If you read my last post on the five actions of wellness I mentioned mindfulness – which I define as the deliberate attempt to cultivate a disciplined mind. Essentially attaining a more relaxed state at will. The goal isn’t to never have intense feelings, the goal is to be able to observe my feelings when they arrive, and to…
Category: breast cancer
On the Emotional Aftermath of Mastectomy.
This is another post from the draft vault. Written May 2014 a few weeks after my mastectomy and never posted. Though I have written more on the theme of this piece since 2014, I post this now, at the two year anniversary of my surgery, in service to all those who are wrestling with their own feelings either in the…
The Madonna, Mama’s Day & Mudflap Babes
Mama’s Day My boys surprised me this year for Mother’s Day with an evening picnic out by the river. Joe took me for a walk Saturday, and then on the way back, low and behold, there were our two sons lounging on a blanket with all the accruements for a picnic. Including flowers picked in our…
Tamoxifen 2.0
For months I have been researching and considering Tamoxifen, the one prescription drug I receive. Last week I decided to take a holiday from it. Wanting to figure out if the side effects I am experiencing are related to Tamoxifen, or some other issue, like turning into an old hag – this is my birthday month after…
Body Sovereignty
Tomorrow we travel to Portland to visit with both Compass Oncology for a blood draw and check up, and to Hai Shan clinic for acupuncture and a reset of my swamp tea formula. The two sides of my treatment coin at the moment. After watching the huge TTAC documentary a few weeks ago, and then…
Breast, Singular
I wrote this in early 2015 for submission to The Sun Magazine’s Readers Write section. Topic, Breasts. Though it was not chosen for publication there, I think it is a pretty good piece. (Look here to read the pieces that were chosen.) So in celebration of the second anniversary of my mastectomy today I give it to all of…
The Questions We Ask
This post is another one from the draft drawer. It was written February 2014 about half way through my chemo treatments, but not posted at that time. The information still seems very relevant to me today, as I am still actively questioning and reframing. I read voraciously. When the bakery was getting started I read lots and…
Contributing Factors Part 2- Wellness
My last post focused on a top ten list of why I believe I started cancering. This here post is a roundup of things I count towards health. I’m curious about what others are trying- please comment below as to what feels healing to you. When ever I have gone into the Oncologist’s office, or…
Contributing Factors Part 1 – Sickness
Part One – Why do we get sick? When my friend Jenniveeve, found out I was having a cancer party in my boob, she called me up to offer support. She wanted to know Why I thought I had cancer? The ten million dollar question to be sure. We talked about what would happen if…
Time Tracking Shenanigans
Lately I have been re-noticing that I am still losing track of things/people/tasks. Time is pretty variable these days. As I have always been shall we say “time challenged” this isn’t exactly new. However as certain aspects of my chemo-brain continue to heal, namely spacial perception, it makes the other ways my brain has been changed far more noticeable, and…
The Ocean Within – Part Three
This is part three in a series about the lymph, it deals with some of the ins and outs of lymphedema. Click here to read Part One-Yin Magic about the lymph as divine feminine & Part Two- Watersheds about the correlations between the Earth and our bodies. Part Three – Eating Rats The lymph system is…
The Ocean Within – Part Two.
This is the second in a three part series of posts on the lymph system. See Part One- Yin Magic here. Part Two – Watershed Way back in 1996 when Joe and I moved to Astoria, my daily walk to work took me along the railroad tracks on the waterfront. Through a still active cannery, with huge…
Riding the Pooka 