First things first... I'm feeling good and got another "all clear" from my doctor today. Of course, there's really note much she can tell just by talking to me. She asks me all the usual questions related to possible metastasis:
- Any shortness of breath or trouble breathing?
- Any bone pain that you can't explain?
- Any headaches?
No, no and no. So I am given an all clear. The really stress-filled appointment comes in January with my annual mammogram. Until then, I do my best to put cancer in the rearview mirror for another six months.
A few things have changed since my blog post from last year. First, I was promoted and my company relocated us to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. It's a great opportunity for me, and my husband and I are both looking forward to starting a new chapter of our lives in a new city. I am hoping I won't need to get to know any of the oncologists in the area!
Last winter I decided to close my yoga studio. It was just too much work and stress to run a business while working in a demanding career. So I closed the doors on March 31, 2015 and never looked back. It was definitely the right decision for me. My spirit feels so much lighter, and I have much less stress now that I only need to focus on one job - the one that pays the bills!
I have lost a little weight. I'm down 15 lbs. since this time last year. It's not a great change, but it is trending in the right direction. I think changing from tamoxifen to letrozole definitely helped. I went on the Ideal Protein diet last fall and was able to take off 15 lbs. during the holidays. I was thrilled because when I was on tamoxifen, it didn't matter what I tried, I could not lose 1 stinkin' pound.
I still have a long way to go. You might be wondering why I didn't stick with Ideal Protein. The truth is, I was not losing weight as quickly as they would have liked. I was losing about 1/2 - 1 lb. per week, and I was happy with that rate. But they wanted me to lose 3 lbs. per week and were getting a little irritated that I kept coming in every week and wasn't making more progress.
So, I stopped going for weigh ins (which always made me feel horrible), and I stopped buying their food. I've been "winging it" since the first of the year. I haven't gained any more weight and my doctor said I was down 3 lbs. since my last checkup in December.
And basically, that's where I am today. I am still miserable being this overweight. And I feel lousy reading that post from last year knowing I haven't made any significant changes or progress toward my goal weight.
It's really time for me to step up and make some changes. I can no longer use menopause or my cancer treatments as an excuse to live a healthy lifestyle.