Follow-up Report

It is now five months since my surgery. I am doing very well. I have lost weight and am exercising with plans to continue to lose more.

I began to get hot flashes about two months ago. They happen mostly at night and don't last too long. I also keep a fan on my desk at work so I can turn it right on my face, if necessary. I have not begun to take any hormone replacements. I have been working so hard to lose weight that the thought of immediately putting back on 20 pounds or so, is not appealing to me. I would rather suffer the hot flashes (for right now). My goal is to get healthy and get off of the high blood pressure medication. I am of the opinion that I was storing estrogen in my fat and therefore, I had a delayed (and may still be having) menopause.

I feel better since the surgery. I believe the problems I experienced for about eight years were all related and they culminated in developing the cancer. I experienced irregular periods for the last eight years. I also think the increased weight gain I had over that time was a combination of my hormones, not eating properly, and not exercising regularly.

I feel very lucky to have come through this only needing the surgery. It was caught early and that made all the difference. I do feel like it changed my outlook on life. The main thing is it made me want to get healthy. I always put it off, something I was going to get to eventually. When I was diagnosed with uterine cancer and when I found out that it was something I increased my risk of by being overweight, it really changed my outlook. I always thought, "I'll deal with my weight when I reach menopause and I have an increase risk of heart attack." Well, I did not pay attention to the increased risk of cancer and it caught me.

Get tested and follow-up - it is so important.

Thank you

We are going to shut this blog down since it was for updates and I am now recovering very well at home. I am scheduled to return to work on June 18th. I am getting stronger and feeling better.
My main issue now is that I seem to tire easily. I think I can do a few errands and find I am ready to go back home after just one. I am sure this will get better with time.
Thank you to everyone for all their good wishes, emails, cards, flowers and treats. I am very grateful to our families who have been so supportive and my nurses: my mom, Jerry's parents, Jerry, and Conner for hanging out with me and napping.

Ladies of all ages - please remember to get your check-ups, early detection made a bad situation much better. If you notice something is wrong - especially post-menopause, please see a Dr. right away.

Menopause

June by Natasha Wescoat

I am sure some of you are wondering how I am handling being in menopause right after surgery. Actually, I have not had many symptoms. I discussed it with my Dr. and we decided to hold-off on hormones for a while. I am due to see her at the end of June when we will discuss it again. So far though, I do get warm, but that could be the weather and my unwillingness to turn on the AC until the calendar says June.

Getting Stronger

I got a Livestrong notebook from Carmen and it is a great resource for keeping all the information in one place and they also offer all kinds of reading materials.

My next battle is with the insurance company as they mistakenly believe one of my doctors is not in my plan (he is). Lots of long phone calls to straighten that out.

Jed and Betty made it back safely to Nova Scotia, it was a huge help having them here.

Reward

Today I went out for a celebratory pedicure - and now that the weather turned chilly again, my freshly painted toenails are inside my woolly slippers. I am feeling much better and find riding in the car easier to tolerate. The roads in Cleveland have some serious potholes and my handy "belly pillow" was a lifesaver.

P.S. There were not any flowers in my pedicure water!

Very Good News

Went to see Dr. Zanotti today and she gave me a clean bill of health. She said I did not need to do any radiation or chemo for follow-up and that the incidence of recurrence was so low, it was negligible. Yay! She wants me to take it easy and concentrate on recovering. The staples are out, which should help me to sleep.

The Changing of the Guard

Jed and Betty arrived from Nova Scotia yesterday and are here to take over nursing duties from my Mom. She heads back up to Grand Blanc on Saturday and Olive will be very glad to see her.

Saw Dr. Bloom my GP and he thinks that except for a couple minor things the healing is progressing nicely.