Well, see? I've done it again.
Thank you all for the response and reassurance. In order:
Jackie, great link. Thank you. Some time back, I purchased the Kindle edition of Idelle's book, but I have been unable to read it. (I can't even manage bad fiction right now, although I used to read a couple of books a day.) Bizarrely enough, my memory is more complete than it was before chemo--my oncologist looks at me funny when I say it, but I really and truly believe cyclophosphamide had a beneficial effect on Hashimoto's--but I lack concentration and focus. I'm the poster child for ADHD. If you could see me in action, it would give you a belly ache.
Chris, with all that you're going through right now, I'm humbled to my toes that you took the time to encourage me. I am in awe of so many of the very strong individuals who post here, but your perseverance--not only on your own behalf but for the benefit of those who come here looking for help--is nothing short of remarkable. When I'm feeling battered, I think of you, and I'm almost convinced that what I see at the end of the tunnel is daylight (and not the headlight of the early morning express). I love that you're able to remain upbeat and funny even when faced with tough situations and choices.
Tricia, you're everywhere. (I read your posts at BCO and Komen, too.)
I don't know how you find the energy, but I will aspire to emulate you. (My thyroid slowed my pace quite a lot even before cancer.) Same for remembering to laugh at myself (which is something I'm normally quite good at, because I have plenty of material).
Speaking of humor,
Ann, you're amazing. I read your blog and your posts elsewhere, and everything I said to Chris above is also true about you. At times, you have made me laugh out loud at your take on the terrifying and dire. It's a gift.
Oh,
Denise, your reply to my last PM is still blinking at me. It's totally humiliating that I'm so far behind. (I can't help but laugh at what I slug I am, and now I've waked the cat with chortling and she's looking at me like I'm a two-headed mouse.) Have you taken your tree down yet? If not, I shall strive to reply before you do. (Just try not to take it down too soon.)
For the record,
Sarah, I have about 10 calendars, and except for the calendar on the wall, they're all synced and up-to-date...except...I didn't write down the time of my next endo appointment, so because I was too embarrassed to call and ask, I called and changed the day instead. I'm pretty good with regular appointments (e.g., Herceptin), but everything else is just a panic until I get it into Outlook and synced everywhere. (Either I can't find the appointment card or I can't read my own handwriting. You would think I would put it into the calendar on my Android at the moment I make the appointment...and I do...and then I usually "cancel" instead of "save" because my fingers hit the wrong key.)
In other news, before the Cancer Cat had cancer, he had hyperthyroidism and a heart condition. Now he has diabetes. So he gets methimazole and amlodipine and an insulin injection in the morning, plus more methimazole, Prilosec (to protect his widdle puddie tummy from the chemo), Palladia (similar to Sutent) and an insulin injection in the evening. He does not complain (although he got a little offended tonight when I stuck a Keto-Diastix strip beneath his back end as he tried to have a quiet pee in the corner box), so I guess I'll just have to follow his example of grace under pressure.
I have started mixing caffeine with L-theanine again (see here:
http://www.fasebj.org/cgi/content/me...bstracts/LB456), and it helps some. I also saw a lymphedema therapist today for a preliminary evaluation, and that was a real relief--I do not have lymphedema (although she says that we, the nodeless, have to be prepared for it to happen at some point), and now I have some trustworthy tips on what to do to better my odds for later rather than sooner. The best thing was having it all out on the table--neither my surgeon nor my onc wanted to address it at any point, even though I kept bringing it up. It's only because my RO didn't want to give me XClair (because he wanted to see how the calendula would work for me--and it did, perfectly) that he gave me the consolation prize of a referral to the lymphedema therapist. Sheesh. The things we must do to get a little service from the medical fraternity....
I'm off now to find the other threads to which I owe replies. With a little luck, I won't get distracted, and with just a touch more, I'll be able to reply to Denise before her Christmas tree comes down.
Thank you all so much.
Rhonda