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:-5 You would think that after a mastectomy, five months of chemo, three reconstructive surgeries, and many dozens of people seeing me naked I would not be bothered by having these pictures taken. I AM!!!! The plastic surgeon took before, during Phase I, during Phase II and today's after mug shots of my chest. The nurse keeps telling me they are not mug shots they are before, during and after pictures. I call bull. My body robbed me, got punished and went through rehab - they are mug shots of a very bad scene of the crime. :-3 It's all really OK now. The doc wants to do one more quickie surgery to relieve some scar tissue. I told him I needed a few more months before I get cut on again. Thanks for letting me vent on something that seems a violation of my privacy. I could have said no - but I know he will use them to show other women that life can return to some semblance of normal - before breast cancer.

NV, you are so strong, and very courageous to share this here. I won't tell you I understand, or know what you're going through, but I will tell you that I admire you a great deal.

To have your body invaded, first by the cancer and then by the surgeries, has got to feel something like a rape, to not put too fine a point on it.

Stay tough, and for god's sake, keep your sense of humor. You are a real inspiration to me. Thanks. :yh_hugs

You know BR - rape kept coming to mind - it was just by my own body and then by all the wonderful doctors who helped me.

BabyRider wrote: NV, you are so strong, and very courageous to share this here. I won't tell you I understand, or know what you're going through, but I will tell you that I admire you a great deal.

To have your body invaded, first by the cancer and then by the surgeries, has got to feel something like a rape, to not put too fine a point on it.

Stay tough, and for god's sake, keep your sense of humor. You are a real inspiration to me. Thanks. :yh_hugs


Ditto for me too. You have truly earned your right to tell the Dr whatfore.

BabyRider wrote: NV, you are so strong, and very courageous to share this here. I won't tell you I understand, or know what you're going through, but I will tell you that I admire you a great deal.

To have your body invaded, first by the cancer and then by the surgeries, has got to feel something like a rape, to not put too fine a point on it.

Stay tough, and for god's sake, keep your sense of humor. You are a real inspiration to me. Thanks. :yh_hugs




Ditto! My feelings exactly Baby, just could never have put them into text like that!!

:-6

YOU GO GIRL !

I appreciate all the good thoughts - I really do. Haven't you ever been through some medical stuff and the most innocuous thing gets you going? I used to joke the day before I had my chemo's that it was time to bring the hose in from the garden so I could sit on the toilet as I drank from it for 4 days - just bring my pillow to the bathroom please...the dehydration was incredible. Or the one where you come out of the infusion room bathroom yelling... my pee is red, my pee is red.. everyone but the newbies laugh and then you sit with the newbies and tell them what to do to get through the chemo's. I supported the Idaho potato industry during chemo - did I get any thanks? NOT!!! I cooked for 3 days before my last chemo and threw a party at the chemo center - I called it "I'll bet you're glad I'm not coming back again" I fed 75 people including people in the infusion room. Do you know the nurses said no one had ever done that before. I just figured I owed them since they put up with my "Cancer SUCKS and I am NOT going to die" and all my tears through a very hard time physically. I remember going in one day and I could not stop crying, I felt really bad physically and still had 8 hours to do at work, they called the psych nurse who wanted me on anti-depressants. There is such a huge difference between your body feeling like it is going to quit on you and your mind being OK. I cry when I get a fever - so no drugs for me. When I go for my 3 month check-ups I ask if there is anyone in the infusion room by themself - if there is - I go sit with them. They still call me Amazon woman because as Dylan said.....I will not go softly into this good night - or something close to that. That's my story on chemo.

Everything said here is all so true about how brave you´ve been and what a shining axample you are to others to get through all this and keep a good sense of humor. You are a real inspiration to me too.:-4

OK - I like the good thoughts - tell me some funny stories - share with FG. We don't often talk about the bad times in our lives with humor. I guess I'm asking incoreectly. :-5

That was thoughtless on my part- I just want to hear some funnies about bad times - I must be wierd.

nvalleyvee wrote: OK - I like the good thoughts - tell me some funny stories - share with FG. We don't often talk about the bad times in our lives with humor. I guess I'm asking incoreectly. :-5
I like the fact that you're talking about boobs. I consider myself to be Iowa's foremost expert on boobs. Note, I did NOT say "Breasts." we're talking boobs. Boobs i like, boobs i know. Boobs are fun. It is even a fun word to say. the "T" word is far too vulgar.

just wanted to get some of y'all smiling.

Wolverine wrote: I like the fact that you're talking about boobs. I consider myself to be Iowa's foremost expert on boobs. Note, I did NOT say "Breasts." we're talking boobs. Boobs i like, boobs i know. Boobs are fun. It is even a fun word to say. the "T" word is far too vulgar.

just wanted to get some of y'all smiling.


I wanted to call it boob mug shots - just thought it wasn't PC :yh_rotfl

flopstock wrote: And this isn't even the scariest thing NV has undertaken and conquered...You hear who she's marrying??:D Yikes!


Dang Flop we got married July 3rd :-6

nvalleyvee wrote: I wanted to call it boob mug shots - just thought it wasn't PC :yh_rotfl
i feel better now. i was a little worried that you might be offended or something.

glad you're not.

:)

Wolverine wrote: i feel better now. i was a little worried that you might be offended or something.

glad you're not.

:)


I actually wanted to call it Boobie Mug Shots - I'm just too much in the gutter - gives me lots of laughs. I take offense of very few things in my life. I find it is a much better attitude to keep everything up front and at the humor level. Life is good that way.

nvalleyvee wrote: OK - I like the good thoughts - tell me some funny stories - share with FG. We don't often talk about the bad times in our lives with humor. I guess I'm asking incoreectly. :-5


OK nvalleyvee, you asked for it. (funny stories) Since you shared your stories of embarrassment, I will share mine with you, just you, no one else continue to read this post!!!

I ate some pizza that had funny tasting meatballs on my half of the pizza. It wound up giving me a god awfull rash all over my body, that was so itchy I scratched the raised, pimply, patches, untill they bled. At 4:45am I found a 24hr drugstore, so I bought Benedryl to stop the itching. At 10:00am after six pills the itching was worse than ever so I went to the ER as It was "Thanksgiving day". They told me it was a reaction to something I ingested, but I already knew that.

I just wanted them to give me some mirical drug to stop the god awfull itching. All they gave me was more Benedryl in the ER, and told me to continue to take the Benedryl I already had untill I finished all 48 pills. Well after 3 days I started to pee blood, so I went to my family doctor. He gave me some pills for a UTI that did not work either. (Sorry to have been so long winded, but I had to set the stage)

Now comes the embarrassing part! I was walking past my wife in my scivvies, and she says to me: do you have a towel in your shorts? I said no, what a crazy question, why would you say that? Then I was passing a floor length mirror, and low & behold there was a tremendious buldge! After removing my scivvies, there were my Jewles at least "3" times their normal size. I panicked, I rushed to the ER again, now just 10 days after my Thanksgiving day visit, cause it was a now a "Sunday" & my family doctor was not in again. Well the ER nurse checked me in & I had to tell "her" my problem, (She grined, and said I bet that hurts) then after waiting 1/2 hr in a room in just the hospital gown a Doctor came in, I asked him if I was going to be alright he looked at my enlarged package and then said urology was not his specialty, and that I would have to wait for the urologist to examine me. Finally an hour later the urogolist came in, and saw my "3" plus times enlarged jewels and said wow. He then went to get some of his coleages to see this phenominon, 2 of which were female doctors, 3 were famale nurses, a total of about 9 all staring at my problem!!! My face was RED!!! He told me I should be OK, "but" he recommended me to see my regular urologist on Monday to get his opinion.

Monday same thing told admitting female nurse my problem, & then the urologist re-examined me again. He said Benedryl was the "worst" thing I could have taken, as it stops the male baldder from totally emptying. Thus, causing my UTI infection. He gave me a priscription for Cipro to take for 4 weeks, and said then come back in two weeks for re-evaluation, and then again at 4 weeks. I did, each time my face was Red, but thank goodness over time, I'm finally just now back to normal!

:wah: :yh_cry :yh_rotfl :yh_rotfl

i didn't read it I swear. i just had a really funny joke pop in to my "head"

my monitor is covered with MtDew. that stuff burns coming out your nose.

Dang those doctors for sending you one to the other!!! So let me ask? Do you take Benedryl caually anymore? :wah:

nv has not seen this yet but as one who knows her this guy explains her attitude and bravery to a tee........

For you nv....... I love you for who you are.....



His homepage here.

Why Not Laugh?



by Scott Burton

Having faced stage IV osteo sarcoma, chemotherapy and multiple limb-saving surgeries, I have seen the profound imprint -- both good and bad -- that cancer leaves on every person touched by it. Knowing the struggle, I have something to say to each of us affected. And, in speaking with fellow survivors and oncology professionals coast to coast, I often hear the same sentiments that reinforce this opinion. Yes, cancer is one of the greatest struggles you'll ever have. Yes, it is a life and death issue. And, yes, those you love will suffer too. But, in the midst of this life-defining battle, why not allow for laughter?

It's important to remember that there is not and never will be anything funny about cancer -- which is why some feel they can't, or shouldn't, laugh. But what is funny -- is life. It always has been. From your first greeting in the world being a smack on the bottom to the fact that time will eventually turn you into your parents, life is a wondrous comedy. In dealing with cancer, life is different, but not any less present. So, just as there was humor in life before cancer, there can be humor in life during cancer.

I remember the first time I made someone laugh during my one year battle. My brother was visiting me in the hospital after an operation and I was explaining that, before the operation, I'd had my very first prostate exam. He could see how shaken I was when I told him. "I had my first prostate exam. Wow!" As he smiled sympathetically I stumbled on, "I mean, that was a new experience. I'd heard... I mean, I knew what it was but... wow. I'd never done..." After another pause, I turned to him and, with genuine concern, said, "Are they supposed to use a puppet?" The laughter from my brother was so real, so genuine and free, it changed the face of all our conversations throughout the rest of my operations and chemo.

With one fell swoop, that hearty, joyous laughter cut through the tension of being in the hospital, of facing cancer, of my brother's discomfort watching me go through the ordeal. With that laughter, I found a way to communicate that would do both, keep fears at bay and draw others closer.

So it is true, cancer is no laughing matter but, whether it is cancer or any other trial in life, laughing does matter.

In assessing all the ways I could've responded to my diagnosis -- my surgeries, my seven months of chemo -- laughter was the only one that made sense. I could have raged. I could have kept to myself and stewed. I could have felt slighted, cheated or abused by life. I could have felt a world of different things from depression to cynicism. But laughter was the only response that, as I used it, helped me grow. And there was a byproduct to sharing laughter. While loosening up my body, easing fears of others and building lines of communication, it provided the most powerful and needful tool in fighting any trial in life -- a positive attitude.

The other reactions; anger, depression, suppression, denial, took a little piece of me with them. Each made me feel just a little less human. Yet laughter made me more open to ideas, more inviting to others, and even a little stronger inside. It proved to me that, even as my body was devastated and my spirit challenged, I was still a vital human.

It's often hard to understand the healing power of laughter because it doesn't make sense to relate physical and spiritual mending to the same feeling you got when Milton Berle donned a dress. But it's there. Medical scientists have proved the existence of healing endorphins released by laughter but, in plain terms, the magic of laughter is, when you laugh -- if only for that moment -- you love your life. And, when facing tragedy, that is a deep knowledge we all can use.

So I exercised my sense of humor whenever possible. While in pre-op, during one of my nine surgeries, I was propped up atop my gurney with pillows as the staff scurried throughout the room and a young attendant brought me heated blankets and checked to see if there was anything I needed. Even though I was in for surgery, with everyone running about and attending to me while I sat as their audience, I felt as if I were a Roman nobleman at the forum. Embracing the brief moment of regal splendor, I turned to the attendant and, with playful airs, said, "Fetch the oncologist... he amuses me."

I once tried to convince a friend that, along with chemotherapy, radiation therapy or the complimentary humor therapy, there was such a thing as nasal therapy. "What happens is, as you drink a glass of milk, the doctor makes you laugh and the tumor shoots out your nose. They're still testing to see if it works with 2% and skim. They're also having a hard time finding a doctor who can make people laugh."

There are numerous ways to allow for laughter in our lives; rent comedy videos, read the funnies, take the time to remember the laughter in your past. For my money, listening to Carl Reiner's and Mel Brooks' Two Thousand Year Old Man routine is guaranteed laughter. Just getting out and talking freely to others works. You'd be surprised, when you actually converse with and engage people around you, how often laughter is the result.

And this is not meant to say laughter is the only way to embrace our humanity. It is not the only knowledge we have of loving life. Cancer patients shouldn't be thinking up new gags they can do with their bed pans or making crank calls from their rooms. Nobody is calling for a new generation of chronic disease comics. Embracing laughter does not mean non-stop guffaws. There are other ways to stay in touch with our humanity. There are the little things, such as smiling. There is genuine love. There is doing whatever it is you do that makes you feel human: reading, hugging, writing, talking, maybe alligator wrestling, whatever it takes for you. Many times even tears help us feel our true humanity.

We live in a dehumanizing society that is centered on image, demographics, sales and numbers. We seem to be valued only by what we have or how famous we are. Our humanity and love of life has been buried and hidden. Then cancer comes along and tries to take what is left. Through laughter, through loving, through our own passion for living we can take control of our humanity once more. We see that life can be simple. We admit that cancer can be part of life. And we know that laughter and loving our lives always feels good.

And this is why I love him and I married him.

Wow, you are so brave and so amazing. You make me feel guilty for my terrible attitute through my medical stuff : /

Congratulations on being done with chemo! I hope the rest of your surgeries are a piece of cake.

Thank GOD!! I read the first post and had to get away from it fast, lest I post something inappropriate. Glad I came back & read it.



NV, Boobie mug shots are okay so long as you're able to stand proud enough not to cover the number plate.



Cars, I'm not surprised about you. From some of your posts, I knew you had a substantial pair!



There were 5 or 6 others that died on the vine, but there you are.



Glad that you were stronger than the cancer. :-6

nvalleyvee wrote: Dang those doctors for sending you one to the other!!! So let me ask? Do you take Benedryl caually anymore? :wah:


I will get "Blottoed", "Plastered", "Waisted", anything rather than ever take Benedryl again!!! :guitarist

Accountable wrote: Thank GOD!! I read the first post and had to get away from it fast, lest I post something inappropriate. Glad I came back & read it.



NV, Boobie mug shots are okay so long as you're able to stand proud enough not to cover the number plate.



Cars, I'm not surprised about you. From some of your posts, I knew you had a substantial pair!



There were 5 or 6 others that died on the vine, but there you are.



Glad that you were stronger than the cancer. :-6


Yes, but I would have been extremely thrilled, if my jewels "partner" got to be over "3" times it's size to!!! Then that would have been great!