So today was the day I had my first Radiotherapy session. Last week I went for my planning session so they can "mark you up" for where the beam goes.
When I arrived they showed me to a small curtained area and I had to strip off to the waist, no time for modesty when you have had breast cancer - you get your tits out for anyone who asks! They gave me a paper towel for "modesty", I ain't no Jordan it just about covered me.
I then had to lie on a table with a machine whizzing round me whilst they drew all over me in black marker pen. Pre-requisite for radiographer job must be a mania for dot to dot books. So I lay there looking at ceiling tiles for a good 20 mins and then they asked if they could tattoo me with the dots they use to line up the beam. You can opt out of that but basically you can't wash that area whilst on treatment so rather than be whiffy for 5 weeks I went for the tattoo options. ERRRRMM OUCH!!!! Bloody Ouch actually! One of the radiographer dotted ink on each spot and another jabbed a pin in to tattoo me, mostly OK but the one on the sternum was bloody sore.
Still you do as you are told to just get on with it.
I have to go to get the treatment, every day for 5 weeks (Mon-Fri) it only takes 5 mins and if it keeps the big "C" at bay then bring it on! Hell I'll go every day for 5 years if it helps.
It all went well, although rather disconcertingly the CD that was playing in the background was "Wind beneath my wings" and we all know what happened to Barbara Hershey in beaches (gulp!)
Got a personal trainer coming in an hour so I can get my lardy arse in shape, I am expecting it to be hilarious and will share the experience with you tomorrow..................now where did I put all that Lycra........?
Thursday, April 30, 2009
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
Tuesday, April 28, 2009
The Zoo
I can't believe it's been nearly a week since I posted ! How rude!
Alex and I took a trip to Edinburgh Zoo on Sunday since Alan was on a 30 mile walk. He is in training for the RBS Calendonian Challenge which is a 54 mile walk in 24 hours (yep he IS mental!)
We had a great time at the zoo. There is an aviary called "Rainbow Landings", you buy a tiny pot of nectar and hold it out and the birds just come and land on you and drink the nectar, it's brilliant and I could have spent all day there. As soon as Alex and I walked in, the birds just flew to us - very cool!
We got really close up to the Spider Monkeys, this one came right up to the glass, how cool is this?
The Koalas were actually awake, this is the first time I have seen one.
This is a Madagascan hedgehog type creature, I forget it's proper name....
We couldn't miss the daily penguin parade, these guys did the lap very quickly, no rockhoppers (my faves) ventured out since they are egg sitting at the moment.
And finally, is anyone missing a monkey? Hmmmmm
Alex and I took a trip to Edinburgh Zoo on Sunday since Alan was on a 30 mile walk. He is in training for the RBS Calendonian Challenge which is a 54 mile walk in 24 hours (yep he IS mental!)
We had a great time at the zoo. There is an aviary called "Rainbow Landings", you buy a tiny pot of nectar and hold it out and the birds just come and land on you and drink the nectar, it's brilliant and I could have spent all day there. As soon as Alex and I walked in, the birds just flew to us - very cool!
We got really close up to the Spider Monkeys, this one came right up to the glass, how cool is this?
The Koalas were actually awake, this is the first time I have seen one.
This is a Madagascan hedgehog type creature, I forget it's proper name....
We couldn't miss the daily penguin parade, these guys did the lap very quickly, no rockhoppers (my faves) ventured out since they are egg sitting at the moment.
And finally, is anyone missing a monkey? Hmmmmm
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
Another Baby Card
Just a short post today, I made a baby card for a work colleague of Alan. It's a variation on one of my current fave layouts for cards.
Busy day tomorrow, got my planning session for my radiotherapy treatment, and Book Club. Wish me luck!
Busy day tomorrow, got my planning session for my radiotherapy treatment, and Book Club. Wish me luck!
Sunday, April 19, 2009
Rule Brittania
We have some friends visiting this weekend, my Mum's best friend and her hubby. Yesterday I took them to "Brittania" which is now permanently based at Ocean Terminal in Leith,only 3 mins away by car. I have been before and it is great, really if you live anywhere nearby or are thinking of visiting Edinburgh, make the effort to go, it's brill.
I am a real Royalist and I think it's a great shame that the Queen had to give up Brittania, it was outdated and needed a total refit or they needed to have a new yacht built, OK that would have been expensive, but let's face it as a taxpayer we only contribute 62p a year each to the Queen. Money well spent since she is such a good ambassador for the country. I know it's not "cool" to be a Royalist but I don't care. Whenever Brittania sailed into a foreign port she stood as a very proud emblem of the UK, representing a little bit of our country abroad. An invitation to a dinner on board with the Royal Marine band playing must have been so exciting. So I say, lets build them a new boat!!! The most fascinating thing about the visit, is the fact that the ship was built in the 1950's and wasn't revamped in any way at all , and it was last used in 1997 before being de-commissioned. The Queen is very frugal and re-used a lot of furniture from Queen Victoria's yacht which was broken up in the 1950's.
Thought you might like to see some pics, incidentally they have opened a restaurant on board and the food is to die for.........
This was the Queens Sitting room where she did all her papers and work...
This is the main sitting room, a very large and chintzy room but I loved it!
Right, I think I am done for now with my Royalist rant ha ha!!
Alex lost his front tooth on Friday afternoon, hadn't realise the joke on his top until now....
Yesterday, I finally posted my MAMMOTH Christmas project, it's taken me aaaaages. I packed everything up in a box to post wrapping about 4 miles of tape round it all, addressed it and sat back with great satisfaction........then I looked at my desk and GAAAAHHH!!! I had left one card out of the box (I think I may have said the "F" word once or twice)!!!! So the box was re-opened and the rogue card added. So next week I am hoping to get a few bits and pieces made for my own self.
I am a real Royalist and I think it's a great shame that the Queen had to give up Brittania, it was outdated and needed a total refit or they needed to have a new yacht built, OK that would have been expensive, but let's face it as a taxpayer we only contribute 62p a year each to the Queen. Money well spent since she is such a good ambassador for the country. I know it's not "cool" to be a Royalist but I don't care. Whenever Brittania sailed into a foreign port she stood as a very proud emblem of the UK, representing a little bit of our country abroad. An invitation to a dinner on board with the Royal Marine band playing must have been so exciting. So I say, lets build them a new boat!!! The most fascinating thing about the visit, is the fact that the ship was built in the 1950's and wasn't revamped in any way at all , and it was last used in 1997 before being de-commissioned. The Queen is very frugal and re-used a lot of furniture from Queen Victoria's yacht which was broken up in the 1950's.
Thought you might like to see some pics, incidentally they have opened a restaurant on board and the food is to die for.........
This was the Queens Sitting room where she did all her papers and work...
This is the main sitting room, a very large and chintzy room but I loved it!
Right, I think I am done for now with my Royalist rant ha ha!!Alex lost his front tooth on Friday afternoon, hadn't realise the joke on his top until now....
Yesterday, I finally posted my MAMMOTH Christmas project, it's taken me aaaaages. I packed everything up in a box to post wrapping about 4 miles of tape round it all, addressed it and sat back with great satisfaction........then I looked at my desk and GAAAAHHH!!! I had left one card out of the box (I think I may have said the "F" word once or twice)!!!! So the box was re-opened and the rogue card added. So next week I am hoping to get a few bits and pieces made for my own self.
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
Nutrition!
Well today I have been to the Maggies cancer centre in Edinburgh for a nutrition workshop and free lunch (yes there IS such a thing as a free lunch)
IT WAS BRILLIANT!!
It was hosted by a wonderful lady called Kelly who knows sooooo much about food and nutrition. I actually thought it was going to be a bit "noddy" like "eat your 5 a day and that'll do it", but nooooo it was super interesting and could, quite frankly turn me into a super healthy eating food bore.
At the end, we had lunch which was just scrummo, all made by her own fair hand, I even tried Quinoa (pronounced Keen-wa) which was scrummy. We all meet up again in two weeks and I can't wait. I met some really lovely people there too, we had a hoot!
Sorry I haven't been posting any card pics, not had chance lately but I should be back in the swing of it all again by next week.
Hope you all had a fab Easter xx
IT WAS BRILLIANT!!
It was hosted by a wonderful lady called Kelly who knows sooooo much about food and nutrition. I actually thought it was going to be a bit "noddy" like "eat your 5 a day and that'll do it", but nooooo it was super interesting and could, quite frankly turn me into a super healthy eating food bore.
At the end, we had lunch which was just scrummo, all made by her own fair hand, I even tried Quinoa (pronounced Keen-wa) which was scrummy. We all meet up again in two weeks and I can't wait. I met some really lovely people there too, we had a hoot!
Sorry I haven't been posting any card pics, not had chance lately but I should be back in the swing of it all again by next week.
Hope you all had a fab Easter xx
Saturday, April 11, 2009
Anticlimax.....
Remember when you did exams and couldn't wait for them to be over? Well it's a bit like that with chemo, I've been waiting for months for the drudgery to be over and it finally happened this week as you know, and the whole thing has been a bit of a sodding anticlimax. When I finished exams I would spend a week or so in some sort of limbo - land, obviously glad that they were over but every now and then a little voice would pop up in the back of my head saying "you should be REVISING"
Funnily enough, I realised yesterday that we had been in this house for 6 months to the day when I got diagnosed and this week as my chemo ended we've been in the house one year! Last June I was talking to Alan's cousin (she's the closest I have to having a sister really) we were talking about how happy we are in Edinburgh and the new house etc and I remember distinctly saying how I just KNEW something else was coming my way, something bad......weird huh? I must be a witch!
Anyway just to add a bit more spice to my week I had a message on my phone from the hospital telling me I had to go in for a heart scan and it was pretty urgent!! EEEEKK! Well I did have one before I started chemo, just to make sure that "the ol' swinging brick" was up to being subjected to 6 months of poison. Seemingly at the end of said poisoning they need to know if the heart has been damaged in any way. So off I trotted yesterday for me ol' heart scan and I had forgotten how utterly charming and lovely the cardiologist is. He is a small very well spoken Indian chap, puts me in mind of Ghandi (without the loin cloth obviously, that sort of garb would not be tolerated in hospital).
He is just so lovely and let me look at my heart on the monitor as he scanned it, most interesting to see it was doing so well and of course very reassuring. Not one iota of damage has been inflicted which is fab, but I almost asked him to scan my liver too, I am guessing that is not so squeaky clean (oops!). At the end of the scan he said "here are some tissues to wipe the jelly off your chest" and I replied "blimey that's not something I hear every day" hee heee.........
Alan has been bedridden for 24 hours with a chest infection and I am also suffering from one too, although our joint intake of antibiotics seems to be paying off, it's a glorious day here in the "Burgh that is Edin" but we are just taking it easy.
Meanwhile I must crack on with my mammoth Christmas project for one of the mags I do work for hey ho!!!
Funnily enough, I realised yesterday that we had been in this house for 6 months to the day when I got diagnosed and this week as my chemo ended we've been in the house one year! Last June I was talking to Alan's cousin (she's the closest I have to having a sister really) we were talking about how happy we are in Edinburgh and the new house etc and I remember distinctly saying how I just KNEW something else was coming my way, something bad......weird huh? I must be a witch!
Anyway just to add a bit more spice to my week I had a message on my phone from the hospital telling me I had to go in for a heart scan and it was pretty urgent!! EEEEKK! Well I did have one before I started chemo, just to make sure that "the ol' swinging brick" was up to being subjected to 6 months of poison. Seemingly at the end of said poisoning they need to know if the heart has been damaged in any way. So off I trotted yesterday for me ol' heart scan and I had forgotten how utterly charming and lovely the cardiologist is. He is a small very well spoken Indian chap, puts me in mind of Ghandi (without the loin cloth obviously, that sort of garb would not be tolerated in hospital).
He is just so lovely and let me look at my heart on the monitor as he scanned it, most interesting to see it was doing so well and of course very reassuring. Not one iota of damage has been inflicted which is fab, but I almost asked him to scan my liver too, I am guessing that is not so squeaky clean (oops!). At the end of the scan he said "here are some tissues to wipe the jelly off your chest" and I replied "blimey that's not something I hear every day" hee heee.........
Alan has been bedridden for 24 hours with a chest infection and I am also suffering from one too, although our joint intake of antibiotics seems to be paying off, it's a glorious day here in the "Burgh that is Edin" but we are just taking it easy.
Meanwhile I must crack on with my mammoth Christmas project for one of the mags I do work for hey ho!!!
Thursday, April 09, 2009
Rubbish Blogger
Well I haven't been up to much over the last few days hence the lack of posts. Chemo went well, still feeling no ill effects, I do however have a hacking cough which is driving me nuts as well as the rest of the family (all 3 of us LOL!)
Currently working on a BIG Christmas project for a mag, that I obviously can't share with you, I know - Christmas!! NUTS EH??
Anyway that has to rank as the most booorrrring blog post ever, but I can't seem to magic up any funnies or exciting happenings today, stick we me dear chums I'll be back on form real soon.
Meanwhile, happy Easter!!!
Currently working on a BIG Christmas project for a mag, that I obviously can't share with you, I know - Christmas!! NUTS EH??
Anyway that has to rank as the most booorrrring blog post ever, but I can't seem to magic up any funnies or exciting happenings today, stick we me dear chums I'll be back on form real soon.
Meanwhile, happy Easter!!!
Tuesday, April 07, 2009
Today's The Day
Well it's almost 6 months to the day that I was diagnosed with breast cancer and today I have my final chemo treatment - HUZZAH!!!
I really can't believe how quick the 6 months has flown by. Granted I know look like a bald chipmunk with an arse the size of the hippo in "Madagascar", trust me to eat MORE on chemo eh?
After today I have 3 weeks off for good behaviour then 5 weeks of radiotherapy, then I AM DONE
No going back for me thanks, no recurrence just onward and upward. By the Summer I am going to have lost weight and got some form of fitness stuff going on.
Wish me luck and as always thanks for all your fab comments, you've kept me going.
I really can't believe how quick the 6 months has flown by. Granted I know look like a bald chipmunk with an arse the size of the hippo in "Madagascar", trust me to eat MORE on chemo eh?
After today I have 3 weeks off for good behaviour then 5 weeks of radiotherapy, then I AM DONE
No going back for me thanks, no recurrence just onward and upward. By the Summer I am going to have lost weight and got some form of fitness stuff going on.
Wish me luck and as always thanks for all your fab comments, you've kept me going.
Monday, April 06, 2009
Hurrah!!
I am once again a very happy bunny, iPhone saga all resolved. I dashed off to the Apple store in Glasgow yesterday, my Sat Nav got me totally lost and I arrived 10 mins late for my "Genius" appointment. At first they were so busy they said I would have to come back at 5:30pm , but someone took pity on me and set about trying to fix my phone.
Now this phone was 2 months out of warranty so I was expecting a large bill which I wasn't going to pay, Alan had donated a nearly new Nokia phone to me in case I needed it. I wasn't happy about the prospect since I am now an iPhone snob, but I had no choice.
The "Genius" tried to fix it and it was having none of it, so he simply said, "it's out of warranty, but I am not going to be a job's worth , so I'll just swap it out for you - no charge........"
MY GOD, you could have knocked me down with a feather, I was so grateful I almost wept! So I am now the proud owner of a new phone. Not sure whether my VERY short hair clued him up as to what I am going through (let's call that the "cancer card") OR it's just that they had a surplus of 1st Gen iPhones that nobody is willing to buy.
All I can say is I am very happy and back in action!
Now this phone was 2 months out of warranty so I was expecting a large bill which I wasn't going to pay, Alan had donated a nearly new Nokia phone to me in case I needed it. I wasn't happy about the prospect since I am now an iPhone snob, but I had no choice.
The "Genius" tried to fix it and it was having none of it, so he simply said, "it's out of warranty, but I am not going to be a job's worth , so I'll just swap it out for you - no charge........"
MY GOD, you could have knocked me down with a feather, I was so grateful I almost wept! So I am now the proud owner of a new phone. Not sure whether my VERY short hair clued him up as to what I am going through (let's call that the "cancer card") OR it's just that they had a surplus of 1st Gen iPhones that nobody is willing to buy.
All I can say is I am very happy and back in action!
Saturday, April 04, 2009
Waaahhhhhhh
BAD BAD News, my iPhone is poorly, not working, kaputt and I am GUTTED!!!
I LOVE my iPhone, much to the disgust of Alan I might add! Last night it decided to conk out big stylee and I can't get it working. I feel like one of my limbs has been cut off.
We've found an old Nokia phone of Alan's I can use (ugh!, peee-yuke!!!)
The warranty ran out last month grrrr and I have to wait until JULY to upgrade to a new iPhone, yeah thanks to Apple for giving me a 12 month warranty and then deciding you have to go with O2 and O2 deciding that the minimum iPhone contract is 18 months........................robbing swines.
Bitter? Me? Never.............Off to the Apple store in Glasgow tomorrow to see if the Genius bar can help me.......................I'm gonna start praying now
I LOVE my iPhone, much to the disgust of Alan I might add! Last night it decided to conk out big stylee and I can't get it working. I feel like one of my limbs has been cut off.
We've found an old Nokia phone of Alan's I can use (ugh!, peee-yuke!!!)
The warranty ran out last month grrrr and I have to wait until JULY to upgrade to a new iPhone, yeah thanks to Apple for giving me a 12 month warranty and then deciding you have to go with O2 and O2 deciding that the minimum iPhone contract is 18 months........................robbing swines.
Bitter? Me? Never.............Off to the Apple store in Glasgow tomorrow to see if the Genius bar can help me.......................I'm gonna start praying now
Wednesday, April 01, 2009
Look Good Feel Better
Yesterday afternoon I went to the Maggies Centre in Edinburgh for a 2 hour "Look Good Feel Better" session. It was brilliant, it's a totally free afternoon where you get presented with a HUGE goody bag (check it out) and they take you through putting your "face" on. The products are supplied by the major cosmetic companies and they send consultants from department stores to help out on the day.
I had a great time, it was quite a hoot. The lady in charge was very nice (put me in mind of Elsie Tanner) but a tad on the bossy\patronising side "we've had cancer love, WE HAVEN'T LOST OUR MARBLES.........." I came out looking more glam and learned how to apply eyeliner to my upper eyelid, a skill that has so far evaded me.
EDITED: OMG Michelle Obama and Sarah Brown visited a Maggies Centre in London this morning and sat in on a Look Good Feel Better session - what a co-incidence!
I have also booked a personal training session so I can prise my lardy arse off the sofa. I am not sure how I will feel on the day, fit peoples brains seem to be wired a whole lot differently to mine. They seem to worship lycra and enjoy exercise (weird!). Anyway we'll see how that goes, I am pretty determined to lose weight and get fit. I have this evil idea to dress up like Vicky Pollard and open the door with a fag in one hand and a beer in the other hee hee hee!
I had a great time, it was quite a hoot. The lady in charge was very nice (put me in mind of Elsie Tanner) but a tad on the bossy\patronising side "we've had cancer love, WE HAVEN'T LOST OUR MARBLES.........." I came out looking more glam and learned how to apply eyeliner to my upper eyelid, a skill that has so far evaded me.
EDITED: OMG Michelle Obama and Sarah Brown visited a Maggies Centre in London this morning and sat in on a Look Good Feel Better session - what a co-incidence!
I have also booked a personal training session so I can prise my lardy arse off the sofa. I am not sure how I will feel on the day, fit peoples brains seem to be wired a whole lot differently to mine. They seem to worship lycra and enjoy exercise (weird!). Anyway we'll see how that goes, I am pretty determined to lose weight and get fit. I have this evil idea to dress up like Vicky Pollard and open the door with a fag in one hand and a beer in the other hee hee hee!
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