One Year On.....

Well hello friends, it has been a long time since I have written in my blog and as I have made some major progress over the past week and few months, I thought it was time to get back online and update you all.

I have missed writing in my blog and I am considering starting a new one, but I will keep you updated on that!

So one year on and as I sit here and reflect on the past year, I feel so very grateful for all of the wonderful memories, decisions and experiences I've had! As you know my gorgeous English partner of 8 years proposed to me just after my diagnosis. Well we had the most incredible wedding last October, followed by an amazing honeymoon to South Africa & Mozambique; truly memorable and magical! It was so special for us to have our family and friends join us from all over the world to celebrate this big and special day. So I am now Mrs Birch or Mrs B as I'm known to most of my girlfriends!

While my energy levels are nowhere near what they were a couple of years ago, I have been feeling well, healthy and happy. I did return to work after treatment, however, I have since left my executive job to focus on living life in the slow lane! Since I have not had the stress of work, I have felt an immense sense of relief, wellness and happiness and I'm now pursuing my own dreams of running a business which I feel passionate about and enjoy doing each and every day.

Last week, I had my reconstruction surgery here in Brisbane. I was very nervous about having it as I had heard so many stories about the pain levels and results so this was a big decision that took me a long time to make. I did however, come to the conclusion that I would rather have a scarred breast alongside my other breast instead of living with one for the rest of my life.

So it's only just over a week since I had the surgery and I just cannot believe the results! My surgeon was the most lovely man (Tony Kane) and I am amazed at how great he has my breast looking! It looks almost better than my other one...... and to add to it, the pain has not been very intense at all. So I write this post with a huge sense of relief and happiness and I can now fill a bra for the first time in two years!

I have another small surgery to go to complete the new boobie, however, I can say that if you are in the same situation and contemplating this very big decision, for me, it has been so worth it and nowhere near as horrific as what people say!

So here are a few wedding photos to share with you..... and for now I sign off with my lovely new boob, new found happiness and inspiration for living in the moment........

If you would like to see more wedding pics, please view them on my flickr site at Well hello friends, it has been a long time since I have written in my blog and as I have made some major progress over the past week and few months, I thought it was time to get back online and update you all.

I have missed writing in my blog and I am considering starting a new one, but I will keep you updated on that!

So one year on and as I sit here and reflect on the past year, I feel so very grateful for all of the wonderful memories, decisions and experiences I've had! As you know my gorgeous English partner of 8 years proposed to me just after my diagnosis. Well we had the most incredible wedding last October, followed by an amazing honeymoon to South Africa & Mozambique; truly memorable and magical! It was so special for us to have our family and friends join us from all over the world to celebrate this big and special day. So I am now Mrs Birch or Mrs B as I'm known to most of my girlfriends!

While my energy levels are nowhere near what they were a couple of years ago, I have been feeling well, healthy and happy. I did return to work after treatment, however, I have since left my executive job to focus on living life in the slow lane! Since I have not had the stress of work, I have felt an immense sense of relief, wellness and happiness and I'm now pursuing my own dreams of running a business which I feel passionate about and enjoy doing each and every day.

Last week, I had my reconstruction surgery here in Brisbane. I was very nervous about having it as I had heard so many stories about the pain levels and results so this was a big decision that took me a long time to make. I did however, come to the conclusion that I would rather have a scarred breast alongside my other breast instead of living with one for the rest of my life. 

So it's only just over a week since I had the surgery and I just cannot believe the results! My surgeon was the most lovely man (Tony Kane) and I am amazed at how great he has my breast looking! It looks almost better than my other one...... and to add to it, the pain has not been very intense at all. So I write this post with a huge sense of relief and happiness and I can now fill a bra for the first time in two years!

I have another small surgery to go to complete the new boobie, however, I can say that if you are in the same situation and contemplating this very big decision, for me, it has been so worth it and nowhere near as horrific as what people say!

xx

The First Haircut!

Yesterday saw another major milestone being reached; yes my very first haircut in nearly a year! I haven't stayed away from the salon completely in that my lovely kind hairdresser has been keeping in touch with me all the way through treatment and I have to admit to having gone in to see her a few times, particularly over the past couple of months to see if I am ready for my first haircut........ until last week, I was always told "darlin, you don't have anything to cut just yet'...... so you can imagine the excitement I felt when she said, 'yes of course I can cut this'!!!

Given that I have been going to work and everywhere with my fluff top (as my husband to be affectionately refers to it as) I was thinking that I won't be able to achieve a big change with it being so short..... but with a bit of imagination, a wonderful hairdresser and stylist and some new colour, I look like a completely different person!!! I was very chuffed when I walked out of the salon as I felt like I had a proper style, however, I did come home and attempt to do it myself last night and for some reason, it went back to looking like a fluff top!!! My hair; while short has grown back in masses of volumes so my hairdresser couldn't believe how amazing and thick it was which is great.... we don't know if it will be super curly yet as it's early days but we think it will be curly!

So I have to master the art of styling short hair, which I'm confident I will do pretty quickly. It was a very happy and exciting feeling to be back in the seat and thanks to lovely Emma, I now feel like I'm back to normality and blending in with everyone else on the street!

Thank you Emma for my lovely new hair style! You are a treasure.....

xxx

PS It is still pretty short to warrants a head rub every day still from my husband in waiting..... yes, this is still continuing on girls!!!! xx

Hair Update

Reflecting on the past several months, I remember that losing my hair seemed like the biggest ordeal to me at the time (probably even more so than losing a breast!). As you know, I have been wearing my wig and parading a series of hats and scarves which I have sourced from across the world (which I have to admit was oodles of fun to find)....... The news is that it is taking its time but I went out for the first time without my wig on the wk end! (10 weeks post treatment)

The feeling of the breeze blowing through my hair for the first time was amazing! I still look back at photos of me with my blonde curls and do feel a sense of loss, however, I am now quite excited about having a new pixie haircut..... I'm so keen to visit my hairdresser for the first time, who I haven't seen for a year now, and I think I'm only a few weeks away from that all important visit.

My eyelashes grew back about 5 weeks post radiation and it has been lovely having them back! I've been indulging in monthly facials to help my skin to feel rejuvenated and that too has felt amazing.......

I read for many people that their hair grows back really quickly..... I have to say that I haven't experienced that. I have been waiting for the 'take off' but it seems to be growing at a very slow and steady pace to me; that said I have very fine and curly hair, so while it is thick, I am not noticing it growing quickly..... I have joked many times about the fact that the grass is growing far quicker than my hair!!! I have been tempted to throw some fertiliser on my head and stand out in the rain as it certainly helps the grass!

Instead I have been having daily head rubs to stimulate the follicles which my lovely husband in waiting has been spoiling me with (hint hint girls....... this really works) and I'm sure it has been growing faster as a result!

So while it's great to be back to having a great head of hair (almost), I have found it slower than I would have liked.... that said, I will admit to being a fairly impatient person.

So quality of life has returned for me and not a day goes by, where I don't feel extremely lucky to be alive, to be feeling well and to appreciate every little moment that I have each day. I feel lucky that I no longer take simple things for granted and I am so grateful for all of the beautiful friends and family I have in my life.......while it took this massive wake up call for me to realise how lucky I am, I feel so happy and excited about life ahead.....and I know that I will now spend my life doing things that make me happy and not waste time doing the things that don't.

On this momentous day; the royal wedding day, I wish everyone a day full of love, happiness, laughter and fulfilment!
xxxx

Post Cancer Treatment - the fun bits!

It is almost ten weeks since I finished my chemo and radiation treatment, and it has been a time which has been full of so much joy, happiness and pride!

Having felt so terribly sick for so long, I have been cherishing every normal moment and it has felt so amazing to enjoy all of the simple things I used to take for granted each and every day!

Part of me never wants to forget how incredibly low and ill I felt throughout chemo as it now gives me strength each and every day to wake up and fully appreciate how lucky I am to be feeling well. It's a feeling that I cannot describe but one I want to hold onto forever!

I have had several appointments with my surgeon and oncologists over the past several weeks and they are all extremely happy with my progress. My chemo oncologist said to me that very few people have worse treatment (high doses) than me, so I have come out of it remarkably well. I put this down to all of the help I have had from my kinesiologist, naturopath and my newly appointed acupuncturist who have all worked wonders throughout various stages of my treatment. The experience has been so much easier thanks to the kindness and care from all of my specialists and this makes a massive difference to the recovery process!

I have gone back to work for 3 days a week and while I'm enjoying being back in a busy environment, I have been working on managing my own anxiety/stress levels on a day to day basis. I have realised throughout this experience how much time and energy I used to put into my work; I gave it absolutely everything (including many many late nights and wk ends) and now, I am striving to achieve a better balance between work and play! I am now very happy to be very committed to my job, however, I love that when I leave the office, I leave all of the worries and anxiety behind and focus on all of my personal projects and new found interests.

I had a meditation session a few weeks ago which I have found very helpful, along with weekly acupuncture which has had a resounding impact on my body and my ability to relax the mind. I highly recommend this to anyone who is looking for a better balanced body within! The journey of self discovery is still continuing and I am so grateful in many ways for what I've been through as I feel like a much happier and fulfilled person at the other end......

I'm sure others who have been through a life changing moment like this will relate to this story but I now realise that you have nothing to lose in life and you should try everything you can!!! Having been planning our wedding and having so much fun, I have discovered the art of letterpress printing...... now I know you will think this is a bit crazy but I decided that I was going to track down an antique letterpress printer (which is one of the oldest forms of printing) and learn how to use it..... well...... the exciting news is that I found a 100 year old,1800 lb machine which I had craned into our house a couple of weeks ago..... and here it is! I think it is gorgeous and I know that once I get it working and learn how to use it, I will get so much joy from it!!!

Let me know what you think.... and I'm now on the hunt for anything letterpress!!!

Radiation Reality

It's been a while since I've posted an update to you all so thought as I have today off from work, it is the perfect opportunity!

Having got my tattoos for radiation, I was going into it thinking it would be sooo much easier than chemo..... and how accurate I was! I had 25 treatments in total over a five week period so it was a daily visit to the radiation clinic and luckily I got the early morning appointment most days which was great! While there were lots of other patients not happy about going daily, to be honest, I was feeling pretty good throughout, so I was just happy to be well enough to get up each day and be out of the house!

The first four weeks was really quite good although my skin did show signs of burning from about the beginning of week four. I have to say that it did deteriorate severely from there and on my final few days, it was extremely painful.... that said, I was speaking to another lady having treatment and her skin was absolutely fine..... so once again everyone is different!

My skin needed to be dressed on the final few days and by the end, I couldn't bear to touch it.... it looked like raw flesh.......so I did feel pretty sick in the last week, only because I think my body is still pretty low post chemo, so as it was trying to repair the skin damage, I think it had an impact on my overall immune system; that said, it was a doddle compared to chemo!!! I felt sick for about a week afterwards but then started to feel much better quickly!

One week on post radiation, my skin has healed remarkably well and much quicker than I envisaged. I did use a cream called Flamazine post treatment which worked wonders with the dressings and two salt bathings a day (highly recommend).

The final few days of radiation were very emotional for me. The past 8 months has been such a challenging time, but as there have been so many day to day challenges, I have been living for the day.......at the end of my treatment, it really hit me just what I have been through for the past several months, and the reality that it was all coming to an end, was such an amazing feeling!

It still feels quite surreal to sit here and think about everything that has happened as today just a week after treatment, I'm feeling pretty good. I even managed a 5.5km jog at the gym this morning so I am so happy about that!

I'm back at work for three days this week and while work is really tiring for me, I am enjoying getting back to normality and getting the 'Alannah' wardrobe out again!!!

Each and every day right now I feel sooooo lucky to wake up and feel good and I hope I can live in this moment and enjoy each and every minute of life for a long long time......

xx

Iridology- Healthy Digestive Principles

Here are six basic principles that everyone can follow to ensure you have a healthy digestive system according to my iridologist:

1. Allow 4-5 hours between meals to allow for proper digestion. This equates to eating no more than three meals a day (so don't snack and only drink water or a cup of tea on occasion in between these three (substantial) meals)
2. Avoid overeating with any meal
3. Do not drink fluids with your meal (exception is where half a glass of water is needed to swallow supplements). Generally it is best to wait about 2 hours after meals before consuming water
4. Thoroughly chew your food into paste before swallowing. This is because your digestive system is only effective at breaking down food chemically not mechanically.
5. Limit eating cold or raw foods (e.g. fruit, salad, raw veggies). It is preferable to eat cooked meals although one raw meal a day such as salad is fine (but always have protein with it).
6. Manage your stress levels as stress will tend to decrease your digestive function by influencing your nervous system.

So I am going to try this out for a few weeks (actually when I looked at my eating habits, I have been doing completely the opposite to these e.g. not eating meals but snacking on fruit and raw food until dinner all day which I thought was healthy!!!) and see how I feel so watch this space.......

I am now going to have a cooked breakfast of eggs with veges, a lunch of protein and salad (or left over dinner from the night before) and our usual dinner.......less the glass of vino! And no more snacking for me!

I hope this is useful to everyone however, I have read that the digestive system changes after chemo so I think this is really helpful and relevant to chemo patients.

Here's to healthy digestive functions and great health and wellbeing!

xx

Exploring Iridology

Well it's been a while once again since I've updated you so I am already one week into my radiotherapy treatment and so far so good........ I am going every day (not wk ends) for five weeks and while it has been a bit of a shock to the system to get up and be somewhere by 8.10am every day, it is a far more easy and pleasant experience compared to chemotherapy!

My focus for the past few weeks has been on rebuilding my body and gaining strength and endurance......so what better way to achieve this than to go to the gym every day and do a taxing workout for more than an hour????!!!! hmmmmm well after doing this for two weeks, I realised that my progress has not really improved.....so have decided to taper back the gym visits and convert to walking around our hilly streets for about 30-45mins instead! And I'm pleased to report that I am feeling better from this already! So word of advice, don't overdo it after chemo! I think it would be a natural instinct for most people to want to get out and rebuild themselves as quickly as possible but for me, hard exercise (jogging and hill walking for one hr) has not aided my achy bones or ability to breath!!!

At a visit with my kinesiologist a few months ago, he told me that I had 'freaky eyes' and that I should see an iridologist...... so I waited until after chemo deliberately and went along to my first appointment yesterday! I wasn't quite sure what to expect, but it was an enlightening and worthwhile experience!

Basically, he said that even before chemo, I had anaemic tendancies in that my red blood cell count was only 122 and it should be around 140. This means that I am lacking in quality red blood cells and that my heart was working harder to pump the quantity of blood needed to get adequate oxygen around the body...... (so I'm not sure how I managed to do those half marathons!!!)

The causes of anaemia can range including hormone disorders, blood loss (due to chemo), dietary deficiency (lack of iron, B12 or folic acid) and chronic diseases and symptoms can also vary including fatigue, pale skin, weakness and tiring easily, headaches, loss of appetite etc.....

In addition to this diagnosis, he observed my eyes and told me that my constitution type is Bilary (for a quick overview see http://www.positivehealth.com/articles/vision-and-eye-sight/601 ). While this is a strong constitutional type, it also comes with a few weaknesses including digestion problems, liver and gall bladder deficiency, asthma tendency, food allergies and low blood sugar levels.

The most important finding was that he told me I have leaky gut syndrome......there are many resources available to research this but one of the best explanations I found is here:  http://www.ei-resource.org/illness-information/environmental-illnesses/leaky-gut-syndrome-(lgs)/

So in essence, I am now detoxifying my body and taking a series of additional supplements which he explained will help my digestive system become healthy... he also gave me some rules to stick to which I'm going to put as a separate post as I think they are INVALUABLE to everyone! (as he rightly pointed out, we are not taught HOW to eat but these are basic tips which I'm sure we have all seen before but succinct and practical).

So it was a very useful and positive session and I am hoping that if I am very disciplined (oh yes and I've been told not to drink alcohol at all for a few weeks so now I have NO treats left in the world!!!) that I will be feeling much better, be rid of hot flushes (which he's given me a supplement for and says I should be rid of them in 2-4 weeks) and have more energy which all sound very appealing to me right now!

Check out the rules for healthy digestion in my next post and have a cheers on me when you're enjoying your next cold beverage!!! (oh what a thought in this steamy hot weather! YUM!)

xx