sendasmiletoday, Author at Send A Smile Today

Jun 2014

Send A Smile Today Named a Semifinalist in the LIVESTRONG Big C Competition

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/suburbs/aurora/community/chi-ugc-article-send-a-smile-todaytm-named-a-semifinalist-in-t-2014-06-11,0,4381933.story

Send A Smile Today Named a Semifinalist in the LIVESTRONG Big C Competition

Posted By Send A Smile Today, Community Contributor

4:01 p.m. CDT, June 11, 2014

AURORA, IL – June 11, 2014 – Send A Smile Today was selected as one of 168 semifinalists to move on to the second phase of the LIVESTRONG Foundation’s inaugural Big C competition, aiming to change the way the world lives with cancer. Send A Smile Today will now compete for one of 20 spots in the contest’s next round, the venture accelerator program.

Headquartered in Aurora, Send A Smile Today is competing in the Health category. Send A Smile Today is unique because while some charitable organizations raise money for cancer research, provide cancer screenings, give trips to treatment, and donate wigs, their sole purpose is to provide hope, love, and support to those going through cancer treatment by sending uplifting cards in the mail on a regular basis.

Send A Smile Today’s founder, Kim Whitehouse, is a breast cancer survivor, and she launched the non-profit organization in May 2013 in order to provide emotional support to cancer patients by sending them handmade and store bought greeting cards.

“There were days when I was going through my treatments where I was feeling low, then I would get a card in the mail and it would brighten my day and give me hope and encouragement,” said Whitehouse. “It made me feel loved and not forgotten. To get a card showed me that someone took time out of their day to let me know they were thinking of me.”

“All 168 entries have the potential to be game changers in improving the lives of people affected by cancer now,” said Heather Wajer, VP of marketing at the LIVESTRONG Foundation. “We’re so thrilled with the quality of the entries and are lucky to have so many entrepreneurs interested in helping cancer patients, survivors and caregivers.”

According to the American Cancer Society in 2014 there will be an estimated 1.6M new cancer cases in the United States. Send A Smile Today will let those with cancer know that they are never alone in their cancer journey by providing hope, love, and support.

The 168 remaining entries represent possible solutions to the biggest challenges people affected by cancer face following a diagnosis, according to LIVESTRONG Foundation research. Of the remaining ventures, 20 will move on to the venture accelerator phase from July 14-Sept. 15, where contestants will be paired with cancer survivors and business mentors to turn their ideas into action.

On Sept. 29, five finalists will be announced and flown to Austin, Texas, to present their innovations during the Ride for the Roses weekend, where the grand prize winner will be selected. Sixty ventures will receive a total of $140,000 in seed funding, based on their innovation’s utility, ingenuity and benefits to cancer patients and survivors. The grand prize winner will receive $25,000.

About Send A Smile Today

The sole purpose of Send A Smile Today is to provide hope, love, and support to those going through cancer. The mission is to let cancer patients know that they are never alone by sending them caring cards in the mail on a regular basis from time of diagnosis through treatment to survivorship. Send A Smile Today is a service provided by the Kim’s Crew Foundation, an Internal Revenue Service approved 501(c)(3) organization. The organization is funded by donations of handmade cards, store bought cards, blank white envelopes, and Forever stamps as well as monetary donations. Handmade cards are made by individuals, groups, and service organizations such as the Girl Scouts, Boy Scouts, church groups, service hour project groups and various other organizations that give back to the community. The card making events provide self-esteem and empowerment to those making the cards as they give back to others. For additional information or to get involved please contact info@sendasmiletoday.org or visit www.sendasmiletoday.org (launching 7/1/14.)

About the LIVESTRONG Foundation

The LIVESTRONG Foundation fights to improve the lives of people affected by cancer now. Created in 1997, the Foundation is known for providing free cancer support services and advocating for policies that improve access to care and quality of life. Known for its powerful brand – LIVESTRONG – the Foundation has become a symbol of hope and inspiration around the world. Since its inception, the Foundation has served 2.5 million people affected by the disease and raised more than $500 million to support cancer survivors. One of America’s top non-profit organizations, the Foundation has been recognized by industry leaders including Charity Navigator, the National Health Council and the Better Business Bureau for its excellent governance, high standards and transparency. For more information, visit LIVESTRONG.org.

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Mar 2014

Girl Scouts partner with breast cancer survivor to send a smile to cancer patients

http://glenview.suntimes.com/2014/03/24/girl-scouts-partner-with-breast-cancer-survivor-to-send-a-smile-to-cancer-patients/

Glenviews Girl Scout Troop number 41623 gets together once a month for activities like baking, craft-making, touring a hospital emergency room or of course selling cookies.

But this months meeting was extra special, when the fourth-graders decided to spend their afternoon giving back by creating custom greeting cards for cancer patients. I like what were doing because my grandma had breast cancer, and I really want to support her, said Kelsey Vega, whose mom, Kathy, hosted the get-together for the 11 girls.

The idea came from troop coleader, Wendy Freimuth, whose sister, Kim Whitehouse, is a breast cancer survivor. Whitehouse is launching an Aurora-based nonprofit, Send A Smile Today, which will provide emotional support to cancer patients by sending them homemade greeting cards.

We thought it would be beneficial to the Girl Scouts to help them understand that they are making a difference in someones life, said Freimuth, whose daughter, Ariana, belongs to the troop. Even if its someone you dont know.

No one really gets mail anymore that isnt bills, said coleader, Jen Gimbel. This is about showing our girls that little things can make a difference, and that the recipients will see that a total stranger cares.

Whitehouse, who lives in Aurora with her husband, Allen, and their two children, was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2011, and described the day she found out as the worst day of my life. I felt like I was going to die. I was sure of it, she said. Once I got more knowledge and talked to my doctors, I realized it wasnt a death sentence.

Whitehouse underwent a lumpectomy, six rounds of chemotherapy and 25 days of radiation; a period in her life she said was emotionally very difficult. What helped her get through it Greeting cards she would receive in the mail, not only from friends and family, but from people she didnt even know.

There were days I would get a card in the mail and it would brighten my day and give me hope and encouragement, she said. It made me feel loved and not forgotten. To get a card showed me that someone took time out of their day to let me know they were thinking of me.

Whitehouse, whose prognosis is excellent, said she came up with the idea for Send a Smile Today when she finished her treatments, and had a strong urge to give back to others with cancer. Launching this July, Send a Smile Today will operate a website through which cancer patients or their friends and family can sign up for greeting card deliveries, either one at a time, or once a month for three, six, nine or 12 months.

In addition to Girl Scout troops, Whitehouse plans to solicit volunteers from Cub Scout and Boy Scout troops, schools, churches, synagogues and community groups. She hopes kids and adults alike will create cards and donate envelopes and stamps. Its a way of teaching kids to be selfless and to give back, Whitehouse said. Plus, its fun and easy. What kid doesnt like to draw pictures and color

Whitehouse said she is trying to stockpile a large supply of finished cards before the launch of the site. Her sisters Girl Scout troop is among the first to contribute. It made me happy to do this because the patients will know that someone is actually caring about them, said troop member Madeline Goldberg.

My aunt is really caring and she wants to help other people while they are going through what she went through, Ariana Freimuth said. Learn more about Send a Smile Today by contacting e-mail info@sendasmiletoday.org.

Apr 2012

Thursday, April 5, 2012

Hi friends and family,
I just wanted to let you all know that this morning I had my first mammogram post breast cancer and my mammogram was clear. So, all continues to be good. I believe my next mammo will be in four months. In the meantime I get to meet with my breast surgeon and both oncologists for check ups which I am sure those check ups will be great too. This Easter will definitely be much better than last Easter! Thank you God.

Love,
Kim

Jan 2012

Wednesday, January 18, 2012

Hi everyone,
I hope you all are having a fantastic 2012. So far mine has been wonderful – much, much better than 2011. I wanted to give you an update with my latest.

It has been over a month now since my last radiation treatment. I visited with my Medical Oncologist last Thursday (my Chemo Doc.) They withdrew some blood from me to test my red, white, and platelet counts to see if they were back to the normal range. Good news was my red count was back to normal which means I am no longer anemic which also means as of last Thursday I am no longer taking iron supplements. Both my white blood count and platelets are still low. The docotor did not seem concerned and he said the further away I get from my last chemo date the higher the numbers should raise. My sugar levels, which were always elevated during chemo (because I was on steroids), are back to normal so that is great news!

I will meet with my Radiation Oncologist this coming Friday morning. My skin is healing up great although the area is still “tan” and will be for some time. I am just so glad the redness is gone.

My hair continues to grow. I want to say it is two inches now. There is quite a bit of grey in there. Very much salt and pepper. My doctor gave me the okay so tomorrow I am getting my hair colored. I am excited to get MY hair done tomorrow. It’s been six months since I got my hair done (“shaved”). I am still wearing my halo/hats. I do not wear my wig too often as it is getting really uncomfortable now that I have hair underneath. I will feel more comfortable with my hair once I cannot see all that grey. My doctor says over time that over abundance of grey should subside and will grow out. My hair is growing in straight, just as it was before.

My energy levels continue to increase. I still try to rest a little each afternoon when I know I have a long afternoon/evening ahead of me and that downtime seems to help. I am still experiencing hot/cold flashes. Annoying! They come on at strange times so if you’re around me and I start peeling off my clothing layers that is why. I still don’t know if all of this pushed me into menopause. Doc says if I do go into menopause then in a couple of years he will switch my medicine to another type for menopausal women. Fun times.

My Doc told me I now have a 2-3% chance of a breast cancer recurrence in my right, radiated breast and a 5% lifetime breast cancer risk in the opposite breast. Getting it again in my breast is not my worst fear as that is treatable! I know in my heart that I have done all that I can do to make sure it doesn’t come back anywhere else. I am being proactive and have modified my diet and skin care routines. Whole Foods has become my friend. Now if I can just get back to the gym… 😉

The nurse at my church is thinking about putting together a Cancer Cares ministry. I look forward to helping out in any way I can. I have a strong passion for connecting with and helping others going through cancer. When I was first diagnosed our priest did the annointing of the sick oils with me and my name was in the weekly mass bulletin under the pray for our sick section. I am happy to report that my name has now been removed from the bulletin. At church last weekend the intentions prayed for “those with cancer and other chronic illnesses.” Mass was very emotional for me last week. The songs were beautiful.

What’s next you may ask? I have my first post BC mammogram scheduled for Thursday, April 4 so it is smooth sailing until then. I feel relieved to have over two months “off”. After the mammogram I then will meet with my breast surgeon, my medical oncologist, and my radiation oncologist. They will take my blood again in May to test the white, red, and platelet counts. Then I should have a few more months off and then I will have another mammogram again, etc… We will surely hit our medical deductible again in 2012.

Thanks to everyone for continuing to check in on me! I am really beginning to feel like all of you, “normal”, again. It feels GREAT and I will NEVER take normal for granted ever. The small stuff in life is really not worth sweating over! (unless of course you are sweating over a hot flash…) Until next time…

Love,
Kim

Dec 2011

Friday, December 9, 2011 – Last Day of Treatment!

5245_1209_purple_tree_display Hello all,

Today is the day I have waited 8 months to reach. This morning was my final day of treatment. I received radiation #33 of 33 and was given a diploma of completion. Wow! I still cannot believe I am done. Back in April when I was first diagnosed this day seemed so far away. With the help of you, my family and friends, I was able to make it through to the other side. As my Aunt Shirley said today, “Praise God!”

Today has been a day of celebrations. Before Allen left for work today bright and early he gave me a hug and told me how proud he was of me and how excited he was for my treatments to end. I think he was more excited than me!

Before I got out of bed this morning I checked my email as I always do. My Dad had sent me an email message first thing this morning just like he has done almost daily since April. His email brought me to tears it was so beautiful. I reread it later in the day and it affected me just the same.

This morning Jacob said to me that today was the most exciting day. I asked him why and he said “because it snowed last night” and Ansley agreed. It had nothing to do with me – it had all to do with snow. Our first snowfall of the season happened while we slept last night. What a treat! I started my journey when flowers were beginning to bud and I am ending it with snow. What a year it has been.

My Mom left this morning to head back home to Virginia to see Dad for a few days and returns next week to stay until Christmas and then back to Virginia she stays. She left me a huge bouquet of purple balloons. The balloons said “You Fought Like a Girl” that she made using stickers. Several weeks ago at the Cancer Center she and I saw two elementary age girls who were holding purple “Fight Like a Girl” balloons that they had made for a loved one that was upstairs getting chemotherapy. I had told those girls that I loved their purple balloons.

Several of my friends joined me today to my last radiation treatment and aftewards we went to breakfast to celebrate. They are the best!! While there everyone made me personalized homemade ornaments where they wrote messages and drew pictures of things like purple flowers, rainbows, and the pink breast cancer sign on the glass balls. What a great idea!! This afternoon I went out and bought our family a small purple Christmas tree so I can display my beautiful new ornaments for years to come. I added ten new pictures to my photo gallery so check it out.

I took down my purple/pink flower windmill when I came home from breakfast. I will save it. That flower didn’t even have a scratch. It had been through rain, thunderstorms, heavy winds, and snow and it looked completely brand new, unblemished. I will miss looking out my window each day at its petals spinning even on a windless, calm day.

I spent my afternoon talking on the phone to a dear friend who called when I needed someone to talk to the most. I had come home to a empty, quiet home and was so happy to receive her call. Thank you special friend! I spent the rest of the day doing normal things like shopping, going to the dry cleaners, going to the bank, etc. I am so thankful to be able to feel normal again as there were many days when I felt anything but normal. I want to thank everyone else, including my sister Wendy and my other friends, who called, texted, or dropped off cards or gifts today. I loved hearing from all of you!

Today I will turn the page and start anew with a new appreciation and love of life. I heard a song today on the radio that was very fitting for today:

Bob Marley – I Can See Clearly Now

I can see clearly now, the rain is gone,

I can see all obstacles in my way

Gone are the dark clouds that had me blind

It’s gonna be a bright (bright), bright (bright)

Sun-Shiny day

It’s gonna be a bright (bright), bright (bright)

Sun-Shiny day

Oh yes I can make it now, the pain is gone

All of the bad feelings have disappeared

Here is the rainbow I’ve been prayin’ for

It’s gonna be a bright (bright), bright (bright)

Sun-Shiny day

Look all around, there’s nothin’ but blue skies

Look straight ahead, nothin’ but blue skies

I can see clearly now, the rain is gone,

I can see all obstacles in my way

Here is the rainbow I’ve been prayin’ for

It’s gonna be a bright (bright), bright (bright)

Sun-Shiny day

It’s gonna be a bright (bright), bright (bright)

Sun-Shiny day

bright (bright), bright (bright)

Sun-Shiny day

It’s gonna be a bright (bright), bright (bright)

Sun-Shiny day

It’s gonna be a bright (bright), bright (bright)

Sun-Shiny day

For those interested, I plan to keep my Care Pages up and running for a few more months. I will send an update in mid January when I have my follow up doctor appt on Jan 12. I will then send another update a month later after I have had my first post treatment mammogram/ultrasound (Feb/March timeframe.)

God bless all of you for being my friend. Merry Christmas!

Love,

Kim

74285_1209_Flower_by_snow_display 88438_1209_Mom_and_Kim_by_balloons_display 58971_1209_Kim_with_fought_balloons_display 83124_1209_Radiation_diploma_display 44461_1209_breakfast_pic_display 66011_1209_Kim_diploma_with_friends_display

Nov 2011

Sunday, November 27, 2011

Hi friends and family,

I hope you all are doing well and had a wonderful Thanksgiving weekend. Mine was so great as I got to spend it with my family. It is hard to believe that my cancer treatments are coming to an end. I can now count on just two hands how many days I have left with radiation. That’s right, after months and months and months of treatments I now only have 10 days left!!! I have completed 23 days of radiation so far and will go to radiation five days this week and then five days the following week finishing my last radiation treatment on Friday, Dec 9!

The radiation is going well. I did have some pretty bad reactions to the radiation on my skin and my doctor even had to adjust my schedule to give my skin a few days off because it got so bad. I even had to treat some of the areas with burn cremes that they give patients who have second and third degree burns. I am not going to complain though as I know this is just temporary and my skin should hopefully return to normal at some point.

I am still doing really great. My Mom is back in town to help out which is really great. The new drug I have been taking since the start of radiation (Tamoxifen) has been giving me hot flashes which can be annoying but I just power through them and they pass pretty quickly. I am still waiting for my eye lashes to return. What is taking so long? I was told the eye lashes are the last to fall out and the first to come back. Up until last week they were still falling out! The hair on my head continues to grow really fast although the color is more gray than I would like to see. Emotionally I am doing great and am loving being involved in life again. I really do appreciate every bit of everything I get to do.

This weekend I was looking through some old pictures that my Dad had taken the day of my last chemotherapy treatment. There were pictures of my friends setting up the rainbow of balloons out front of my house. There were pictures of them putting up the sign and rainbow colors on our garage door. I had never seen these pictures before until this weekend. I noticed in the pictures how happy they all looked. It made me so happy to see those pictures and the fun they were having before I arrived home that day. For ALL of my friends and family: I know I have said this before but thank you to each and every one of you who didn’t ignore me and asked me how I was doing, or told me you were praying for me, or emailed me when you saw some concerning Facebook posts from me early on, or dropped off a meal for our family, or sent me a card to say hi, or gave me beautiful flowers, or just said hi as we passed on the street. I will forever be grateful for you.

My purple & pink pinwheel flower is still in our front yard and is still spinning and spinning and spinning. That flower has never given up and has always meant so much to me. I look at it every day. I told my friend (who gave it to me right after I was diagnosed) that I will take my pinwheel down on Friday, Dec 9, my final day of radiation treatment. I am sure I will shed a tear as I celebrate!

Lastly, I wanted you to know that I have added 7 new pictures to my photo gallery. One of the pictures is a picture of my radiation machine for those wondering what a radiation machine looks like. Another picture is the Cancer Center decorated for Christmas. It truly is the most wonderful time of the year!

Love,

Kim

Nov 2011

Saturday, November 12, 2011

Hello friends and family,
I hope everyone is doing well. I figured it was time for another update so here we go.

I am doing really great! I have completed 15 days of radiation therapy. I have 18 more days to go and then I will be done with radiation. Other than an itchy rash on the area being radiated, I am doing just fine with radiation. I have come to enjoy the drive each morning after the kids head off to school. One of my friends joined me last week and we went to breakfast afterwards which was really great.

Every day I can feel myself getting stronger and stronger. Another big milestone was yesterday. Yesterday was my six week mark from my very last chemotherapy treatment. My doctor had told me it would take six weeks for my body to feel somewhat normal again. He was right. As the days and weeks go by those trips to the doctor for infusions seems so far away. I ask myself, did I really just go through four long months of chemotherapy? I feel a sense of accomplishment that I made it through to the other side and that I have all of that behind me now.

In less than a month I will be all done with all of my treatments (except for the Tamoxifen pill I will continue to take for five years). Thursday, Dec 8 will be my very last day of radiation and I think at that point I may start to consider myself a survivor. I will visit my Oncologist in January for follow up blood work to make sure my levels are all back to normal. And then in Feb/March I will have my first post BC diagnostic mammogram with a follow up visit to the surgeon. I will not be able to go to that mammogram appointment alone I can tell you already. I will for sure need my hand held that day.

What about my hair? Good news is my hair continues to grow in. It may be about an inch long now. I am still wearing my halo/hats a lot. I am not wearing my full head wig very much. I am thankful to be past the scarf stage. I am having fun with this and recently went hat shopping for some really cute fall/winter hats that will keep my head warm. I am guessing by the spring I should have enough hair to have a cute short haircut. My eyelashes and eyebrows are filling in as well. It sure will make putting on mascara a lot easier when I have more than two lashes to paint.

Emotionally I am in a much better place now and I hope it continues that way!!! Thank you again for all of the wonderful support I have received from all of you. The love and support given to me has been amazing and I plan to pay it forward.

Love,
Kim

Oct 2011

Wednesday, October 26, 2011

Hi friends and family,

Many of you have been asking how I am doing so I figured it would be time for an update. I started radiation this past Monday. I have it in the morning so after the kids get dropped off at school I make my way to the Cancer Center. I will be doing this every Monday – Friday for six weeks. My last day of radiation is set for December 8. Yes! This is 10 days before our 10 year wedding anniversary and 17 days before Christmas. Yahoo!!!!!

The whole radiation thing takes two minutes and is painless. I am laying flat on my back on a very hard table. It is similar to laying on a hard surface like a bedroom dresser. Arms reaching back gripping handles. I asked the technician today if the radiation is turning on when I hear a light vacuum sound. She told me she doesn’t know because she has never been allowed in the room to hear it!! Little comments like that don’t make me feel comfortable. Monday was tough for me. The first day took 20 minutes as they needed to make sure I was lined up properly with the machine so they don’t accidentally radiate my lungs in the process of radiating where my tumor used to be. My neck was in pain from turning my head to the left (the bumpy hard “head rest” didn’t help) and my hands and arms were completely numb from holding them in the position for so long. I was surprised by this day being painful and felt so alone being in that room completely by myself the whole time. The feelings of April/May 2011 came back as I was laying in there seeing my name on the big screen in front of me thinking to myself, oh my gosh, I had breast cancer. What is strange about this thought is that I rarely had the thought during the time I had chemotherapy. Allen was always with me for my chemotherapy and all previous doctor appointments so I never felt alone. And when I was getting the chemo I was in conquer mode because I felt like I was proactively doing something powerful about the disease. Frankly, I felt like I was kicking it’s a$$. Now that chemo is done and there I was laying in that room that is clearly marked do not enter/radiation area I felt some crazy emotions. And when I say crazy emotions I mean I was putting scary thoughts into my head filled with negativity about my own mortality. Whenever I feel the dark cloud entering over my head a good cry and a good talk clears it up and the next day I feel “somewhat normal” again. When I ask Allen if he is sick of hearing me talk so much about BC he says no. I thank God for Allen.

Other than radiation, oh and starting the pill Tamoxifen that I spoke about in an earlier post, I am gaining my energy back a little bit more each day. Today was the first time I was actually able to RUN up our stairs at home to grab something on the second floor and not have my heart race or breathe hard. My “chemo brain” is improving and I am feeling less and less of a fog where I have had many moments where I can’t think straight or remember things. My port surgery incision is healing up nicely and is feeling better each day. My hair continues to slowly grow (it’s maybe 1/2 – 3/4 inch long) and my eyes no longer pour with water. I had lost 50% of my eye lashes and eyebrows and those are starting to grow in as well which is great. My left foot/toes continue to feel numb (not all of the time but enough that I notice it) and I am hoping this goes away in time. I am told the side effects from the radiation (sunburn on area being radiated/fatigue) will begin in a couple of weeks. I am still convinced it cannot be as bad as chemo.

I will end this note with a story about a fortune cookie. My friends and I went to lunch last week. Everyone got a fortune cookie for dessert. I did not want to eat mine and decided to bring it home to Jacob as he had been home sick for two weeks and it would cheer him up. Then I thought like a Mom with two kids and said I cannot give that to Jacob because Ansley might get upset that I didn’t get her one. So, I didn’t give it to either of them and it sat on our bedroom dresser until this past Monday when I was cleaning our room and decided to throw it out I thought to myself, I cannot throw away a fortune cookie without reading the fortune first. That would be awful luck. So, I opened it up and felt a sense of peace. It read “Good health will be yours for a long time.” I don’t know if all of the cookies that day said the same thing but for me I didn’t care because that was my sign for the day that everything is going to be alright.

Love,

Kim

Oct 2011

Thursday, October 20, 2011

Hi everyone,
I am home resting now. My port removal surgery went great. I feel better already having my port gone. It could be in my head but my chest wall doesn’t feel nearly as snug as it has these past four months with having the port inside attached to my veins.

When I woke up from my surgery I was asking the nurses if I was screaming out loud. They said no, you were dreaming. I said “I was screaming?” They said again “no, you were dreaming.” I then asked if I was talking out loud and they said no. This time around I do not remember my dream during surgery. Maybe that’s a good thing since I was asking if I was screaming. Must have been a bad dream. Melanie said maybe I was screaming for joy. 🙂

The doctor sent my port home with me in a bottle filled with alcohol. Apparently they don’t get the request to take home the port very often because my surgeon had to check with the hospital staff to see if this was allowable. The nurse wheeling me down for surgery kept trying to discourage me from taking it. I appreciate Dr. Montana for following through and getting it for me. The port was larger than I thought it would be.

I am not in any pain at the moment but am sure tonight I will be sore. Got my painkillers lined up just in case.

Well, I am starved so off to eat since it has been a while. Thank you all for your continued well wishes and prayers.

Love,
Kim

Oct 2011

Wednesday, October 19, 2011

Hello friends and family. It has been three weeks since my last chemotherapy treatment and I am on my upswing! This one took a while and I am not even close to physically feeling back to normal again but I am through the toughest part of the recovery and it can only get better from here. I still have boughts of fatigue, am still anemic, and I am experiencing some numbness in my left foot, but all in all I am doing well. I still cannot believe I am done with all my chemo. I am so thankful. I am also thankful that my hair continues to grow in. I cannot wait to no longer wear wigs and hats. That will be the best!

Tomorrow is the day I get my port removed. I am very happy about tomorrow. This concludes my chapter of chemotherapy. The only reason I had my port was for the chemo. I can now check that off my list. My surgery is scheduled for 10:00 a.m. tomorrow at Edward Hospital. Check in is at 8:30 a.m. I am so thankful Dr. Montana has scheduled me for the morning since I cannot eat or drink anything after midnight tonight. I should be home probably around 1 or 2 in the afternoon. Please say a prayer for me that the surgery goes well.

Last Friday I had all the prep work done for the radiation. I start radiation this coming Monday, Oct 24. I will go five days a week for six weeks so I should be done by the second week of December. I don’t know the exact end date yet but that will be one of the first questions I ask on Monday. The radiation area is on the first floor of the Cancer Center. The chemotherapy area is on the 2nd flooor of the Cancer Center. I am so thrilled I no longer will need to climb those stairs.

On Monday I also start a drug called Tamoxifen which I will take once a day for five years. At the end of those five years they are talking about me taking a different drug for another five years and then possibly a third drug for five years after that. The drug will block estrogen in my body. They know that my tumor had been fueled by estrogen so by blocking the estrogen it aids in preventing any future cancers of the breast. I am so blessed to have had two beautiful children when I did because at this point in my life it is no longer possible.

My Mom is still here but will leaving to go home right before Hallloween. She will return around the middle of November since I have been told the last several weeks of radiation will make me fatigued and tender. I am hoping that I gain more physical strenth between now and the time she leaves in October so I can take over the household responsibilities that she has helped me with since April. She has been a huge help!

I described to Allen the other day how I personally feel like a nail that has been pounded a little at a time, over time, into the ground. As I gain physical and emotional strength that nail will slowly rise until it comes out completely. I look forward to the day when I can put that nail in a small box and store it away with all my other memories.

Love,
Kim

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