I’m only sharing this because I need to have my thoughts down to come back to see some day. I wish I had kept a journal when Jeff was sick so I could look back and see more of our life at that time……I hesitate in sharing this because I know someone or someone they love has just been diagnosed with cancer and it is hard to read that someone else got better news……all the whys are so strong in the beginning…..
Jeff came to the understanding of why he was diagnosed with “why not me?”……….only God knows the “whys”………I struggle with questioning “why” when life goes right sometimes as well……..
Jeff came to the understanding of why he was diagnosed with “why not me?”……….only God knows the “whys”………I struggle with questioning “why” when life goes right sometimes as well……..
All my family and friends know that I talk too much…..I am
pretty much “what you see is what you get” kind of person. I talk too much
therefore, you pretty much know what is going on in my life even if you don’t
want to J If I get quiet there is usually too much
going on in my head, too much to process, too overloaded…..
pretty much “what you see is what you get” kind of person. I talk too much
therefore, you pretty much know what is going on in my life even if you don’t
want to J If I get quiet there is usually too much
going on in my head, too much to process, too overloaded…..
This past month I have been quieter than usual. I went in
for my 3rd 6 month mammogram the week before Christmas. I have been having
diagnostic mammograms for a while due calcifications. I have not worried for
one second about them since I have been told they are benign in nature so I was
merely naïve about it all. Well, I began to worry at this last visit when I was
told I needed a biopsy. I started out with a stereotactic biopsy before Christmas that was
unsuccessful and then was scheduled for a lumpectomy a week ago. I waited
until Tuesday to get the news that it is benign…….deep breath of relief.
for my 3rd 6 month mammogram the week before Christmas. I have been having
diagnostic mammograms for a while due calcifications. I have not worried for
one second about them since I have been told they are benign in nature so I was
merely naïve about it all. Well, I began to worry at this last visit when I was
told I needed a biopsy. I started out with a stereotactic biopsy before Christmas that was
unsuccessful and then was scheduled for a lumpectomy a week ago. I waited
until Tuesday to get the news that it is benign…….deep breath of relief.
As I look over this past month what I feel most is relief
but also wonder why I was spared having to go through it all…..not so much the fear of dying in this case but the fear of all the uncertainty that surrounds a diagnosis of cancer. I have lived
through all that and more when Jeff was diagnosed with brain cancer in
1992. This was a little too close to home for me. The first bit of anxiety I
felt was too familiar and sent me to a place I don’t allow myself to go in most
cases. I have become an” underreactor” (not thinking that is a word) in most
cases due to worrying my life away for years. I finally learned not to worry
until you are given something tangible to worry about. Well, I sure did not do
that this time……I went there and back. I became quite certain that God was
going to allow me to go through this time with breast cancer, simply because
“why not me?” as Jeff used to say. I’m really not a fatalist……I truly had a strong
sense that is was true probably because I have lived it before……I know what
getting that call with bad news feels like……the hours and days after that you
try to wrap you mind around it……..
but also wonder why I was spared having to go through it all…..not so much the fear of dying in this case but the fear of all the uncertainty that surrounds a diagnosis of cancer. I have lived
through all that and more when Jeff was diagnosed with brain cancer in
1992. This was a little too close to home for me. The first bit of anxiety I
felt was too familiar and sent me to a place I don’t allow myself to go in most
cases. I have become an” underreactor” (not thinking that is a word) in most
cases due to worrying my life away for years. I finally learned not to worry
until you are given something tangible to worry about. Well, I sure did not do
that this time……I went there and back. I became quite certain that God was
going to allow me to go through this time with breast cancer, simply because
“why not me?” as Jeff used to say. I’m really not a fatalist……I truly had a strong
sense that is was true probably because I have lived it before……I know what
getting that call with bad news feels like……the hours and days after that you
try to wrap you mind around it……..
After all these years it is still very real and vivid to
me……a very large part of who I am, the person that learns to deal with
adversity and try to make the best of it even though I fail miserably at times.
me……a very large part of who I am, the person that learns to deal with
adversity and try to make the best of it even though I fail miserably at times.
All this to say now I feel guilty…….why was I spared and the
other 3 women who were having lumpectomies on the same day may not have been???
other 3 women who were having lumpectomies on the same day may not have been???
You know what bothered me the most? The not knowing and the fear of what was to
come……I did not pray once for it not to be cancer. Why???? I’m not
sure….probably because I believe that God already knew and “it is what it is”.
I did pray for peace which he gave me in intervalsJ. Mostly I was anxious
unless occupied! It was a long month that I’m thankful to be on the other side
of. To say I am thankful and relieved is an understatement…..
come……I did not pray once for it not to be cancer. Why???? I’m not
sure….probably because I believe that God already knew and “it is what it is”.
I did pray for peace which he gave me in intervalsJ. Mostly I was anxious
unless occupied! It was a long month that I’m thankful to be on the other side
of. To say I am thankful and relieved is an understatement…..
Man’s days are determined; you have decreed the number of
his months and have set limits he cannot exceed. Job 14:5
his months and have set limits he cannot exceed. Job 14:5
This verse
gave me such peace when Jeff died. I went through months of thinking of all the
wrong medical decisions we had made. In the end I learned it did not matter, we
did the best we could with what we were given….God was in control all along……
as he is now and will be forever more.
gave me such peace when Jeff died. I went through months of thinking of all the
wrong medical decisions we had made. In the end I learned it did not matter, we
did the best we could with what we were given….God was in control all along……
as he is now and will be forever more.
Paige,
Thank you for being open and honest on your blog. Thankful to God you were given "Good News"! I understand the anxiety of waiting for this type of news both for myself and my Dad. My Dad passed away 13 years ago with a rare form of cancer in his jaw that he battled off/on for many years.
I will pray that as you return each year for these type of test you are given "Good News"!
Blessings
Lori
Thank you for sharing your heart. So thankful you received Good News!!
I so so happy you got good news on your biopsy. With all that your family's been through with cancer, it doesn't seem fair that you should even have to worry about it again. (I am a bc survivor, so know the fear all too well.) Best wishes for continued good health!!
Thank you for sharing your story…My newest daughter Harper, adopted in October of 2012 was treated for Leukemia in China. At first we did not share that we were adopting a child who had Leukemia because it was scary to many people (not to mention that some people thought we were kinda crazy…Lol). But we knew that God was leading us to this child… She was ours.. The doors were not just opening, they were flinging wide open!!! What you wrote last, about God being in control was exactly where He had us… He had this!!! I did not need to worry – He was in control! He knows what is going to happen, so if He was placing this child in our family, then He would see us through whatever came our way. There is so much peace in knowing that He IS in control. It is good to see that God has brought you through such an incredibly painful time… to so much joy!
PAIGE– unbelievable! You would have every right to be so,so angry if only because your kids wouldn't deserve to live through that twice .
My friend Andrea (who also lost her husband to a brain tumor) had the exact same experience only it was 9 months after her husband died. We all felt so helpless.
So thankful that don"t have to walk that path again! xoxo Val