A little lift of the tent flap
I still don't feel as though I can properly articulate all of the craziness going on in my life right now, but I think I have a handle on part of it, so I'll share that here.
About a month ago, my mom found a lump in her breast. Scans and a biopsy later determined that it was a 1.25mm cancerous tumor in situ that hasn't spread (yet) to lymph nodes. She's scheduled for surgery in two days although she's still considering whether she wants that surgery to be a lumpectomy (followed by radiation) or a double mastectomy (no further treatment necessary). Both options have good 5-year survival outcomes and both have their drawbacks (radiation will mean daily treatments and pain while a double mastectomy will have a longer, more painful recovery). She is handling all of this really well and I'm supporting her with an unwavering certainty that she can beat this. Daddy, however, is not dealing well with any of this. He's seen too many friends and colleagues die after long, awful battles with cancer and he's terrified that Mom will be another member of that group. I don't know what to do to help him, so I'm focuing on Mom.
So, I'm thinking about participating in the Komen 3-day in my mother's name. While there's no increased risk for me due to Mom's diagnosis (she's over 60), being overweight is a risk factor for not only breast cancer but also colon cancer (which Mom had six years ago and I AM at heightened risk for), and the walking required as part of the 3-day training program would certainly help take some weight off. I'm not sure if I can commit to the walking program for nine or ten momths (I'm looking at participating in the Washington DC event) because I've never stuck it out on a program for more than 2-3 months in the past. However, if I can just do 20 or 30 minutes a day, every day, between now and when TCB gets home in April, then I'll have my husband to do long walks with. (Honey, you'll walk with me for 10 hours per weekend, right?) The cool thing is that this would be a step toward better health without going on a diet and/or getting obsessed with numbers on a scale.
Anyway, there's other stuff going on around here, too, but I don't know how much of that I'll ever feel comfortable sharing publicly, so I'm glad I've at least gotten Mom's situation out in the open. Expect a retrospective piece on my first (digital) mammogram coming to this space soon.
About a month ago, my mom found a lump in her breast. Scans and a biopsy later determined that it was a 1.25mm cancerous tumor in situ that hasn't spread (yet) to lymph nodes. She's scheduled for surgery in two days although she's still considering whether she wants that surgery to be a lumpectomy (followed by radiation) or a double mastectomy (no further treatment necessary). Both options have good 5-year survival outcomes and both have their drawbacks (radiation will mean daily treatments and pain while a double mastectomy will have a longer, more painful recovery). She is handling all of this really well and I'm supporting her with an unwavering certainty that she can beat this. Daddy, however, is not dealing well with any of this. He's seen too many friends and colleagues die after long, awful battles with cancer and he's terrified that Mom will be another member of that group. I don't know what to do to help him, so I'm focuing on Mom.
So, I'm thinking about participating in the Komen 3-day in my mother's name. While there's no increased risk for me due to Mom's diagnosis (she's over 60), being overweight is a risk factor for not only breast cancer but also colon cancer (which Mom had six years ago and I AM at heightened risk for), and the walking required as part of the 3-day training program would certainly help take some weight off. I'm not sure if I can commit to the walking program for nine or ten momths (I'm looking at participating in the Washington DC event) because I've never stuck it out on a program for more than 2-3 months in the past. However, if I can just do 20 or 30 minutes a day, every day, between now and when TCB gets home in April, then I'll have my husband to do long walks with. (Honey, you'll walk with me for 10 hours per weekend, right?) The cool thing is that this would be a step toward better health without going on a diet and/or getting obsessed with numbers on a scale.
Anyway, there's other stuff going on around here, too, but I don't know how much of that I'll ever feel comfortable sharing publicly, so I'm glad I've at least gotten Mom's situation out in the open. Expect a retrospective piece on my first (digital) mammogram coming to this space soon.
Comments
It's too bad we live so far away or I'd offer to train with you. I've always wanted to do the 3 day walk but have always been leery of the $2300 donation. Not that it's not worth it, of course it is, it's just a lot of money to raise when I'm not the type to ask people to donate. If you end up doing it, I vote for letting people donate via your blog because I certainly would.
As for the 3-day, I TOTALLY think that you can do this. I really, really do. And people who do the 3-day have my absolute undying admiration... but knowing that you're training for a cause that has directly impacted your life, emotionally, will power you in ways you never imagined!