Operation Polyp: Commence!

You know, it's been awhile since I've had surgery. It's also been some time since I've gone under anesthesia. I think my body was getting a little bored and thought to itself, "I'm getting a little bored, why don't I create a polyp in J's vocal cords? That sounds like a blast!"

And thus, it was born. My vocal cord polyp. For a long time I thought I just had laryngitis. Dr. Google told me that laryngitis lasts about two weeks and clears up on its own. Well, two weeks came and went and I STILL had a hoarse voice, yet I still decided to ignore it. Listen body, I'm busy! Leave me alone OK?

After a month went by I could ignore it no longer and I made myself an appointment at the ENT. I got to experience the joy of a camera up my nose. That was a treat! It actually wasn't that bad. My doctor numbed my nose, numbed my throat, let it soak it, and then had at it. He told me I have a polyp on my left vocal cord and it is irritating the right side as well. He was quick to tell me that it's most likely benign (but haven't I heard that before somewhere else?). Also, the only way to get rid of it is surgery, under general anesthesia. Boo.

At first, I was scared and a bit nervous. More so for the anesthesia than the actual surgery itself. But I will only be out for 25 minutes, and the surgery takes 15 minutes at best. This will be like a walk in the park compared to everything else I went through. It's also a day procedure so I can go home afterwards which is nice. The catch? I need to be on vocal rest - for a WEEK! Well, maybe not THAT long, but at least 3 days. I can't talk. My vocal cords should not be hitting each other. I can not talk, laugh, cry, cough, sneeze, nothing! I don't know how to do that, but I will certainly try my best... though I do talk to myself even when I'm alone (learned from my video editing days).

If anything, all my social media personalities are going to blow up. I'm also going to text like crazy. AND I found an app that will read what you type, so I will be sure to annoy everyone with that.

Type to you all soon!

- J.

I've got Friends in all the Right Places

It's been 2 years ago today that I was diagnosed with breast cancer. And yes, I still do remember it all crystal clear. As I mentioned in my one year cancerversary post and throughout many of my other blog posts, my family and friends were (and still remain) such an integral part of my recovery process. They give me a reason to keep going, keep fighting, keep laughing, and keep surviving. You all have been my everything.

I also have another important group of people that continue to help me through my recovery process and those are my social media friends. The many wonderful, amazing people I've met from blogging, Twitter (#bcsm), Facebook, and Instagram have been such a supportive, understanding, and strong group of people.

I remember someone asking me, "Why do you blog?" My immediate answer was that it felt good to vent, to write about what I was going through, it's so theraputic. I also wanted to keep my family and friends up to date on all my goings ons. (I loved that I didn't have to repeat the same story over and over again). An unexpected gift I received from this blog? An amazing online support group. A group of people who knew EXACTLY what I was going through, never laughed at any question I had, never scoffed at my concerns, and never ever dismissed my fears as being silly.

My biggest online support group comes in the form of a private Facebook group created by another young breast cancer survivor. It is a safe place where people of all ages and all cancer types ask for advice, support, or just a place to vent. I was lucky enough to be part of it from the very beginning. I've watched it grow and I help participate in the amazing support that continues to flourish from within it. It was so important for me to find this group and be a part of it because there are so many other young breast cancer survivors in it. I would have never met these young, strong, dedicated ladies any other way.

This passionate group also created a video called, "More Than Pink." This video contains personal images from cancer survivors, showing the REAL side of cancer. The video is to remind everyone that cancer is more than just one color and more than just one month. I am proud to be part of a group where such empowerment emanates.



Thank you to everyone, in all aspects of my life, who has stuck with me for the past two years. It's been a rough and wild journey and I look forward to what the future holds!

- J.