Out of the mouths (or actions) of babes.....

This morning I got a call from the office of Radiology for an initial consultation with the radiologist that will be doing the radiation therapy part of my treatment.  I will be getting radiation for sure....either as the sole treatment of my breast cancer or as the second part of my treatment if I have to do chemo.  As you know (if you read my previous post) that part of the equation is still undecided pending test results that have not come back yet.  If I have to do chemo, I'm assuming (only based on my chemo from my 2002 cancer) that it may be a 3 month process???? But I really don't know.  My appointment for the radiation consultation is set for December 6th.   When I do have the radiation, it will be a 6 week (every weekday) process....and I remember the previous radiation sessions making me very tired
      but I also remember I got tatoos!!!!!  Well actually just 3 or 4 tiny pin point dots to mark the location of the area to be radiated....

  Today I want to talk about how I am not going to let this cancer or my being tired be excuses.....just like I'm not going to let the weather be an excuse. 

 It is cold and rainy here today ....not at all like it's suppose to be in Texas this time of year....when I woke up I thought maybe I had been dreaming and that I was really back in Maine!  ....and I commented that "gee I wish it wasn't raining, I was hoping to go to the gym today"....well kick that thought right in the hiney.....a little bit of cold and rain is not going to stop me in my pursuit to get fit and healthy.....now more than ever....my body is screaming for me to be kind to it...to exercise and eat healthy.

For the most part if the majority of us think about it, we always can find an excuse not to exercise or eat healthy...I am reminded of these posters I found on Pinterest :

 





And I am make myself remember every day the story told to me by a dear sweet friend ......Her  granddaughter was born premature and had a very tiny aneurism when she was just days old....as a result the little girl (now about 2 years old, I think) has some challenges in her young life....trouble sitting and walking.....but does that stop that precious little girl....NO WAY!....not for one minute.  The story my friend told me was about how her granddaughter was across the living room from the coffee table and she saw something on the coffee table she wanted.  Instead of waiting for someone to help her get up, she started rolling across the room....giggling the whole time she was rolling until she got over to that table................I have to tell you when she told me that story and when I retell it, it is all I can do to keep my composure.  She is such an inspiration.... it makes me say  NOW WHAT WAS MY EXCUSE FOR NOT EXERCISING? Cold weather, I'm tired....boo hoo poor me I have breast cancer and just had surgery, I've gained so much weight back (and what will people who know me think when they see me)...what if I can't do some of the exercises or machines I used to do, what if I can't lift the weight I used to lift.....REALLY....are those my excuses!!! 

 NOT A SNOWBALL'S CHANCE IN HELL am I going to let this bend in my road be an excuse in my journey to get fit and healthy and be fit at 99.  Every time I make an excuse, I am going to envision that sweet baby girl rolling across the room and giggling to get to where she wants to go....not waiting for someone to tell her she can do it....not letting her physical challenges hold her back.....just doing it.


  This is what I tell myself:
   

and ..........everyday I'm telling this breast cancer...........

 

  I bundled myself up this afternoon and went to my core and cycle class and I am so glad I did. I may have used lighter weights, I may not have been able to do the full extension of the arm movements, I may not have been able to stand when the instructor told us to get off the seat of our stationary bikes.....but I was glad I was there and I'll be there every time the class is in session....and I won't be there only if the doctors say NO. Right now they are saying YES and telling me that exercise is one of the best ways to fight against recurrence.....so YES IT IS FOR ME!

So now all of you out there who want to get in shape, who want to lose weight, who want to get fit and healthy......and have a glimmer of a dream to be fit and healthy at 99....all of you that I care so much about and that I appreciate so much for following my journey........any of you that might be fighting breast cancer or any kind of cancer right now and are hearing YES from your doctor......I have two words of advice.... 

                 NO EXCUSES!