Recap of my 6th Year Cancerversary

I saw this in a Time magazine recapping the 10th year anniversary of 9/11 and it really resonated with me. I can't begin to imagine how those that were directly impacted by 9/11 (lost a loved one, actually at the Trade Center, got hurt, etc) feel even 10 years later but this is how I feel about my cancer diagnosis.

November 16, 2011 marked 6 years since I was officially diagnosed. Mentally/emotionally I feel pretty good. Physically I feel okay too. Last MRI and all other blood work is showing NED and that I'm pretty healthy besides my knee. I really celebrated last year being year 5 but this year was different. It was almost as if I didn't want to jinx myself. I work with cancer all the time but I hardly feel or talk about mine. I would say I've adapted very well BUT 11/16/11 made me feel wiggy about it. Talking to my long time pal, Paul, really helped. It's crazy because most people see me as shiny happy AND I am shiny happy about 95% of the time. I'm learning to really lean on my friends for those 5% of the time and my friends that have not been touched by cancer too. It's nice to get support from both and you get different perspectives too.

So I didn't celebrate 11/16/11 but I still plan on getting my hair trimmed. Most importantly I'm okay. It (cancer) still stays with me but I've moved forth and I'm okay.

Hail to Kale!

I found a local product that I'm just geeking over. Rhythm Superfood is made in Austin and they have it at both Natural Grocers and Whole Foods for about $5. I bought this Mango Habanero and it is amazing! I've made my own kale chips before but these are to die for! I've also bought their Cool Ranch flavor but the Mango Habanero is my favorite. The bag is two servings but you almost want to devour the entire bag. It's organic and you get a good dose of vitamin A and C as well as some green goodness. Two enthusiastic thumbs up and something you may want to try if you usually can't stomach kale.

Besides kale chips, you can use kale for green drinks, salads and saute as is or with other ingredients like eggs. Just remember to buy organic when possible and eat or drink up! It's a major powerhouse in nutrients!

My Review of 50/50

I went to see the movie 50/50 a few weeks ago with fellow survivors and a friend. Overall, I feel the movie did a good job portraying a 20 something young adult going through a cancer diagnosis and treatment with only a 50/50 percent chance of beating the cancer. The movie left out some key issues which no film can address every issue but they left out big ticket items. They did not touch basis on finance, insurance and work which are big issues not to cover. What they did cover were more of the emotional side of things like the emotional shock of the diagnosis, death, dealing with a challenging mother, abandonment, anger, dating and his friend. Humor, both appropriate and inappropriate, were sprinkled throughout the movie. For other young survivor this will most likely hit too close to home even if they did leave out key issues young survivors faces.

I'm almost 6 years out of my diagnosis and I have to admit that my eyes were red and swollen by the end of the movie. I didn't think any of my friends left without shedding a tear. We may not all have the happy ending but we all deal with hearing the words, "You have cancer" which makes all of us with cancer the same even if we all have our own stories and all have our own journeys.

I love this quote which goes with the picture above. Katherine the therapist: "You can't change your situation. The only thing you can change is how you choose to deal with it."

6th Cancerversary

November 16, 2011 will mark my 6th cancerversary, the day I was diagnosed. Now that I've reached the big 5 years, I'm uncertain how to feel about it. I know that the further I'm out the better but I also know that my HER2+ status doesn't make me immune. I also know that each time I ride my bike or drive in Austin doesn't make me immune to getting hit but maybe I'm being dramatic.

My hair is about the length it was when I was first diagnosed. Wow, I guess that is pretty much the only similarity I have from my November 16, 2005 life to my current life. I've been wanting to grow out my hair to donate it. I think I'll celebrate my cancerversary this year by getting long side layers again. This should still allow me to donate my hair when I'm ready.
I hesitated a little getting long layers because my sister that moved to Austin a few years ago has bangs. She is constantly getting mistaken for me and vice versa. I think it's worse for her because I've lived in Austin longer and know more people. At the first Mamma Jamma she kept having people come up trying to hug her thinking it was me. I think it's rather comical but will be celebrating the big 6 years with a hair cut. Cheers!

Jammed at the Mamma Jamma

October 1, 2011 Third Annual Texas Mamma Jamma RideCheck out our sweet looking jerseys! My second time as a rider and I rode 42 miles after I was afraid that I wouldn't be able to even ride 13!

We had one brutal summer. We had 90 days over 100 degrees! You can tell from the background of the above picture that the grass is dead. My only saving grace is that it was dry heat this summer so that meant no hot flashes from the humidity and it was the dry heat I was used too. The bad news of course was the major drought which caused one of the most horrible forest fires in TX history and also our overworked air conditioning.

I also was officially diagnosed with chondromalacia of the patella in May. I was uncertain if I would ever be able to bike again. I was finally told good news when I visited with my third physical therapist. She gave me some exercises and told me to shoot for 30 to 50 miles and I did! I was able to ride 42!

Blanca came in town and it was her first ride/run so she had a blast! The weather was amazing with the high in the late 80's and very dry. The volunteers, as usual, are the best.

The picture above are some of my current and past coworkers whom I adore!

And THIS is why I fundraise and why I ride. The above photo is my client who is currently going through treatment. Chemo has been challenging for her. I've been corresponding with her via phone and email. This is the first time we met in person.

The last day to donate is November 1st. Right now I'm just shy of my $800 fund raising goal. It's not too late if you would like for me to hit my goal!

**For confidentiality I blurred out her eyes.

Got Greens?

I try to make it back to New Mexico twice a year. This year was no exception. I was there for about a week in July and I always have a blast spending quality time with my nephews and friends back home.


My father and I have a ritual. He picks me up to the airport and we head straight to Sunflower Market to pick up my supply of fruits and vegetables for my green drink. I'm very fortunate that my family owns a Vitamix which is a high end blender so I do not have to go without my green drinks.


My sister isn't always consistent with blending with the boys because of their hectic schedule. I blend while I'm there and insist that the boys will have some of it, even if it's from a shot glass! I've learned that it's very important to go fruit heavy for them. The above picture is Ben, the 4.5 year old, that really enjoyed that green drink. I did add vanilla yogurt to that one and he LOVED it! He didn't seem to enjoy the ones w/o yogurt as much but drank it just for me. I'll take it!


Besides the occasional Greek yogurt and cheese, I've phased out dairy from my diet. I doubt I'll be hard core on that but I've found almond milk from Whole Foods to be a good alternative for me. I have not found a clean and/or tasty cheese alternative yet but this is a start.
Ryan, almost 9, is good at chugging things whether he enjoys it or not. They love their Aunt so bottoms up!
My last shameless plug to please consider donating to my Mamma Jamma ride October 1st. This picture was taken with Ben right before I left for the airport. My mom said he cried his little eyes out when I left. My sweet little nephews are growing up so quickly!

No More Tamoxifen!

I've been struggling with sleep ever since chemo treatment 5 years ago. It didn't get better while I was on Tamoxifen and the insomnia was almost my deciding factor to get off of Tamoxifen many years ago. It wasn't until the 4th year that it got increasingly better with a militant exercise habit and sleep pattern. I was down to just 5 weeks when I had 2 straight weeks of not getting quality sleep. I even tried a sleep aid for 2 days and it didn't help. I honestly believe in quality of life. I emailed my oncologist and she said she would be okay at me giving it a few more days and then stopping Tamoxifen if my sleep didn't improve. I slugged through 3 more days and no improvement. I've been off of Tamoxifen now for 5 days and have noticed better sleep. I still haven't had the most stellar of sleep but better sleep. I'm 4.5 weeks shy of finishing my 5 years. Remember that I added on a few extra weeks because I stopped it here and there prior to surgeries.

I'm happy that I'm off of it and I really hope just 5 short weeks will not make a difference in my chances of recurrences since I've been very good at taking it throughout those 5 years besides during surgeries.

The picture above was when I went to see the Davis Cup in July and I found it very appropriate for this post. Here's a big high five in hopes that my sleep, energy and everything else will improve post Tamoxifen and that here is LONG lasting benefits from taking it.