Coming Out on the Other Side...

An update

I have been remiss about keeping you folks updated as to my health progress. 2023 has been a year of healing. Let me catch you up.

If you remember, I fell down a flight of stairs in November 2022 and cracked my sternum. It took me until February 2023 to feel fully functional again.

Then in April, I learned that I had breast cancer (for the second time; the first time was 28 years ago). In July, I had a double mastectomy. I had some post-surgical issues, but feel like those are being resolved. I learned that there was no lymph node involvement. Therefore, I do not have to go through chemo, but I will be taking a hormone blocker for the next five years.

These two events have exacerbated the polymyositis with which I was diagnosed in 2018. My muscles have continued to deteriorate, which has impacted my mobility mightily. However, I am back in physical therapy and feel like we are slowing down that progression.

I have had an incredible support system during this time. My neighbors have been amazing, helping me with everything from walking Kirby to putting my trash bins on the curb (and taking them back) to checking in on me every so often. I used MealTrain to set up meals during my recovery after surgery. So many people from all the “tribes” I have nurtured over the years signed up or sent gift cards. I cannot express enough gratitude to those who helped out with this aspect of the journey. Community really does matter.

My daughter, Kieki, has been with me every step of the way. My oldest friend on the planet, Mary Ann Hotchkiss Reynolds, came up from Jacksonville and took care of me for a week when Kieki had to leave on a business trip. Another dear friend, De Murr, flew in from Washington state to help out after Mary Ann went home. They all got the brunt of my grumpiness at being incapacitated and needing help. But they hung in there with me.

The really good news is that I’m back to work. I’m writing again. And, best of all, my psychological outlook has taken a 180 degree turn toward the positive. Depression is an ugly debilitating thing!

Thank you all for checking in on me.

All my love,

Judy