Patience with 'New Normal'

Hi all I can relate to all of your comments. It is good to push yourself, and it's now almost 5 years since my initial diagnosis, & I have to say, it's taken this long for me to begin feeling better. I need to add I wasn't particularly fit beforehand...that was my fault. I've had a double mastectomy (12 minutes mths apart), and don't plan on having a reconstruction. I'm saving the money I would have spent on bras for travel! I only have a bit of secondary mets in my lower back, which has stayed the same size since 2010. So I consider myself lucky. Love to you all, and keep positive! Xx

Kakoda would be a huge challenge! I am told that the trek to Base Camp only requires reasonable not super duper fitness level as long as you pace yourself and do some hill training leading up to it. For me the big challenge will be believing in myself and my capacity to do something out of my comfort zone! One thing I will say is that since I started planning for this I already feel stronger (scared but hey it can't be as scary as losing a breast and having to have chemo!) and more motivated to be active. I think it's definitely taken my mind away from dwelling on what if ....

You guys are awesome. Thank you all for your stories and encouragement. And yes TIME is the one I am struggling with - but am learning. Base Camp - awesome. A friend wants to do Kakoda and I have wanted to go - so who knows.

Just adding one more thing. The woman who will show us around at Base Camp climbed Mt Everest after recovering from BC. So keep an open mind about what is possible! :) Deanne xxx

I think Robyn is right when she says that we need to push ourselves a bit to recover to the best of our ability. How far you can go is dependent on lots of individual factors such as how much treatment you had and what lasting effects you have, your age and general health, and TIME. It does take time as well as effort to recover. I am now at the 14 month mark since finishing active treatment and still find some days are better than others. Fatigue and some physical limitations still impact my life but it keeps improving. I also had professional help with the physical recovery and found that an individualized recovery program helped enormously. I was shown the right way to strengthen and improve my flexibility for my situation. I think it helps to have goals that are realistic for your situation. Knowing that regular exercise can make a BIG difference to your chance of recurrence is really my biggest motivator. Also while in some ways I feel more fragile than before, in other ways I feel stronger because of what I went through. Right now I am contemplating my biggest challenge since BC. It is something I never would have contemplated before BC - a 19 day trek to Base Camp at Mt Everest. I still have a little more research to do but just the fact that I (and my family) think that I might be able to do this is pretty amazing. It also helps me to know that I would be raising money to help find a cure for BC if I do this (it is part of a Qld Cancer Council challenge). So, just keep putting one foot in front of the other, like Rowdy says. You never know where you might find yourself in a few more months! Deanne xxx

I think Robyn is right when she says that we need to push ourselves a bit to recover to the best of our ability. How far you can go is dependent on lots of individual factors such as how much treatment you had and what lasting effects you have, your age and general health, and TIME. It does take time as well as effort to recover. I am now at the 14 month mark since finishing active treatment and still find some days are better than others. Fatigue and some physical limitations still impact my life but it keeps improving. I also had professional help with the physical recovery and found that an individualized recovery program helped enormously. I was shown the right way to strengthen and improve my flexibility for my situation. I think it helps to have goals that are realistic for your situation. Knowing that regular exercise can make a BIG difference to your chance of recurrence is really my biggest motivator. Also while in some ways I feel more fragile than before, in other ways I feel stronger because of what I went through. Right now I am contemplating my biggest challenge since BC. It is something I never would have contemplated before BC - a 19 day trek to Base Camp at Mt Everest. I still have a little more research to do but just the fact that I (and my family) think that I might be able to do this is pretty amazing. It also helps me to know that I would be raising money to help find a cure for BC if I do this (it is part of a Qld Cancer Council challenge). So, just keep putting one foot in front of the other, like Rowdy says. You never know where you might find yourself in a few more months! Deanne xxx

I know just what you mean.I have never done sport to a high level,but I was certainly quite fit when I was diagnosed.5 months after treatment,I felt like you are feeling now,but 12 months past chemo,as I am now,I feel really good,and pretty much back to normal.I am finding too,that the further you get past treatment,the less you worry or think about things like only having one boob,or what people say about you.And of course,as time goes on,people just say less.I suppose that no one knows what to say to someone that has had Cancer,so they just say what they probably think is right!!!Your question about how far to push yourself is a good one.I think that we definitely need to push ourselves ,because if we don't we will never get back to the way we were.The more we exercise,the better we feel.When I finished chemo,I was definitely more tired,my knees ached badly when I tried to ride my bike( but I rode it anyway) and after hard exercise,I was pretty much wrecked.I went to an exercise physio at RPA and I also did group classes with him.He used to push us( the other ladies had also had BC) to the max.I think this is when I realised that I was going to have to really give it my all,if I wanted to get back on top of things.I feel that after chemo,our mind knows what we should do,but our body finds it hard,as there are often posts from ladies that are struggling with their weight or fitness in general. If we can remember also,that staying healthy at a good weight,gives us the best long term prognosis with no recurrence,then this is another strong motivator.I am sure you will get on top,of things soon.Cheers xxRobyn

I know just what you mean.I have never done sport to a high level,but I was certainly quite fit when I was diagnosed.5 months after treatment,I felt like you are feeling now,but 12 months past chemo,as I am now,I feel really good,and pretty much back to normal.I am finding too,that the further you get past treatment,the less you worry or think about things like only having one boob,or what people say about you.And of course,as time goes on,people just say less.I suppose that no one knows what to say to someone that has had Cancer,so they just say what they probably think is right!!!Your question about how far to push yourself is a good one.I think that we definitely need to push ourselves ,because if we don't we will never get back to the way we were.The more we exercise,the better we feel.When I finished chemo,I was definitely more tired,my knees ached badly when I tried to ride my bike( but I rode it anyway) and after hard exercise,I was pretty much wrecked.I went to an exercise physio at RPA and I also did group classes with him.He used to push us( the other ladies had also had BC) to the max.I think this is when I realised that I was going to have to really give it my all,if I wanted to get back on top of things.I feel that after chemo,our mind knows what we should do,but our body finds it hard,as there are often posts from ladies that are struggling with their weight or fitness in general. If we can remember also,that staying healthy at a good weight,gives us the best long term prognosis with no recurrence,then this is another strong motivator.I am sure you will get on top,of things soon.Cheers xxRobyn