Two appointments down, ??? to go...

I met with my surgeon yesterday and got the outline of my "battleplan." During the next week and a half, I will be scanned and tested for tests with no study guide (can I cry foul on that?). Today I got an MRI which is a very weird experience. Picture the MasterCard symbol or a two circle Venn diagram, and that is what is cut on the board I got to lay (lie?) on for about an hour . The "girls" each get their own circle, and my sternum fit on the middle part. As I was put face down, my head rested face down on a contraption similar to what you would use for a massage, but my eyes were also covered. My arms were placed on pillows above my head. Thank goodness I was given a valium before going in the tube because I REALLY don't like to sit still. I'm not clausterphobic, but I DON'T like being still. To add insult to injury, one of the nurses placed an IV into my vein so they could add contrast. Thanks to the valium, the whole thing was more uncomfortable for Chris who got to sit in the waiting room while over 500 pictures were taken of my chest. Hello, Playboy!

Tomorrow, I "get" to meet with my plastic surgeon. He's my least favorite of the doctors because when I mentioned I didn't like my reconstruction, he told me that it would look better if I didn't gain any weight. Humph! Let me cut off his hormone producers and put him in bed for a long time and see how HE comes out of the end of it!

Next Tuesday I meet with my radiation oncologist for her consult, and I believe I will have to meet my regular oncologist somewhere next week, too.

When I get back from Florida, there will be a rapid-fire volley toward "the beast." First I will have surgery where the plastic surgeon will remove the expander and the surgeon is going to scrape the skin from the underside to get every bit of tissue out of that breast. Later that week, I will go get the radiation set up and get tattoos and a prescription to a cream to hopefully keep my skin from burning to a crisp. I will also have to use a special deodorant because the metal in the d.o. will block the cancer killing rays. Where's Superman when I need him to give my radiation with his eyes. My oncologist will keep an eye on my tumor markers and keep "taking pictures" to determine if/when the treatment will change.

At the moment I still kind of feel like I'm in a dream and this isn't really happening to me... I wish it wasn't.