Making Adjustments

I feel like I've been neglecting my blog a little bit lately, hence the very long post that I wrote last week! It's not that I'm losing interest in blogging, far from it but, my priorities are changing now & I'm trying to work out how I can fit everything that I want to do into a normal, 7 day week without being completely burnt out by the end of it. 

Just for fun! I'm really happy to be working again.

I've started working again on a part time self employed basis & even though I only worked a few hours last week, I found myself with not much time to do anything else. Mainly because - as it is with all things new - there are always extra tasks involved.....always. No matter how much I think I've got everything covered, there's always something happening that means it takes me a little bit longer to get to where I actually want to be! As well as that, I need to learn how to adjust to my different routine & I'm hopeful that in a few more weeks, I'll be happily juggling the 'work-life balance'. On the whole though, I've had a brilliant week but by Friday, I admit, I was exhausted. I slept for 12 hours solid after going to bed on Friday evening, blimey, I think I needed it!
I saw my psychologist on Thursday, she's asked me to keep a record of what I'm doing (or trying to do) through the week, what I actually achieve, what times I'm going to bed, how many times per night I wake up, how I feel on waking etc etc. She seems to think I'm still trying to cram too much into my day & I've got to be honest, I probably am.
Now last week was extra busy for me; I had a couple of blogging related activities lined up & so I was working to a bit of a deadline, also, I was interviewed over the phone by a journalist who is writing for a health magazine. So, straight away, there were three extra things that I had to complete which wouldn't normally figure in my 'routine'. Anyway, I completed them & if any or all of the 'pieces' are used by the people that I've been in contact with over the past week, then I'll let you know. It all seems quite exciting at the moment but you can never tell how things are going to work out so I won't say much more about it for the moment!


So yeah, there was definitely a little bit more activity than I'd planned for last week, including this: when I went for my 4 weekly Zoladex injection last Wednesday & then my GP appointment (in the same surgery) straight afterwards, what should have been a half hour (at the most) visit to the Doctor's, turned into an hour & a half!
I've heard a few of the various medics that I've encountered since starting this sorry 'journey' with the 'cancer crap', say that I'm 'very interesting'.....in a medical sense they mean. Partly because I'm 'young' for breast cancer, partly because the spread across the breast of (one of the types of) cancer that I had was quite extensive (again, considering that I'm 'so young') & partly, because of the history of cancer within my family.
I think that also, because I've made it my business to find out as much as I can about the type of breast cancer that I had &, because I'm pretty fluent in cancer lingo now (oh yes, it has a whole language of it's own & plenty of acronyms to learn should you wish to do so), I find that I can easily & concisely, give a Doctor that I've never met before, a fairly succinct version of events & where I'm up to treatment wise. (Obviously not that succinct but I'll come back to that....) 
Anyway, I wasn't prepared to be filmed during my latest consultation on Wednesday - 'for training purposes', I was told. 
It didn't bother me, I'm happy to help but, I do wish that someone would have rang me to warn me so that I could have at least put on a bit of make up & done something with my hair!! The weather was awful, it was blowing a gale & raining heavily with no chance of keeping an umbrella up, I looked a right state when I got there! Maybe no-one else will ever see it? This seems likely actually cos, when the Doctor & I had finished talking, we realised that the video camera had switched itself off! I think it was meant to be a short training video, not an epic film about the life & times of 'moi' to rival the blockbusters made in Hollywood! 


So, the 'media' has featured strongly in my life this week but don't worry, I don't think I'll be having to wear disguise in case I'm recognised when I go out now; I'm not expecting the paparazzi to be outside my door tomorrow morning when I'm off on the school run, that's for sure!


Another extra - but enjoyable - activity that featured this week, was that yesterday myself, my gorgeous little sister, my mum, my sister's future mother-in-law, my little girl & my niece, all went shopping for my sisters wedding dress. I think I did mention a little while ago that she was engaged to be married on Christmas Day & even though the actual wedding won't be until sometime next year, we're all getting into the swing of things already! It's come as a welcome distraction to everything that is going on health wise with me & it's given the whole family something much more positive to focus on.
Well, I'm not going to divulge any details about possible dresses here, (or anything else to do with the wedding actually cos it's probably more than my life's worth to do so!) but, I will say that yesterday, my sister looked absolutely beautiful in every dress that she tried on, she is going to be the most stunning bride! And, I managed not to cry! I just felt an overwhelming sense of pride & I'm so, so happy for her, I felt like I was going to spontaneously combust at any minute!
My daughter is OBSESSED & I mean OBSESSED (look I've underlined it & everything!) with this wedding. She's always been quite creative & she has now appointed herself as Chief Designer of EVERYTHING wedding related. She's very busy & is arguably, the bossiest 'Flower Girl' in the history of the world. She's insisting that Brides wear 'curtains on their heads', I've tried to explain that it's called a 'veil' but to her, this translates as a 'bale', I don't know which is worse to be truthful - a curtain or a bale?
Anyway, she's designed a flag (yes, cos flags get waved at weddings - apparently) &, she's insisted that my mum buys her some pink cardboard so that she can make one of these 'Princess' hats - see the pic below.

Normal wedding attire??

Anyway, my sister has learnt quite quickly, not to argue with the Chief Designer. In all truth, she has her own problems to contend with; her own two year old daughter is insistent that she will be wearing goggles, a snorkel & a pair of flippers for the occasion. The ring bearer, aka my sister's 3 year old son, thinks part of the role entails flinging the cushion - on which the rings will be placed - at some point during the ceremony; he's quite sure that that is what he's supposed to do.
On top of all of this, there will be me, Maid of Honour, trying my best not to cry (I've asked that the person applying my make up finishes it off with a coat of clear varnish so that it stays on my face!) & probably wearing industrial strength anti perspirant, deoderant to try & combat the effects of my hot flushes!
This is gonna be some wedding! 


So, there you have it, this is what I've been up to, this is where I'm at.
Hopefully I won't be away as long next time & I'm hoping to have a special guest post on here within the next week or so. I'll be back before then to introduce you to the lady who is writing it for me, I think it's going to be a really interesting post because whenever I read her blog, it always leaves me with lots to think about, I hope you'll come back to have a look!
In the meantime, I hope you've all had a really good weekend & I hope you have an amazing week ahead.
Love Chez. xx