Survivor's Blog - March 2, 2014- Creative Scarf Tying, use them to cover your infusion port...

Today chemo is kicking me and not the other way around. I know I will be fine in an hour or two when my energy kicks in. In the meantime, I thought I would share with all of you a video from Nordstrom. If  you are a cancer survivor you are always looking for creative ways to cover your infusion port and Nordstrom's  produced a beautiful video on creative scarf tying.  The link is here if you would like to check it out.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=-ExVRCJ0Jrw

It is a good one whether you have a port or just love scarves.

Survivor's Blog - March 1, 2014- Meet my new brave friend Julie G!

Hello Everyone-

 I am having trouble getting anyone to write anything for my blog, and I am too pooped to do so. Today I am going to change gears and introduce you to a really inspirational person I met at chemo a couple of weeks ago. Julie G. is also an ovarian cancer patient and she is so brave and kick ass about all of this. We were excited to meet each other in chemo because it is really rare to meet an ovarian cancer under the age of 65. Unfortunately, I think it is because many younger folks like us, are not diagnosed until the disease is just too far along! Those of us who are young and surviving need to make it our mission for everyone we know to be aware of Ovarian Cancer and its amorphous symptoms.

Here is how Julie decided to let everyone know about her diagnosis:

She went and had her son ( a tattoo artist) give her this cool Ovarian cancer ribbon tattoo.

 

Then she shaved her head and showed up to treatment BALD and PROUD!

 

I must say it was nice to have company.

 

JULIE you ROCK and you will inspire so many people to keep on keepin on!

 

To learn more about the symptoms of Ovarian Cancer you can go to:

 

http://www.ovariancancer.org/

 

 

 

Survivor's Blog- February 28, 2014- Some information about Locks of Love....

Hi Everyone-

Several of my friends have been generous enough to give up their "normal" hairstyles and grow their hair out long to donate to "Locks Of Love". If you are not familiar with them, Locks of Love accepts donated hair to make wigs for children with cancer or other diseases that involve hair loss. Any hair that they cannot make into wigs they sell to finance the program.

The thing folks don't know is that there are some very specific guidelines for hair donation that you need to follow.  The link below has all of them, they are very specific about what kind of hair they can accept. The guidelines below are just a small part of the list. If your hair is bleached, treated , or permed you  need to check the current guidelines on their site. You can follow this link or print the guidelines I pulled from their site:

http://www.locksoflove.org/donate.html

HOW TO DONATE:

• 10 inches measured tip to tip is the minimum length needed for a hairpiece.
• Hair must be in a ponytail or braid before it is cut.
• Hair must be clean and completely dry before it is mailed in.
• Place the ponytail or braid inside of a plastic bag, and then inside of a padded envelope.
• If you wish to receive an acknowledgment for your hair donation, please fill out the hair donation form, or write your name and e-mail address or mailing address on a full size separate sheet of paper and include inside the envelope. We cannot acknowledge donors who do not send their name and address according to these instructions.
• All hair donations must be mailed to Locks of Love at:
  
  234 Southern Blvd.
  West Palm Beach, FL 33405-2701
• **IMPORTANT** When mailing your donation, please make sure that you are sending it with adequate postage. The U.S. Postal Service has notified Locks of Love that many donations are being sent without enough postage, and these packages will be returned to sender! To ensure adequate postage, please take your donation to your local post office.
• Thank you!

The photos are of my lovely sister in crime, Jennifer T., who took them yesterday after she got a rocking new hairdo!!! Hope she doesn't mind being blogged out to the world! She has no idea how much we cancer survivors appreciate her bravery and her donation.

Survivor's Blog - February 25, 2014 Chemo Update and Update for all family members!!

Hello Everyone-

Just wanted to post a quick update and let everyone know that chemo yesterday went  as well as can be expected. My blood counts are still holding up so I am on track do keep doing this weekly until April.

The other good news is this. I finally got my insurance to pay for the BRAC analysis. You may be wondering what I mean by BRAC analysis? The BRAC test is a genetic test that test to see if you have the gene that predisposes you for breast and ovarian cancer. The good news is that I do not have the gene, I am negative. Since I have no children this does not affect me too much. The reason I had the test was to encourage all my female family members especially those of you who are sisters, aunts, and cousins to go get the test. Ovarian cancer tends to run in families and I intend to be the only Heath/ Miller or Dempsey affected with this if I can help it. You may want to get tested anyway. I would encourage you to do so but, it is likely if you are close to me that you have a low chance of having the gene crop up.

If you have followed the news lately it was a positive BRAC test that caused Angelina Jolie the actress to opt for a mastectomy instead of possibly developing the cancer that killed her mother.  I am not sure I would choose removal of my ovaries or breasts just because I might get cancer. I feel that allowing them to remove my unaffected ovary and have a hysterectomy was a big mistake despite the wonderful medical care I had. I know if I had not been in an emergency situation, I would only have had them remove the cancer. I do know that if I were BRAC positive I would definitely have them screening and scanning me yearly for cancer!!!!

To read about Angelina's choice and the study that prompted it go to:
http://www.examiner.com/article/angelina-jolie-shines-spotlights-on-oophorectomy-to-prevent-ovarian-cancer

Survivor's Blog- February 20, 2014- A wonderful free program for Cancer Survivors.

A couple of weeks ago I finally had a chance to attend a " Healing Icons" support group and art class. This class is held at different locations around Columbia monthly and offers cancer survivors a chance to work out their feelings about cancer and treatment through guided art therapy sessions. The best part is the class is completely free for Cancer survivors! Of all the activities I have tried to support my cancer recovery, I have to say this one rates at the top!

Healing Icons is the first support group where I felt comfortable and like I fit in. After the class I felt about ten pounds lighter, it was really transformative. My art work was no great shakes but, I was amazed by how much emotion I was able to clear out by putting pen to paper.

My February guided art work.


 

If you would like to join a class or just see what Healing Icons is all about you can go to their web site at:

www.healingicons.org

or call them at (803) 429-4151

Survivor's Blog- February 17, 2014 A little inspiration please.....

Today was chemo day and I feel a bit like a train ran over me. The upside is my CA125 blood count had dropped by almost half, so this chemo is working and much faster than we thought it would.

 Instead of blogging, I thought I would give you a link to someone who has inspired me for the past 3 years:  Kris Carr, the woman who made the documentary " Crazy, Sexy, Cancer".

http://www.oprah.com/own-super-soul-sunday/Crazy-Sexy-Cancer-Kris-Carr-on-Finding-Joy-Video

All you do is click on the center of her photo and  you can enjoy her digital short. I would find her inspiring and a great role model regardless of my cancer status.

Survivor's Blog- February 14, 2014- Remembering those I have lost to cancer....

As many of you may already know, I drew the cancer card in the family. I have no family history of Ovarian Cancer or any cancer really. My cousin, Mike, was the only family member I am aware of who passed from cancer. His cancer does not really count as family history though, since his cancer was a result of the anti rejection drugs he had to take for his kidney transplant. Despite that, I feel as if the last thirty years have been incredibly hard on my friends and the people who are closest to me with regard to cancer.

I lost my first friend to it when we were both 17 and only a couple weeks out of high school. It was a big shock because, Valerie B. and I had been friends since kindergarten. More recently, I lost Wally Comer, the man who was my adopted Dad, best friend, and mentor. Then we lost Oscar's wonderful father, OJ, then Mrs. Fogle ( who was Bonnie's Mother- in - law).  I also lost Carol T., who was the closest friend I had here in South Carolina. And then to my dismay my beloved best friend and Cousin, Mike D., also passed from cancer. Six months after Mike's death, I had to make a call home and tell my family that I too had cancer!

All of these people were incredible people. Each one of them taught me how to hold your head up and walk tall in the world. Mike taught me perseverance and tenacity and Wally showed me how to live each moment with joy!

Every once in a while, I get a chance to remember these folks and honor them. Just before the holidays, I had a chance to write an article for the ACVRC, ( short for the American Cancer Victim's Rights Campaign). I chose to write the article in honor of Wally Comer.

Here it is if you would like to take a look and see what I have been up to:

http://cancervictimsrights.org/?s=wally+comer