LIFE LESSONS
The Tallest Mountain Becomes a Molehill With Time
My ongoing personal journey with (pre) cancer
Two months ago, the proposed treatment for a diagnosis of Stage Zero Ductal Carcinoma In Situ (DCIS), including a lumpectomy, one month of radiation, and five years on a hormone therapy drug, seemed like an uphill battle.
I agonized over the need for such an aggressive approach in the absence of any support for a less aggressive, perhaps less invasive treatment.
It’s been an emotional rollercoaster as I continually try to make sense of all the things that didn’t go as planned. Let’s just say it hasn’t been smooth sailing.
My two-month resume looks something like this: I passed out at my maiden biopsy because of not being given enough pain medication. After two more biopsies, two MRIs, and another boob-squishing mammogram to plant two radioactive seeds before the day of the lumpectomy (partial mastectomy), I was ready for surgery.
To say that the week leading up to the surgery was stressful would be an understatement. It was a busy week at work, and the premenstrual insomnia coupled with my “meal-prep-until-you-drop-dead” leading up to the day of surgery really knackered me.
