NEXT SURGERY

HELLO MY DEAR AND SUPPORTIVE FRIENDS.  I'm glad to say I've felt stronger today than in a long time.  Got all the laundry done, walked, did my arm exercises, cleaned a bathroom (with the help of my son, Cayler) cooked supper and...well that's about it, but that's pretty darn good for me lately.

WE SAW MY PLASTIC SURGEON yesterday for the first time in the several months due to the weekly chemo decision.  Bottom line - I opted to go ahead with the next phase of my reconstruction which means surgery this coming Monday.  This surgery will be to swap out the ROCK HARD tissue expanders that have been there since the bilateral mastectomy for the permanent silicone implants.  You can't imagine how great it will feel to get those out as they have been a constant source of discomfort since day one - basically like having two bricks under the skin refusing to budge.  My surgeon told me this surgery, while not as painful afterward as the mastectomy (I asked him to "promise"), will require 4-6 weeks of recovery.  This was a main reason we quickly opted to take the opening he had in his surgery schedule for this Monday.  No drains afterward either...yaah!  We figured also, that while I'm still aching and recovering and getting my strength back from chemo, why not be aching and recovering from this inevitable surgery as well at the same time.  Convalescing, Kenny calls it.  My goal is to restart radiography school in August so time is of the essence.  Chop, chop!  Bad wording I guess.

SPEAKING OF RADIOGRAPHY...last Friday I was so blessed to be able to attend the graduation ceremony of the fellow students I left behind when I went on medical leave.  They spent the last year finishing their senior year and many of them have already landed jobs which is great news.  It was a wonderful night at the Holiday Inn Conference Center in Ocala.  We sat with our dear friends Nicole and her husband Jamie and cheered her on as she received a special award for her GPA.  There were about 300 people in attendance including the 24 students, their families, faculty of the program and CF, as well as many hospital and imaging center personnel.  IT WAS SO GOOD to see everyone and feel their loving support and hugs.  I couldn't have been more honored when Nicole presented me a special award on behalf of the class for inspiration and courage.  Her words were generous and as beautiful as she is.  I was truly humbled and touched.  As much as I would have loved to be graduating with them that night, I truly felt pride and joy in my heart for each one of them because I know how hard they each worked to get there.  It was encouraging.

The keynote speaker, Dr. Jordan, encouraged the graduates to never forget that the patients they see are often scared, in pain, confused, and in need of the techs assistance, and to always treat them with compassion.  Nothing will teach you that lesson more than being the patient yourself.  So when I look at it that way - I guess during this past year, I've still been "in school" learning the most valuable lesson of all - TO CARE.