Hi @kathleenMW what a whirlwind ride you've been on! I'm not surprised you've got so much going on in your head. It's so frustrating waiting for information. I'm also fairly newly diagnosed - in January - but for a stack of reasons I've put off my surgery until the first week in April. I'll be having a double mastectomy with expanders. Will probably need radiation and will definitely need hormone therapy. Won't know about chemo until node info.
If I can offer you any suggestions at all I'd say take deep breath and take one step at a time, use the waiting time to do lots of research but stick to reputable sites like Garvan and Cancer Australia, BCNA, Mayo Clinic etc and read as much as you can from other women's experiences on forums like his one. I've learned so much from this forum and it's helped me to go to my dr consultations armed with lists of questions that I never would have thought of asking. Even though I haven't had my surgery yet, I've read a lot about how positive psychology has a great effect on healing and recovery so being proactive and trying to minimize the anxiety can really help. Don't be afraid of asking for medication that helps you with this - it can really help to relax you and put you in a good headspace.
Even though I've chosen not to tell my friends and extended family about my BC until I'm closer to surgery, I have talked to my boss and he has been incredibly supportive, which has taken the issue of what will happen at work, off my list of concerns. Are you able to do something like that?
Also having the financial concerns causes so much anxiety. I'm not sure if it helps, bit I've been very pleasantly surprised to find how quickly I've reached the Medicare safety net, which has really helped financially as you get so much more back. I guess there has to be a silver lining somewhere!
Wishing you all the best for the road ahead! Xxx
