Restoring Balance & Energy

I naïvely anticipated a quick fix to the anaemia. I was wiped out the day following the four hour walk and I was up and down for the rest of the week. Fortunately things picked up for my trip South with Maisie and although the travelling was tiring I was not feeling that awful fatigue which drags you down, that makes every step and every breath a chore. True to say that it did cross my mind that I could be “ill”, that the cancer could be back,  during these bouts of fatigue that hit me. I’ve never been anaemic and didn’t realise how debilitating it can be.

I’ve been packing my diet with iron rich foods, including an uplifting and refreshing watercress, pear and fresh ginger soup! Two weeks on and the iron tablets seem to be taking effect now and I am waking much brighter and with a lot more energy than of recent weeks.

I am still trying to balance my activities with rest and exercise and to not cram too much into my diary. Maybe a skill we could all do to learn?

The 18^th birthday weekend was busy but with time for relaxation as well. Leisurely cocktails at The Savoy, breakfast in bed and coffee breaks from the Oxford Street shopping! A very special time for me and my little girl! Doubly so as it was just the two of us and it was Mother’s Day!  I remember back to my initial diagnosis and the immediate fear that, having celebrated Alice’s 18^th the previous year, that I may not see Maisie’s 18^th birthday. It was a very real fear but of course as time went on, I realised that even with a worst case scenario there are great things that can be done for breast cancer patients. I was lucky. By the end of August I knew my cancer had not spread and I would not need chemo. It’s six months since my surgery and the scars, both mental and physical are healing well.

Anaemia & Menorrhagia

I will soon start to rattle as my prescriptions increase! I was back at the doctors this week, one to get the breast cancer history on to the girls medical records for their future screening and secondly to mention my heavy periods and the fatigue. I had blood tests done which came back that I am anaemic, hence the bouts of tiredness. I have two prescriptions to pick up, one for the anaemia and one to reduce the heavy bleeding (menorrhagia). I have never been anaemic before, I take a multi vitamin with iron every morning, eat fortified wholegrain cereal for breakfast and am a regular eater of watercress, rocket, apricots and broccoli! A possible side effect of the heavy bleeding and / or Tamoxifen. I hope next week I will bouncing around with renewed energy in time for my weekend to London!

I went to the cinema at the weekend to see A Song for Marion. It was a little too close to home and hit a few raw nerves for the three of us who went, one being a fellow cancer survivor herself. The three of us wept almost all the way through! It was a brilliantly made British movie but far too real and emotional. I’m interested to see what someone who has not had first-hand experience of cancer thinks to it?

I’ve been swimming twice in the last week which I really enjoyed however I suffered on both occasions the following day, with severe shooting pains at the site of surgery. Next swim I will stick to breast stroke and drop the front crawl to see if that helps. I also managed a 20 mins run yesterday in glorious sunshine along the beach. I was fine with the running but shattered in the evening! Today I had a four hour coastal walk with a friend, which was great fun and uplifting. Fantastic therapy – good conversation, fresh air and exercise. Another early night and probably another 10 hours sleep like last night!