Early Christmas!

Merry Christmas and Happy Birthday to me!! The MRI showed that the tumors are stable. Woo-hoo!! I go back to my main oncology doctor on January 11 to discuss beginning Tykerb again--that's the oral chemo pill that I took a couple of years ago. She also wants me to prayerfully consider some other things that I need you to pray about, but I'm not going to elaborate about at this time. Just pray. God knows. I'll go back to the radiation doctor in February or March for another MRI and an additional follow-up. They are both quite happy with the results from today's scan, which makes me quite happy!

"Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus." ~ Philippians 4:6-7

Each day is a gift. Don't waist a single one, as most of us do.

Believe

I've been feeling much better since the radiosurgery. Praise God I haven't had many side effects! I had bad headaches at first, but they got better. I lost a little hair in the spot of the radiosurgery, but I texted some family to pray and it stopped. I'm still weak at times but that seems to be the new normal. God is so good!

I go back tomorrow, December 14, for a follow up MRI and doctor appointments. I am believing that cancer in the brain is no longer an issue. Would you pray and believe with me?

As I write this, I'm trying to remind myself how privileged I am. I've been having quite a few emotional ups and downs. I don't like having cancer (what a surprise!) and when I start feeling better, it's easy to put that C word in the back of my mind. But when I have to go back for one of these very necessary but very unwelcome appointments, it comes back to the front and makes me emotional all over again. So, here's another prayer request--emotional stability. Yes, some of you may be thinking that is quite a tall order! LOL!!

In less than two  weeks, I will celebrate my birthday. Oh how each one is so special! Adults often don't look forward to their birthdays because they don't want to get older. Well, if you're not getting older and moving forward, then you're dead! Yes, I know that when I die I'll be in a MUCH better place with my sweet Jesus. No more tears. No more pain. And NO MORE CANCER!! How glorious that will be! But I also know that He's not finished with me down here yet and that my family will miss me. Each birthday is so special. Each day is so special. We've been given the wonderful privilege of experiencing this world and sharing His love each day we're here. Yes, this world is full of tremendous challenges, but aren't we blessed that He chose us to share His love and good news! He believes in us. Shouldn't we believe in Him?

"I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me." ~ Philippians 4:13 NKJV

God is great. God is good.

God is great. God is good. Six little words that we have often uttered. Do we really think about them? He is SO great and He is SO good. We can't even begin to imagine just how great or just how good. His thoughts are always higher than ours; His ways are always higher than ours. If they weren't, what kind of a Creator would He be? We can't put his ways in any kind of box. They just don't fit. We often try to explain life with the limited knowledge we have. How absurd! We are the created, not the Creator. Our works of art can't explain us; we explain them.

I am doing well after the recent radiosurgery. I've been extremely drowsy at times, to the point of not being able to function, and I've had some painful headaches, but I haven't had any really bad side effects yet. A lot of people have been praying for me, and He has chosen to answer those prayers in the affirmative. I can't tell you how much I appreciate each one of those prayers.

Today is Monday and I am home again, but if I continue to improve I plan to go back to school tomorrow. How will I do tomorrow? I don't know. None of us do, but I intend to trudge on. When one is faced with a potentially terminal illness, life takes on an entirely new perspective. I've been faced with this a couple of times, and God always shows me what's important. And it's never been me.

I have an appointment next Tuesday with the oncologist I've been seeing since 2010. I guess I'll find out if I need to do any more chemo at that point. If I do, I do. If I don't, I don't. But whatever happens, God's got this.

Each day is a journey in itself. Each moment matters infinitely. How do we spend them? Personally, I tend to waste too many of them. Life is such a gift that can be taken away at any moment. We need to remember that and cherish each one. Will I remember that tomorrow? No, probably not. I'll get caught up in the little things of life, like bad traffic and slow Internet. But for now, I choose to enjoy the moment. I choose to breathe in Life.

The Power of Prayer

It never ceases to amaze me how we can enter the Throne room of the One Who created the entire cosmos and talk to Him like we're talking to a good friend. He's the Alpha and Omega, the Beginning and the End, and yet He truly loves and cares for each one of us like we're the most important person in the entire world. We're His children. Simply ineffable.

The radiosurgery is over. It went well and we're back home. I can't thank you enough for your prayers, but keep them going. We won't know about some of the side effects for a while. If I have hearing loss, it might not happen for a month or two. But God's got this. I might have some really bad headaches and nausea, but God's got this. I'm in His Hands. I currently have a headache, but it's not bad. I don't have nausea yet, but I know this can happen a day or two later. I also know that God is in control, not the cancer. You keep approaching His Throne and fervently praying for me, and I might get through it without a hitch. But I might not. We have to remember that His Ways are so much higher than ours. Our lives are just a vapor. The quality of our lives is what matters, not the quantity of time we spend on this earth. We might live a day or 100 years, but what matters is how our lives impacted the world for Him. The real kicker is that we might not have a clue how we are impacting others while still here; but one Day, all will be revealed. How are you impacting His Kingdom? My greatest hope is that I will glorify Him in all that I do. Believe me, it's not easy when I have a headache the size of Mt. Everest and all I want is to be in His presence. Most of the time, I fall miserably short, but it's not about me. It's about Him.

Since you are all so great about approaching His Throne for me, I wanted to update you the best I could and selfishly ask for more prayer. However, I need to go to bed now. I love you all, but Jesus loves you more. God's got this!

Radiosurgery

The radiosurgery is scheduled for tomorrow, November 12, at 8:00. It's called surgery because a neurosurgeon performs it. It's basically highly concentrated radiation projected at the tumors. I have two. One is located on the left side in the lower back of my head; the other is behind my right ear. The one behind the ear could cause the most complications. The radiosurgery itself could result in extreme fatigue and nausea, but concentrating on the one behind the ear could result in loss of hearing in that ear or paralysis on the right side of my face (but that is rare). My doctor said that about one in three experience hearing loss, which means that two in three do not. The odds are in my favor!

Keep the prayers going. God is good!

PRAISE GOD THROUGH WHOM ALL BLESSINGS FLOW!!!

11/06/2015

PRAISE GOD THROUGH WHOM ALL BLESSINGS FLOW!!! There doesn't seem to be cancer cells in the CSF, so I will be able to have radiosurgery rather than whole brain radiation. There are side effects that range from minor to severe (with severe being rare), so please pray for minor or even no side effects. I should hear from my doctor next week and the treatment will hopefully be next week. Did you notice the singular "treatment?" Yes, it will probably make me sick for a few days, but WOW!!! God is so good!

I will meet with my primary oncologist after the radiosurgery has been completed. It's my understanding that I will probably have to do more chemotherapy, but if that's what it takes to beat this thing then I'm all for it.

Thanks again for all the prayers. Please keep them going!

Spinal Tap

11/04/2015

I had the spinal tap this morning and all went well. It was delayed due to some other patients with complications so I didn't get home until after 3:00. I should know the results within the next week. Please keep the prayers going. God is good!

11/07/2015
The spinal tap has caused a severe headache accompanied with nausea and vomiting. If you know me well enough, you know I get really bad headaches anyway. This one is excruciating. Please keep the prayers going.

Appointments

11/03/2015

I want to give everyone an update on my appointment schedule.

I have three appointments at UAB on Thursday, November 5; one at 8:00 at the radiology clinic, one at 9:20 at the neurosurgery clinic, and one at the radiation-oncology cancer center at 12:30. My primary radiation oncologist discussed my case with a group of neurosurgeons this morning. They want to do a spinal tap at UAB tomorrow, November 4 at 6:00 am to make sure there aren't any cancer cells in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). If there are cancer cells in the CSF, they'll need to do whole-brain radiation instead of radiosurgery.

Please keep the prayers going. I really need them. God's got this!

A New Phase

10/29/2015

I want to thank everyone for praying for me. Today, I entered a new phase. Today, I learned the cancer has spread to my brain. The radiation oncologist was very positive. He wants to do radiosurgery—a procedure that will concentrate the radiation to the tumor only. They've had good results with this procedure. He was sympathetic to the fact that most of us think of brain cancer as being a death sentence; however, he emphasized that is not the case anymore. Except for the headaches, I'm not experiencing the normal symptoms of brain cancer. He believes I will respond very well to the treatment. He's hoping to be able to start the treatment soon. He wants to do another MRI that will show even more in depth views of the brain first.

If you know my sweet Mama or anyone related to her, please don't share this yet. She's still in the hospital and I don't want her to worry about me while she's trying to recover.

Scans, scans, and more scans!

Please pray as I travel to UAB tomorrow, October 29 for an MRI at 6:30, a bone scan injection at 7:30, a bone scan at 9:30, a CT scan at 1:45, and a doctor appointment at 2:30. I just received news of all of these scans yesterday. The nurse told me it was possible that they could work me in to have the CT scan between 7:30 and 9:30, so please pray that is possible so I am not there ALL day.

As many of you know, my mother is in the hospital. She was in pretty bad shape, but praise God she improved during the day yesterday. For those of you who were aware of the situation, THANK YOU SOOOO MUCH FOR YOUR PRAYERS!!! Our God is an AWESOME God and is in the healing business. She's not out of the woods but will be healed regardless of whether it is in this world or the next. And so will I. Healing doesn't always come the way that we want, but it is always in His perfect timing. 

A pain in the neck...

I went to the doctor today. As I've told many of you, I've been having a lot of pain which has made me sick. (I'll leave out the details in case you're eating. LOL!) I've also had some more pain in my left hip. Because of these changes, she wants to be thorough (can I hear an amen for thorough doctors?) and ordered an MRI of the brain, a bone scan, and a CT scan of my chest, neck, and pelvis. She wants them done ASAP but a couple of the scans have to be pre-approved so I couldn't get definite dates today.

I'm feeling better today but still have pain in my neck. (I know. A pain in the neck. Get it out of your system.) You just don't realize how heavy your head is until you have trouble holding it up.

Keep the prayers going. I appreciate them so much. I'll keep you updated.