Cancer is the bugger that got me to cut my hair
For the bulk of my life, I've had long hair. Often below the shoulder, sometimes at the shoulder, but my ears have for the most part been covered. Until this weekend.
Did I mention I have a new hair cut? "Cut" may be an
understatement. I rang up Coup Rokei (a salon I've visited for close to two decades) and said I needed something short, STAT. They found an appointment, Anne gave it a serious chop and I now have a (super) cute modern pixie - short, short, short at the nape of my neck
with longer bangs. I'll admit, I love it. My natural color is lighter on
top, the result is a cool color change up the back that some
women would spend hours and thousands to maintain. Lucky me! Thanks to an amazing stylist, my cheekbones and what my
sister described as a “strong jawline” I manage to still look feminine. Judge for yourself - super fab, non?
Did I mention I have breast cancer? This summer I took 12 weeks off work (starting on my six year Amazon anniversary). The plan was to be with family, recharge the battery, and enjoy life a little. Sure there were some big projects to tend to but I planned ample time to chill. During my first week off, on the way home from a family trip, I found a lump in my left breast. The rest of the summer was filled with tons of fun; sprinkled with a biopsy, string of diagnostic tests, cancer diagnosis and partial mastectomy. Surgery went well, the tumor was removed along with five lymph nodes for testing. One lymph node showed a tiny bit of cancer. The week I went back to work, my Oncologist and I reviewed results from oncotype testing. While my cancer had all the “good” indicators (ER/PR positive, HER2 negative), the tumor was large, it had started to spread (contained, but ready to move), and was found to be “hungry”. We decided chemotherapy should be in my treatment plan -- OK, she recommended it and when I found it could statistically cut my chance of recurrence in half -- I said "yes please!" Lucky me!
In addition to kicking cancer, a secondary benefit of my chemo cocktail is hair loss; the cut is preparation. I went wig shopping with a friend last week. Long wigs looked like Barbie dolls, the shortest wig looked the best and felt the most like me. Since my daughter has announced I'm not allowed in public if I'm bald, short wig it is. Also, the idea of my long hair landing on my pillow was more than I could stomach. Hence the cut ... but, given how much I like the new do, maybe in the spring, when cancer and treatment are in my rear view mirror, this cut will become my new calling card. Time will tell.
I'm reviving this blog for people who might want to check the status of my treatment every now and again. While I'm not 'hiding' my illness I'd prefer it to have as little impact on my life, my relationships, my career as possible. Which means - I'd rather hear about the movie you saw or tell you the silly thing my cat did when we chat. Happy to answer cancer questions, but would prefer to keep them to a minimum. Instead of starting a 'new', 'cancer' blog I found this very old account with a few random posts. Reuse. Renew. Recycle.
With that...
Current Status:
I had my first chemo treatment today; seven to go! So far so good...fingers crossed I stay that way. Ha! Side effects are delayed and cumulative through the 16 weeks of treatment. I'm confident there will be days when I'm not at the top of my beauty. I am overwhelmed at the support, love and generosity from people in our community who we've shared the news with. It comes in all shapes and sizes and feels AMAZING. Thank you. We'll need all of you in the weeks ahead.
Did I mention I have a new hair cut? "Cut" may be an
understatement. I rang up Coup Rokei (a salon I've visited for close to two decades) and said I needed something short, STAT. They found an appointment, Anne gave it a serious chop and I now have a (super) cute modern pixie - short, short, short at the nape of my neck
with longer bangs. I'll admit, I love it. My natural color is lighter on
top, the result is a cool color change up the back that some
women would spend hours and thousands to maintain. Lucky me! Thanks to an amazing stylist, my cheekbones and what my
sister described as a “strong jawline” I manage to still look feminine. Judge for yourself - super fab, non? Did I mention I have breast cancer? This summer I took 12 weeks off work (starting on my six year Amazon anniversary). The plan was to be with family, recharge the battery, and enjoy life a little. Sure there were some big projects to tend to but I planned ample time to chill. During my first week off, on the way home from a family trip, I found a lump in my left breast. The rest of the summer was filled with tons of fun; sprinkled with a biopsy, string of diagnostic tests, cancer diagnosis and partial mastectomy. Surgery went well, the tumor was removed along with five lymph nodes for testing. One lymph node showed a tiny bit of cancer. The week I went back to work, my Oncologist and I reviewed results from oncotype testing. While my cancer had all the “good” indicators (ER/PR positive, HER2 negative), the tumor was large, it had started to spread (contained, but ready to move), and was found to be “hungry”. We decided chemotherapy should be in my treatment plan -- OK, she recommended it and when I found it could statistically cut my chance of recurrence in half -- I said "yes please!" Lucky me!
In addition to kicking cancer, a secondary benefit of my chemo cocktail is hair loss; the cut is preparation. I went wig shopping with a friend last week. Long wigs looked like Barbie dolls, the shortest wig looked the best and felt the most like me. Since my daughter has announced I'm not allowed in public if I'm bald, short wig it is. Also, the idea of my long hair landing on my pillow was more than I could stomach. Hence the cut ... but, given how much I like the new do, maybe in the spring, when cancer and treatment are in my rear view mirror, this cut will become my new calling card. Time will tell.
I'm reviving this blog for people who might want to check the status of my treatment every now and again. While I'm not 'hiding' my illness I'd prefer it to have as little impact on my life, my relationships, my career as possible. Which means - I'd rather hear about the movie you saw or tell you the silly thing my cat did when we chat. Happy to answer cancer questions, but would prefer to keep them to a minimum. Instead of starting a 'new', 'cancer' blog I found this very old account with a few random posts. Reuse. Renew. Recycle.
With that...
Current Status:
I had my first chemo treatment today; seven to go! So far so good...fingers crossed I stay that way. Ha! Side effects are delayed and cumulative through the 16 weeks of treatment. I'm confident there will be days when I'm not at the top of my beauty. I am overwhelmed at the support, love and generosity from people in our community who we've shared the news with. It comes in all shapes and sizes and feels AMAZING. Thank you. We'll need all of you in the weeks ahead.
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