Well I’m finally back. I have written SO many mental posts with updates and what’s God been teaching me!! Then when I finally get a minute to actually take them out of my mind and onto the screen, my mind bottlenecks and gets overwhelmed with all I want & need to write...it exhausts me & I end up concluding that I’m too tired and don’t have time to transcribe all that’s in my mind onto digital paper. But as I sit here alone at the Denver airport on a long layover en route to Atlanta to celebrate my sisters 50th, I’m starting! We both have September birthdays, hers being on the 10th. We decided to save the celebrating til my chemo was complete, hence the delayed timing of the trip. My younger sister who lives here in Colorado is on her way to meet me and we’ll fly this leg if the trip together! And my parents are traveling from Michigan to meet us as well! How crazy (& sad!) that we are all spread out across the country, coast to coast, north to south- we are so close relationally but so far locationally!.
A quick update re: surgery. I had great appointments with my new surgeon, Dr. Lisa Guerra with Breastlink, and Dr. Mark Gaon, plastic surgeon, both in Newport Beach. I felt very confident in their experience and ability after meeting with them both. That was confidently confirmed by both their surgery coordinators who couldn’t say enough about them and how well they work together! PTL!! He clearly & timely answered my prayers!
I have a double mastectomy scheduled for November 2 at noon at Hoag Hospital. But first I have to go in at 11 to get a big needle stabbed into my armpit to inject blue die for lymph node mapping. (If you don’t like my description & it makes you feel a little queasy, join the club! Getting used to needles in my arms & chest but not my armpit!) It’ll be about a 4 hour surgery where the surgeon will scoop everything out, testing “frozen sections” of tissue intra-op to get good safe negative margins. Then the plastic surgeon inserts “spacers” under the chest muscles to prep me for reconstruction a few months down the road (more about how that works later. Fun fun! More needles!) I’ll stay one night in the hospital and should be able to get discharged by noon that next day and vote on the way home as it’ll be November 3! Lots of excitement in store for sure!!
A familiar verse God has been using to teach me some great lessons is Psalm 119:105 “Your Word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.” More on that soon. For now good night, sleep tight! It’s only 11:30 here in Hilton Head, SC tonight but we’ve been going to bed at 1am or later the last few nights capitalizing on our time together!
Sara, you are such and inspiration to those of us watching your journey. I am praying daily for your upcoming surgery......although I had November 4th on my list! Just fixed that and will continue to lift you and your whole family up to His throne in prayer. Enjoy this special time with your mom, dad, and sisters. God is so amazing to orchestrate this gathering with your lifelong support team!! Love you, praying for victory over all needles, too!
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