It have been a very rough couple of weeks. I was having ear pain so I had an APRN look at my ears. The one ear looked fine and the other one had fluid but wasn't infected. Well within 3 days I had a terrible ear infection and sinus infection. I was put on a Z-Pak for 5 days. On day 5 I was still in pain. The next day was Sat and I went to the CVS minute clinic. The APRN there put me on another antibiotic for the sinus infection and the ear infection had cleared up. She put me on Omnicef which is a type of Penicillin. That night I saw a rash and wondered if an allergic reaction could be in one spot. On Sunday I was still in pain and itchy from the rash. I also felt like my throat was thick but didn't really worry about it. On Monday, I took the meds again and my throat felt thick again. As the morning went on I noticed that my throat was feeling tight, my tongue felt funny and I was having a hard time swallowing. I called my mother in law to take Eli and my friend to bring me to the ER as I was pretty sure I was having an allergic reaction to the new meds. They gave me benadryl, ativan and a steroid to end the reaction. After sleeping from the meds, when I woke up I felt so much better! They gave me a new med for the sinus infection and sent me home. I had to follow up with my doctor in a day or two. I then saw my regular doctor on Tuesday and she looked at my rash. She then informed me that she thought I had shingles!!!! I had to call her later that day or the next morning if it spread. I ended up calling her after hours service and was put on an antiviral med for the shingles.
Thursday I had my heart CT scan. That was a very horrible experience. They blew 2 veins when they put the contrast in for the test. Also the contrast that they use for this makes your entire insides feel like they are on fire! It is like horrid heartburn over your entire body. I am glad it was quick and that it is over. Now I am just waiting for this coming Thursday when I will be meeting with my cardiologist and then my oncologist to find out the results and hopefully start back on the herceptin.
Now I am a week out from being diagnosed with shingles and my arm that is prone to lymphedema has swollen up and become VERY painful. I saw the APRN at the center today and she confirmed that yup I have shingles and that it looks like they haven't blistered yet but are about to! How fun!! I also have to watch my arm. If it starts feeling warm or turning red and getting more painful then I have to go back to see them. Other wise I am just waiting for my appt on Monday with my lymphedema therapist.
Needless to say I am ready for a break in issues that are plaguing me. Amidst all these issues I was able to see my mom, her hubby, my sister, brother in law and nephew. It was a wonderful day. It was so nice to see them all again and to finally do "Christmas" with them!!
I know that God has a reason for all that I am going through. It will make me stronger but I am ready for this trial to be over. The end of treatments and surgeries can't come soon enough. I am hanging in and holding on to God's promise that He will never leave me.
Winter 2011-2012
It has been a long time since I have posted here. So much has happened since then! We had a wonderful Christmas with family. The kids were spoiled and had a great time.
Before Christmas on Dec 13,2011 I had a hysterectomy/ oophorectomy. They had found a polyp on one of my fallopian tubes during a regular ultra sound. They wanted me to have a D&C but I wasn't happy with that decision. I was suppose to get regular scans to make sure that I didn't develop ovarian cancer as that is related to the breast cancer. I would be scanned every 3months for the next 5yrs until I was 40 when they would do a hysterectomy/ oophorectomy.
After talking with my oncologist and my APRN we decided that the surgery would be the best way to go for me. I was already in temporary menopause so we were hoping that the side effects from surgery wouldn't be too different. We thought that this would be less stressful than being tested every 3 months, and if they found something then I would have a D&C and wait for the results for the next 5 years.
As we were planning this surgery I contacted all the doctors to make sure I could still do the Jan surgery. All of them said that it would be fine. Well that is what all of the offices told me, but little did I know that the doctors were not on that same page!! As I was discussing this surgery with my GYN oncologist I asked again about the Jan surgery. He said that there was no way he would say 5 weeks between surgeries would be enough. He called the other doctors and they agreed that it wasn't long enough. I was upset to push out the reconstruction but realized it was for the best. I called my surgeon's office and discovered that the next opening was in April. I booked it, hung up the phone and bawled my eyes out! I was devastated, but quickly tried to settle with the fact that this was for the best.
My hysterectomy went smoothly. Auntie Linda came up and took me and stayed with me after my surgery. Bob had started a new job the day before I was scheduled so he couldn't come with me. Although he was able to come and stay until I went into surgery. That was thanks to Linda forgetting her phone at the house! Bob came to see me after work. By that time I was not quite as drugged and could carry on a conversation. The 3 of us had dinner together and then they headed home.
As I approached the 5wk out mark, I was glad I had postponed the Jan surgery. I continued to heal and continued to have my herceptin treatments. Herceptin can cause heart issues, so I have been having MUGA scans to check on my heart function, every 3 months. Bob's new insurance kicked in and we found out that they wouldn't cover the MUGA so we had to get an echo cardiogram. I do not have a baseline echo and the doctors thought they saw something. To be sure that it wasn't an issue, I then was scheduled for a nuclear stress test. That is a stress test without the running/walking. Instead they inject a radioactive dye that causes your blood vessels to open up and simulate you exercising. It is easier to see the heart this way. It isn't fun though!! I then wait for those results. Everything they saw looked great, the problem (you had to know that was coming!! LOL) is that they couldn't see the front of my heart. Soooooooo, herceptin is still on hold and I will be going for a CT scan on Thurs. I am expecting this to show that my heart is fine and continue with the herceptin next week.
Through all of this Robert has been struggling with his temper. He is very stressed out about school and the CMTs (Connecticut Mastery Tests) that are starting next month. We are working on different areas with him to help him learn how to "be angry and sin not". We are seeing small improvements and are happy with the small victories.
We all have been fighting different viruses. Abby had pneumonia, Robert had croup and then breathing problems from it, so he is now on an inhaler for the time being. Eli is doing well, but we have discovered that if he gets a bad enough headache he will throw up like his dad and sister. Bob has been pretty healthy and I have had an ear infection and a horrible sinus infection. We are all on the mend and hopefully we will stay that way!
I just keep reminding myself that God is in control and He knows about everything that is going on. He has blessed me with an amazing husband and wonderful friends and family.
Before Christmas on Dec 13,2011 I had a hysterectomy/ oophorectomy. They had found a polyp on one of my fallopian tubes during a regular ultra sound. They wanted me to have a D&C but I wasn't happy with that decision. I was suppose to get regular scans to make sure that I didn't develop ovarian cancer as that is related to the breast cancer. I would be scanned every 3months for the next 5yrs until I was 40 when they would do a hysterectomy/ oophorectomy.
After talking with my oncologist and my APRN we decided that the surgery would be the best way to go for me. I was already in temporary menopause so we were hoping that the side effects from surgery wouldn't be too different. We thought that this would be less stressful than being tested every 3 months, and if they found something then I would have a D&C and wait for the results for the next 5 years.
As we were planning this surgery I contacted all the doctors to make sure I could still do the Jan surgery. All of them said that it would be fine. Well that is what all of the offices told me, but little did I know that the doctors were not on that same page!! As I was discussing this surgery with my GYN oncologist I asked again about the Jan surgery. He said that there was no way he would say 5 weeks between surgeries would be enough. He called the other doctors and they agreed that it wasn't long enough. I was upset to push out the reconstruction but realized it was for the best. I called my surgeon's office and discovered that the next opening was in April. I booked it, hung up the phone and bawled my eyes out! I was devastated, but quickly tried to settle with the fact that this was for the best.
My hysterectomy went smoothly. Auntie Linda came up and took me and stayed with me after my surgery. Bob had started a new job the day before I was scheduled so he couldn't come with me. Although he was able to come and stay until I went into surgery. That was thanks to Linda forgetting her phone at the house! Bob came to see me after work. By that time I was not quite as drugged and could carry on a conversation. The 3 of us had dinner together and then they headed home.
As I approached the 5wk out mark, I was glad I had postponed the Jan surgery. I continued to heal and continued to have my herceptin treatments. Herceptin can cause heart issues, so I have been having MUGA scans to check on my heart function, every 3 months. Bob's new insurance kicked in and we found out that they wouldn't cover the MUGA so we had to get an echo cardiogram. I do not have a baseline echo and the doctors thought they saw something. To be sure that it wasn't an issue, I then was scheduled for a nuclear stress test. That is a stress test without the running/walking. Instead they inject a radioactive dye that causes your blood vessels to open up and simulate you exercising. It is easier to see the heart this way. It isn't fun though!! I then wait for those results. Everything they saw looked great, the problem (you had to know that was coming!! LOL) is that they couldn't see the front of my heart. Soooooooo, herceptin is still on hold and I will be going for a CT scan on Thurs. I am expecting this to show that my heart is fine and continue with the herceptin next week.
Through all of this Robert has been struggling with his temper. He is very stressed out about school and the CMTs (Connecticut Mastery Tests) that are starting next month. We are working on different areas with him to help him learn how to "be angry and sin not". We are seeing small improvements and are happy with the small victories.
We all have been fighting different viruses. Abby had pneumonia, Robert had croup and then breathing problems from it, so he is now on an inhaler for the time being. Eli is doing well, but we have discovered that if he gets a bad enough headache he will throw up like his dad and sister. Bob has been pretty healthy and I have had an ear infection and a horrible sinus infection. We are all on the mend and hopefully we will stay that way!
I just keep reminding myself that God is in control and He knows about everything that is going on. He has blessed me with an amazing husband and wonderful friends and family.
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