Monthly Archives: May 2010
05.24.2010 Posted 8:00 pm
A Very Satisfying Week with Lots of “Moments”
I find that I am most at peace and happiest when I am living consistent with my purpose or mission. I have always defined my purpose as creating a world that is free of fear. A world where people tirelessly and relentlessly persevere in getting what they want, obliterating any obstacles that stand in their way. I always say that I strive to be a living role model to others, demonstrating that without fear, anything is possible within ourselves.
Well, I had the great fortune of witnessing many dear friends this week “fling” themselves at life and embrace it to the fullest.
Let’s start with the amazing Director of Cycle for Survival, Katie Kotkins getting exactly what she wanted…Zeev Klein! Dave and I were thrilled to celebrate the union of Katie and Zeev this past weekend. We had a great time with the entire Cycle for Survival team!
The wedding was held at the Museum of Natural History and it was not only beautiful but so full of love. It was clear with every …
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05.18.2010 Posted 4:05 pm
Meditating to Relieve the Anxiety
I apologize for not having written in a week. Take this as a good sign that I am slowly but surely getting back into the swing of things. I am feeling a bit better each day. I am no longer taking any pain medicine and I am slowly but surely adding new foods into my diet.
My appetite has really come back and in the past week I am proud to say that I have moved beyond my diet of noodles, chicken, white rice and bagels and have embraced fruit, salmon and even some sorbet. I am hoping to eventually get to vegetables which will be great.
I have been taking the oral chemo for more than a week and so far, so good. I am a bit tired, which could be from the surgery as well as chemo, but beyond that, I am feeling really strong. I see my doctor this Friday to get a sense of how my body is handling the chemo (blood work etc).
My daily walks …
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05.10.2010 Posted 6:59 pm
My Own Worst Enemy
Tomorrow marks 4 weeks since my surgery. In some ways it feels like it was yesterday and in other ways it feels like a long time ago. I am slowly but surely getting better. Recovery has been a lot tougher this time around. The good news is that I got off my painkillers and am now only taking Tylenol for the incision pain. I find that my surgical pain is very manageable now (a “2” or “3” on a scale of 1-10).
The much bigger issue is my digestive pain. I am still eating a very limited diet and my body doesn’t seem interested in anything that is not white and bland. I have been having a lot of cramps and pains which is natural yet very debilitating.
I have found that I am my own worst enemy because I want to be “back to normal” immediately. When I have been discussing my surgery with my physical therapist, nutritionist etc, they all tell me that this will be at least a 3 …
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05.4.2010 Posted 10:31 am
Jen 5: Cancer O – It’s Official!
Dave and I received the pathology report back from my surgery last week and the great news is that I am technically free of disease. What this means is that there are no measurable traces of cancer in my body. When the Dr’s scraped around my tumor they didn’t find any microscopic cells.
This is amazing news and frankly, I was shocked. Given the size and the rapid growth of the tumor, I assumed that even if the surgeon was able to remove the mass, he would report back that there is evidence that there are microscopic cells that he couldn’t see/get to (this is what happened 5.5 years ago after my first surgery).
Although I am cancer-free, I will be starting a new form of oral chemo as soon as I recover from my surgery. There are two medical approaches when you are told you are free of disease:
To discontinue any treatment and just monitor the vulnerable area very closely (e.g. CT scans every 2-3 months)
To continue with treatment as …
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05.1.2010 Posted 12:46 pm
Coach K – A Stand-Up Guy
I have a really wonderful amazing story about my hero, and now friend, Coach K. Anyone who knows me knows I bleed Duke blue. I am a very passionate and involved alumni of Duke University and I am quite outspoken about my love of the university and of the basketball team. And if you’ve been a loyal reader of my blog you know that the week before I had my surgery, Dave and I flew out to Indianapolis to see Duke win the 2010 NCAA Championship. It was awesome! Perhaps embarrassing for Dave to see me screaming all of the cheers at the top of my lungs but very exciting for me.
So many of my favorite college memories revolve around watching the basketball games and celebrating the team’s wins and losses (mostly wins when I was there). Just like many people remember exactly where they were when JFK was assassinated or when the planes flew into the World Trade Center on September 11th, I remember exactly where I was when …
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