Please help baby Jazmine - 15 month old baby in my family fights cancer

Please help baby Jazmine Bossman (15 months old) in her fight against cancer. Go to the iCare site link below to learn about her battle with cancer and how you can help. 

http://icare4causes.yolasite.com/baby-jazmine.php

Please pass this on! Thank you!

 

Back to the body shop

Just met with my brilliant breast reconstruction surgeon to discuss the painful scar tissue (the stuff that caused my recent scare) and the dents and flattened nipples situation. He could definitely feel the hardened capsular scarring and said he could try to remedy it but no guarantees it won't happen again. The dents and nipples is a relatively straightforward fix using fat from my mid section. See! A good use for my new menopausal "love handles" haha. :/

Another surgery on the books for mid-April now. It will be an iterative process to address it all but the girls should be finished with reconstruction this year.

Thank you, Lord, for the brilliant and compassionate Dr.Crisera!

Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

In the belly of the fish

It took being swallowed by a fish for Jonah to finally turn to God. I know what that feels like. It was in my darkest hour that I looked up and saw God's powerful light and became a reborn believer after spending years living the life of an agnostic. It was sudden but then that's because my eyes were opened to His miracles suddenly.  And,  I don't even mind that some may mumble under their breath or snicker (or even send me explicit communications saying so) about what they refer to as "a convenient conversion"; instead, I pray for them and ask God to show them the power and unconditional love and healing He has shown me. I pray that when they are sitting in the belly of the fish they look up and find refuge in the Lord.

I'm studying Jonah and the author of the study, Priscilla Shirer, says this:

"God's good at taking our messes, our leftovers, and doing something good with them. Parts of all of our lives we'd just as soon forget, yet in the hands of a Master, our mess can become the greatest miracle of all. He has a way of chopping, dicing, and reconfiguring the parts that we thought were of no use.  He's got a knack for pouring on His Spirit and sprinkling on a bit of grace and mercy. Then, voila! Fresh out of the oven of a trial or two, there's something delicious from your life that you never thought possible." - Priscilla Shirer, 'Jonah: Navigating a Life Interrupted'

So, as you sit in the belly of the fish (regardless of how you got there), trust in the Lord, the Master, call out to Him, and know that He has plans for you if you'll just get out of His way and let him work some magic.

May God bless you today!

Love,
Julie

MRI results CLEAR!!

Yay!! Praise God!! Just got the call from UCLA that my breast MRI results are clear -- Oh N.E.D., how I love you! :)

Me & NED's first anniversary is here!

I'm not cheating on Bob, I promise. But I *DO* LOVE NED (no evidence of disease) and am hoping to maintain my plural marriage to him and Bob for many decades to come. 

Today marks the one-year anniversary of my first clean PET/CT scan after diagnosis. I've been a survivor since the day I was diagnosed in May '09 but I've been "cancer-free" since that first clean scan on Feb.1, 2010 which took place after chemo and before radiation.

Happy anniversary, NED! You're stuck with me, buddy. OK!? :)

Praise God for getting me THIS FAR and for carrying me even further. I'm grateful beyond words.

I just got back from having a routine breast MRI (it's been one year since the implants were "installed") so I'm praying for an accurately clean test result to come in. I should hear something within 48 hours. Thank you, in advance, for similar prayers.

Jonah 2



1 [a]From inside the fish Jonah prayed to the LORD his God. 2 He said:


“In my distress I called to the LORD, and he answered me. From deep in the realm of the dead I called for help, and you listened to my cry. 3 You hurled me into the depths, into the very heart of the seas, and the currents swirled about me; all your waves and breakers swept over me.


4 I said, ‘I have been banished from your sight; yet I will look again toward your holy temple.’ 5 The engulfing waters threatened me,[b] the deep surrounded me; seaweed was wrapped around my head. 6 To the roots of the mountains I sank down; the earth beneath barred me in forever. But you, LORD my God, brought my life up from the pit.

7 “When my life was ebbing away, I remembered you, LORD, and my prayer rose to you, to your holy temple. 8 “Those who cling to worthless idols turn away from God’s love for them. 9 But I, with shouts of grateful praise, will sacrifice to you. What I have vowed I will make good. I will say, ‘Salvation comes from the LORD.’” 10 And the LORD commanded the fish, and it vomited Jonah onto dry land.

Running...

...I used to never do it. A girl with big knockers could really hurt herself running, ya know!  Well that was my excuse (invalid) anyway.  

There was a study I read while I was in treatment that said a breast cancer survivor could reduce their risk of recurrence by 45% or more if they exercised in a manner that raised their heart rate for 30 or more minutes six days per week.  Gulp. 

I hadn't been working out for a while since becoming pregnant with Cooper (Oct.'07) due to the 19 weeks of strict bed rest (valid excuse) I had and then the extreme sleep deprivation once my little man was here - his first year was pure survival and it was exercise just staying awake and being functional (so-so valid excuse).   

Anyway, I started changing my lifestyle immediately after being diagnosed. Purged my house of toxic chemicals (cleaning supplies, fragrance products, beauty products - anything that had toxic chemicals in it),  switched over to organic eating, added vitamins and supplements, and much more. The exercise thing was on hold (except for some walks mainly for meditation and fresh air) until after treatment was over (doc-approved excuse). 

Then I had more surgeries and exercise remained on hold for a few more months (valid excuse).

Finally I got into gear and joined a new gym and got off to a great start. Then sort of fizzled out because I was doing some traveling (invalid excuse).

At a recent follow up visit to the oncologist I told Dr.B that I had gotten started but wasn't going as often as I should and he said "exercise is the single most important thing you can do to work toward prevention of a recurrence."   Got it. Enough said.

I've been running just about every day since then. I'm currently traveling and have dragged my butt to the gym every day since arriving. I happily handed over $25 for a week-long pass and as soon as Cooper starts his nap just before/around dinner time (time zone change has been a challenge for him), I grab my gym bag and head over to the gym. Yesterday I ran the longest time and distance I have ever run before - 45 minutes, 3.2 miles. It helped me get out my frustration and anger that I began to express on the blog yesterday. It helped me feel like I was taking back some control.

This is new for me, but it's the new me from now on. This is not some new years resolution that will go awry in a few months time...this is my life now. No more excuses.  I run to live. And I will run to honor God and to fight for me and my sister warriors. 

1 Corinthians 9:24 (NIV) Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize.

1 Corinthians 6:19-20 (NIV) Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies

WTF....no, seriously, WTF!

This past week I've learned of four new breast cancer diagnoses amongst women I know and care about and friends of close friends. All of them are young women in their 30's and early 40s.  Worst yet, one of my friends who has battled triple negative breast cancer for the past 3+ years has joined her precious daughter in heaven.  This is bullshit and I'm angry. Damn angry.  What the fuck!? No, really, what the FUCK is going on?!

I'm sorry I'm cursing but I can't think of any other word that appropriately expresses how I'm feeling right now. 

One survivor friend of mine has a father who is a gynecologist who asked another gynecologist friend of his in another state if he'd been seeing a high number of young women being diagnosed and his response was a resounding yes and they discussed how they can't believe the rate of this shit appearing among my generation of women.  The doctors are alarmed. I repeat, the doctors are alarmed.  THE DOCTORS ARE ALARMED. Not surprised, ALARMED. Yeah.....

I was in Whole Foods today and I was thinking that by now there HAS to be a hair styling product in the store that doesn't have carcinogens in it....and there it was, a bottle where the name of the manufacturer was something something "organics"....ok let's see, looked at the ingredient list and there was ONE organic ingredient out of about 30 and that one was at the bottom of the list but was preceded by 29 CHEMICALS.

WE ARE POISONING OURSELVES and letting these manufacturers deceive and harm us with their toxic chemicals. Our government is letting this happen by not requiring manufacturers to prove a product or ingredient is safe.  Oh, and if we choose not to consume, use or otherwise expose ourselves to these dangerous toxins we still are bombarded by them in our air and water every.single.day. When are we going to rise up and demand change? When will the voices of those who already do be heard?

I don't panic often but let me tell you I have been on the verge of a panic attack for the past 8 hours since hearing about my friend's passing.

Dear Lord, PLEASE I BEG YOU, PLEASE help us....help us find the cause and the cure. PLEASE, Lord. PLEASE. PLEASE. And please help guide me to live out your plan for my life - to glorify you and to help others find comfort, peace, information...I am your vessel. And did I mention that we need a cure?  Lord, please cradle my friend Theresa's family in your loving and healing light and bring them comfort and peace as they grieve this loss.  Lord, please give my newly diagnosed friend strength, determination and wisdom as she navigates the tests and procedures and treatments that are ahead of her and help her feel your presence and see your miracles and be healed of this disease and to help her family get through it. Amen.