Cancer Treatment and Family Time

Tomorrow is another visit to the Oncologist.  I will find out how my blood markers fared last month and have blood drawn to test how it is doing now.  If everything is like it has been, I will also get a shot of Xgeva (read about my experience with Xgeva here) and will continue taking Afinitor and Aromaisin.  So, I imagine I will be a little achey and my bones will scream- which I claim is a sign the medicine is changing the weak chemical structure of my bones.

I have to do everything I can this week to get my body comfortable and to feel my best, because on Saturday we want to go to the State Fair.
It is strange, living life with cancer.  We are all trying to accomplish the same things.  We want success in our professional life and balance that against the more important family life.  But, when you are living with cancer you are just juggling those things against different pressures.  While many are stocking away retirement and investment funds cancer patients are chipping away at the medical bills.  We are all still trying to provide our family with great opportunities to laugh and play together- things we hope they will look back on one day and remember how much they were loved. 
What about you?  How are you making family memories in spite of the stress of everyday life?

Oh the Pain!

I am almost 2 weeks out from my last treatment, but today I am experiencing a lot of discomfort.  I could be the added responisbilities at work as we are short 2 people in our department since Christmas.  It could also be the added stress from trouble with the kiddies Dad.  But, in the end- it is the cancer that makes it all so much tougher.
Last week I went in to a lymphadema specialist and felt really uncomfortable in my skin talking about having stage IV cancer.  It may seem shocking for those who are reading this, but I have a tough time accepting my cancer in such a personal way.  I live with cancer, I get treatment for cancer, I fight cancer, I can even blog about it and keep an emotional distance- but to be a stage IV cancer patient is scary.
Stage IV is the perceived train stop before End-Stage.  While I am confident that I will beat this and will not be End-Stage, maintaining my faith in that requires maintaining a distance from the diagnosis. 
Days like today make me feel fragile.  They remind me of the precarious state of my health.

So what?  What am I going to do about it?  Self pitty is neither going to change my situation or the joint and bone pain.

SO- I wore my sneakers today.  They are more comfortable and supportive than work shoes.  I am just staying at my desk as much as I can.  I am going to look into some alternative medicines for swelling and pain- I will take some ibuprophin tonight, but don't want to be using that all of the time because it is hard on the stomach.  I am also going to sit in the hot tub until my hands and feet look like raisins, have the kids read to me, listen to music, and make it a really peaceful night.
Does anyone out there know of others who have this kind of pain from Xgeva? I would like to know how they are treating the pain.