Monday, April 14, 2014

Grrr I'm mad


I haven’t really been too upset about the whole cancer thing, I’ve accepted it and my treatments.  I even accepted losing my hair!  Cancer seemed to be a short term bump in the road that I would deal with and move on.  Even when I was given my second diagnosis I accepted it, started treatment and was looking forward to the end of treatment when I could start life over again.  But I’ve got this problem now and I’m not ok with it. 

My left hand is swollen, hurts and honestly looks ugly!  It’s probably lymphedema which is a risk when you have lymph nodes removed and I had 5 removed last year.  I think we have around 20-30 in our armpits so having 5 removed didn't seem like a big deal to me or the doctors.  It looks like my hand is broken, I want to get an xray to make sure it’s not and I think that’s a common desire.  I read a comment from someone who wished she was having heart problems vs lymphedema.  My watches and bracelets are tight.  I can’t even wear my wedding ring and I really like it! 

The treatment for this is a compression sleeve, physical therapy and exercises I can do at home to help move the lymphatic fluid along but there’s no cure.  I have a sleeve that seems to make the swelling worse, my therapist doesn't think I have too much of a problem (I guess the swelling goes down when I see her) and I’m really upset that I have to deal with this, especially if there’s no cure.  And it really hurts.  It hurts to touch my hand, it hurts to type, it hurts to make a fist, it hurts just sitting here. 


So here it is, my attitude is not positive today.  I am mad and sad and hurting.  If you wondered how I was able to remain positive you can stop wondering because today I'm not. 

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