What did breast cancer teach you about yourself?

Actually I just want to wish you all a great New Year!  Our diagnosis was in June of 2007 so we are getting closer to our three year mark, but what an ordeal it has been for my wife and I.

Looking back at the whole experience of being a caregiver to my wife, I realize that it pushed me beyond my limits forcing me to do some things that I feared or hated doing.  For example all my life I hated needles because I grew up with my grandma that had diabetes and saw grandpa giving her a daily insulin shot.  So, I had to give my wife her Neupogen shot every day for 15 weeks, and that was hard for me to do but I did it.  And then in clearing the drain from her mastectomy.  The nurse asked me after my wife's mastectomy if I wanted to watch her do the drain for my wife or if I wanted to do it with her.  I did it with her, so that I learned it as soon as possible.  She then watched me the next day do my wife's drain and she was so impressed that she said I could do the rest of the rounds with her helping her other patients with their drains.  I declined the offer and we all had a great laugh!  Again, I hate dealing with anything doing with anybody's body fluids, so dealing with my wife's drains pushed me to those limits.

I probably have more gray hairs since my wife's cancer diagnosis, and naturally I have all the fears associated with TNBC, but we move forward trying as best as possible to remain positive.  Enough about me, how has having breast cancer or being a care-giver to a loved one push you to your limits?

If I learned anything it's that the people in my life actually do care about me. If that's all I've learned it is worth the journey.

There's more, I learned that no matter how I felt during this ordeal about God, He was there for me. As some of you know, I struggled with my faith. He understood and when I finally woke up, I found he was there all the time.

Thank you Dave, for the question. It gave me something to ponder.

Love and Prayers,

Carol