I sit and wait.
July was a-m-a-z-i-n-g. There was so much going on! This could take a while to describe, but I figure I'm stuck here, so....
July 3 and 4
Tall ships! Boston hosted some tall ships for the celebration of July 4th and the 200th commemoration of the War of 1812, meaning the importance of the role of the USS Constitution...yeah, I need to go back and reread the details about that war. For me, it meant that I got to spend a day trekking all over Boston with my nieces and sisters-in-law--we walked from North Station to the Seaport via the North End and waterfront, and ended our day at Legal Seafood. Did you know that they have an amazing gluten free menu, and that it includes fried fish?? They fry in chickpea flour!! Oh, it was sooooooo good. I thought I was forever lost to the joys of fried clams.
And then I got to spend July 4th on board the above mentioned USS Constitution with Sis and Mr. Wonderful, watching our friend in his role as commander of the USS Constitution! Oh, it was awesome. The USCG Eagle sailed behind us, there were Blue Angels flying over us...just spectacular.
What we looked like from Castle Island
The Commander
With Mr. Wonderful
It was pretty hot, but we found a space with a breeze and just stayed there. It was raining when we got to the ship, but the heavens cleared as we turned towards the harbor. The harbor was packed with tons and tons of boats of every possible size, and the entire waterfront was packed with people. You couldn't see any green space on Castle Island. Freaky connection with the people standing next to us--they knew some people Mr. W knew from his days in Maryland, and they lived in the same town as the commander. Small world.
NH
After July 4th I headed north to spend a few days with Sis in NH. I brought Mookie and O'Malley along for their vet appointment and got yelled at because they are obese--Mookie weighs 19.6 lbs, and O'Malley 17.4! I knew Mook was large because he's just a big-boned cat, but I had no idea that O'Malley had porked up that much. I have to change their diets. Sis and I went walking and hung out for a few days--it was nice. She's exploring the gluten free world too.
Road trip to PEI
After leaving NH, I went home and repacked for our trip to PEI with Mr. Wonderful's aunt. We hit the road on Saturday and stopped the first night in Ellsworth, Maine. We found a great restaurant called Cleonice where I had the best paella since I was in Spain. The next couple of days were in St. Stephen and St. Andrews, New Brunswick--loved St. Andrews and had no luck finding more records in St. Stephen. From there we headed to PEI and Tignish, the hometown of Mr. W's grandmother. We met up with cousins and spent a couple of days roaming around so Aunt L could see where her mother came from. She said it was quite emotional. We had a tour of the cannery in Tignish thanks to Cousin Gerald, and got some incredibly delicious frozen lobster that we ate the next day. His son gave us a tour of the Tignish Fire Hall much to Mr. W's delight since they got to talk about apparatus and calls.
We went to Charlottetown for a couple of days and saw the other end of the island. We also took in an Irish ceili at the PEI Irish Benevolent Society that was fantastic--flute player, fiddler and guitar/vocalist. They put on a great show. And then we headed home with a stop in Saint John and NH to pick up Mookie and O'Malley who were vacationing with Sis at their summer abode. We put 2000 miles on the car!
On the red dirt road...
Posing at Cape Bear
On the gluten front, Canada seems to be much more aware than the US. There were many more menu options, even in tiny towns, that were delicious. I only got slightly sick once, and that was after the waitress assured me that my meal would be gluten free. Lots more choices in supermarkets too. I was very happy. Pretty impressive to only get sick once when we were eating out every day multiple times a day.
All in all it was a really good trip, and I think Mr. Wonderful was really happy to show Tignish to Aunt L and make connections with the cousins. We were there in 2009. It really is a beautiful place to see--tons of potato fields in bloom, lots and lots of lobster and mussels. I still have to read Ann of Green Gables at some point....
Women's Weekend 2012 in Breckenridge, Colorado
After our trip to Canada, I came home and in a couple of days turned the laundry right around, repacked and jumped on a plane to Denver for our Women's Weekend. This is an event that happens every couple of years whenever we can pull it off--a group of friends from high school ditch their husbands and kids, and we all get together for a couple of days to catch up and reconnect. We're spread all over the country, so the logistics can get pretty interesting. However, with the help of my brother-in-law and the use of his condo in Breckenridge, we had a great time!! Five of us made it this time for what someone called a "deliciously luxurious" weekend. We met up in Denver on Friday and took full advantage of the hotel's happy hour and restaurant near the airport. On Saturday we headed west to the Rockies and were in Breckenridge by 1pm. First stop was the resort's spa to book some "treatments". Bonus was that all 5 of us could use their hot tubs and hot saltwater pool while undergoing treatment--we picked up some wine, cheese and crackers and soaked for hours. I had a great hot stone massage that lasted an hour---aaaaaahhhhhhhhhhh. It really was awesome. We went back to the spa the next day for more. We had amazing food at the Motherloaded Tavern, Blue Moose Restaurant and Blue River Bistro, and of course stopped both days at Coldstone Creamery. I think Coldstone comes the closest to the Steve's Ice Cream of our high school days, and we spent a lot of time at Steve's.... The condo was perfect and the resort had lots to offer. The mountains were spectacular. All in all, it really was a deliciously luxurious weekend with great friends whom I've known since I was 15.
The Fab Five outside Coldstone with another ice cream (cinnamon with Heath bar mixed in was my personal fav)
In the saltwater pool with the mountains in the background
We might not see each other for months or years at a time, and we keep in touch via Facebook. But, once we get together, it's like I just saw these friends yesterday and we pick up where we left off. All topics are up for discussion, lots of memories come bubbling to the surface (Remember the time when....) and there's a lot of laughter. Sometimes there are tears, but that's part of life and someone always has something good to say to help change perspective. It's very easy. I'm so lucky to have these wonderful people in my life and always feel renewed after our weekends. I think this was the 10th time we've managed to get together since 1986 like this, although this was the first time that we didn't stay at someone's house for part of the weekend. I vote to do it again next year.....
And to end off Jumpin' July, I had my first bone density test done yesterday, followed by a mamogram. I'm waiting for my bloodwork results from earlier in the month. I'm still gluten free and still feel pretty damn good. Bring on August! Maybe I'll find out what my job for next year is--still no clue whether I'm teaching full time or moving to admin. Either way, me da igual. And on a happy note, 74% of my kids passed the AP test with a 3, 4 or 5! Up slightly from last year. Whew.
Car update: the wheel bearing has to be replaced. Really? After only 53,000 miles? It's under warranty, but it will take another hour or so to finish. So much for my day.
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