A Cancer Survivor & Fighter's Blog
I went in this morning for my fitness orientation….let me just say it’s been a looong time since I’ve regularly worked out, and by working out I mean 3+ times a week with weights, breaking out a real sweat, etc. It is sad how out of shape I’ve become. The good thing is the trainer was awesome and really willing to work with me on my goals. At this point in my life I couldn’t care less about fitting into a tiny bikini…I just want to get back into the best shape I can be to be here for my family!
This morning in line with his normal crazy breakfast requests Ethan kept asking for “nana bread” (banana bread). Todd told him he thought grandma had moved it so Ethan ran all over the kitchen trying to find it before deciding on telling me “Go downstairs, get grandma!”. Keep in mind this was 6:30 in the morning. I told the little devil I didn’t think Grandma would appreciate a 6:30am wake-up call to find breakfast :).
My cousin Justin and his fiance Torey came to dinner tonight. She’s a nursing student at George Mason and they are getting married and moving back to Washington state when she is finished with school. Daniel loved to watch them and I am convinced he was cooing to them in babyspeak that he was ready to go back with them to campus and party. Since I so rarely see any non-immediate family in the DC area it was a great time.
On the thyroid cancer front being hypothyroid really hit me today. As in after I got back working out I could barely get off the couch. I’ve been so tired all the rest of the day and my hair is falling out faster. This is not at all as bad as chemotherapy but still, I am ready for my synthroid already.
My name is Kate Stowell. I’m a cancer survivor two times over! I was diagnosed with Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma in 1997 and diagnosed with Thyroid Cancer in 2009. Besides surviving cancer, I am a graduate of SUNY Geneseo (2004) and SUNY Binghamton (2006) and work as a registered nurse in a Level III Neonatal Intensive Care Unit. I have two wonderful children, a loving husband, and a sweet black lab. The purpose of this blog is to keep a record of all the ups and downs my growing family goes through both during treatment and everyday life. I welcome questions and comments. Welcome!
Jo
September 1st, 2009 at 2:56 pm
Hi there,
You sound like a strong person, I am suffering thyroid symptoms and awaiting further tests. painful neck, high esr, low iron, high T4 low TSH. Flu like symptoms. I also have two beautiful children, one is 8 months, the other 2 1/2. I am sometimes scared and dont feel like myself, really tired, headaches….. I am a nurse, and healthcare lecturer. My next blood tests are in two days, and I am waiting for an appointment with an endocrinologist. However I am concened about thyroid cancer, do you have any advice? I thought I should ask for an ultrasound scan? What are the symptoms of thyroid cancer?
kate
September 1st, 2009 at 8:56 pm
Hi Jo! I’m so sorry to hear about your thyroid problems. I’m no expert and new to thyroid cancer but it doesn’t sound to me like you have thyroid cancer. Actually thyroid cancer doesn’t usually cause too many symptoms unless the tumor is really bulky. In my case all of my labs were normal and I felt completely like myself. It was one of my co-workers who actually noticed I had a lump. I was giving report at change of shift and she asked why my thyroid looked so big. Thank God she did! What IS really common after delivering a baby is post-partum thyroiditis, however I’m not entirely clear on the symptoms since this wasn’t what happened to me. As far as tests- I did have a thyroid ultrasound and that will tell you if you have nodules. In my case it sped up them doing a fine needle aspiration because it was suspicious- my tumor actually had blood flow and was solid, not cystic. However even then it can still be benign. The only way to tell for sure is a fine needle aspiration of any nodules they find. I would definitely ask if they will do one, and then they can tell you yes or no and the reasoning behind it. I hope this is somewhat helpful- feel free to e-mail me directly at kate@katestowell.com too. I’d love to hear updates on how things go! You and your family are in my prayers :)