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Every time you find humor in a difficult situation, you win.

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Author: Erika Lawson

Blogging from El Cajon, CA, just east of San Diego. I mostly blog about hiking, but also traveling and family life as a working mom. I also have blogged about my experience dealing with (curable) breast cancer with as much humor and disdain as possible.
Lymphedema

Lymphedema Therapist #3

April 10, 2017 Erika Lawson2 Comments

Today I had an appointment with my third lymphedema therapist. She is a massage therapist who is trained in lymphatic drainage massage. She actually works at the hospital, for some reason in the cardiovascular wing. She is insanely inexpensive for a massage therapist, so that’s nice, since this is not covered by insurance. She spent… Continue reading Lymphedema Therapist #3

Chemofuckingtherapy

Trying Again with the Night Glove

April 9, 2017 Erika Lawson2 Comments

I’ve been wearing this sleeve + gauntlet for a few months now, and I still really hate it. Well, the sleeve is fine, it’s the gauntlet I don’t like, since it does not fit that well – my fingers are too long. The therapist had said that I could either wear the sleeve/gauntlet daily, or… Continue reading Trying Again with the Night Glove

Chemofuckingtherapy · Recovery

Curls!

April 6, 2017 Erika Lawson1 Comment

Yep, looks like it’s gonna come in curly!

Surgery

Surgery Scheduling

April 1, 2017 Erika Lawson1 Comment

The last time I visited Dr. FixIt, my plastic surgeon, was sometime during chemo for my final breast expander fill. We agreed at that visit that I should call him about six weeks after my final radiation therapy appointment to schedule my next appointment with him, at which point we would start discussing reconstruction. He… Continue reading Surgery Scheduling

Lymphedema · Surgery

Meeting a New Doctor

March 27, 2017 Erika Lawson6 Comments

A week or so ago I met with the UCSD plastic surgeon I’d heard of who is able to perform lymphedema microsurgery – the only such surgeon I’ve been able to find in San Diego. He was very young and distractingly cute. I liked him, but still have a lot to consider. He trained at… Continue reading Meeting a New Doctor

Chemofuckingtherapy · Recovery

Going Hatless

March 17, 2017 Erika Lawson5 Comments

My hair has been growing back nicely, but it’s still really short, and I’ve gotten used to wearing a hat – it feels chilly without it. I don’t know how bald guys do it. I figured I’d be wearing my hats for another few weeks – both to give my hair more time to grow… Continue reading Going Hatless

Lymphedema

Progress is slow…

March 12, 2017 Erika Lawson1 Comment

Some miscellaneous updates here with no real punchlines, all regarding lymphedema, my new new hobby – my old new hobby having been cancer. (I guess moving from a deadly disease to an annoying lifelong condition is progress…??) I exchanged email with the doc at another clinic (UCSD) who I mentioned in my previous post. He… Continue reading Progress is slow…

Chemofuckingtherapy · Lymphedema · Recovery

12-week Oncology Follow-up

March 9, 2017 Erika Lawson3 Comments

Last week I had a follow-up appointment with Dr. Cancer. It’s been about twelve weeks since my final round of chemo. Every time I see her, I need to get a blood test beforehand, and I’ve learned that I can schedule that, so I did that the day before – and again, it required lots… Continue reading 12-week Oncology Follow-up

Lymphedema · Surgery

Making Friends

March 2, 2017 Erika Lawson2 Comments

One of the articles I encountered in my lymphedema surgery Googling was about a woman who traveled from San Diego to Orlando to have microsurgery done for her lymphedema. The article specifically mentioned that she initially learned of the technique through Facebook, so I thought me stalking messaging her on FB would be copacetic. (I also discovered… Continue reading Making Friends

Lymphedema · Surgery

Switching Gears and Researching Options

February 24, 2017 Erika Lawson2 Comments

The “maintenance” therapy for my lymphedema includes wearing a compression sleeve + gauntlet. However, since the majority of my lymphedema is in the hand, my therapist added a little pad under the gauntlet, in the back. All this seems to work fairly well at keeping the swelling at bay. Last weekend we went skiing, and… Continue reading Switching Gears and Researching Options

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Doctor Who?

*To protect the innocent…
Dr. Rad = Radiologist
Dr. Hugs = My primary care doc
Dr. Zap = My radiation oncologist
Dr. Cancer = My oncologist
Dr. Demo = My general surgeon
Dr. FixIt = My plastic surgeon
Ms. Lymph = My lymphedema specialist
BFF = Dr. FixIt’s scheduler
Nemesis = Dr. Demo’s scheduler
Dr. Champ = My lymphedema surgeon

Categories

  • Chemofuckingtherapy (55)
  • Diagnosis (20)
  • Distractions (44)
  • Lymphedema (19)
  • Radiation (10)
  • Recovery (27)
  • Surgery (41)
  • The Bald And The Beautiful (6)

Archives

  • February 2021 (1)
  • October 2020 (2)
  • March 2020 (2)
  • February 2020 (2)
  • December 2017 (5)
  • July 2017 (4)
  • May 2017 (2)
  • April 2017 (6)
  • March 2017 (5)
  • February 2017 (6)
  • January 2017 (10)
  • December 2016 (13)
  • November 2016 (16)
  • October 2016 (11)
  • September 2016 (16)
  • August 2016 (9)
  • July 2016 (11)
  • June 2016 (30)

Search

Shrine O’ Cancer

beet-cancer
That's a real band-aid!
That’s a real band-aid!
cell-phone
everything-happens-for-a-reason
feeling-better
heal
healing-thoughts
I love my new bracelet!!!
I love my new bracelet!!!
hugs-and-rainbows
jacksie
kick-cancers-ass
makes-you-stronger
new-iv-bags
slowing-down
Selfie Soap!
Selfie Soap!
Selfie soap, frog spirit rattle, pocket reminder rock
Selfie soap, frog spirit rattle, pocket reminder rock
Description of the frog spirit rattle
Description of the frog spirit rattle
It's a cup of soup!!! So cute!!
It’s a cup of soup!!! So cute!!
suckville
the-wine-talking
For the girls, from the girls! When everything is all done, of course!!
For the girls, from the girls! When everything is all done, of course!!
fucking-awesome
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Project Perky
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