Back to reality today and right back to Kaiser for my first pre-radiation appointment. But it was nice to forget all about the big C for a few days while celebrating our friends getting married in New Orleans. And boy, did we celebrate! I ate (and let’s be honest, drank) my way through The French Quarter and then some, so it’s safe to say my appetite is back and better than ever. Seriously, some of the most amazing food I’ve had in my life!

Coming off of such a fantastic weekend, I feel recharged and high on life. This feeling is unexplainable, not sure if I have written about it before but I’ve meant to. I love the energy I get from being with family and friends, even if only for a couple of hours- their love and positivity gets passed on and it’s powerful! 

But like I said, back to reality. The appointment today was pretty simple. The nurse completed a CT scan so they could see what they are working with- AKA looking at the thickness of my chest wall, getting dimensions and what not. My nurse is 4 year survivor and her sister is 10 year survivor. She was so sweet, comforting and exactly the kind of person I needed to help guide me through this next step. She’s been where I’m going. 

The next appointment, on May 30th, will be a dry run and tattoos based on the CT scan. I think I talked about a mold being used to keep me in the same position for each “zap” but I was wrong. Many facilities do use this method but my Kaiser uses a board situation along with lasers and the tattoos to line me up. I was able to take a picture of the CT machine and board to show what’s up. The machine for radiation will be different but the board set up will be the same. 

When I left my appointment, I threw another seed ball into the open area because sadly, we lost another mama early this morning. I won’t get into it now but something needs to be done about this damn disease. I know you’ll all agree. My previous tosses have not yet sprouted up but there were some beautiful poppy looking flowers all around. They made me feel an overwhelming sense of promise. It began to sprinkle as I drove off and it made me smile, those flowers are getting the love they need. 

Fun fact: I could have slept for days on that weird board because I am so exhausted from celebrating the Fosters but I had a stupid sneaky sneeze that couldn’t come out because I wasn’t allowed to move. I’m sure the nurse was questioning the face I was stuck in.