Latest Posts

Entries tagged "cancer"

Best Boy -- Part 638

Earlier this week, I heard my cell phone vibrate. I assumed that it was a text with birthday wishes, but my smile turned to a... more

From Can't to Can

I’m 5’9 ½. Over the years, my weight has varied from 123 pounds after college to 167 in 2004 after three years of steroids. By... more

Be a Cancer Buddy, not a Cancer Bully!

Last week, I spoke on Let's Talk Live about Cancer Buddies versus Cancer Bullies. How can you be more sensitive to those battling an illness? ... more

The New Tatas Timeline

In the super, amazing, epic news that’s actually epic column, I’m cancer-free! To say I feel thankful and grateful would be an understatement. After the... more

Health Advocacy Found Me

Shortly after I was diagnosed, one of my doctors said: I hope you don’t take this the wrong way, but out of all of my patients,... more

2011 Wrap-Up

To paraphrase Charles Dickens, 2011 was the best of times and the worst of times for me. Lessons I wish that I didn’t have to learn... more

2011 in Haiku

Twenty Eleven Started year in chemo haze In my bed? Best Boy. He said he loves me But does that mean he’s in love? Neither of us know. Winter beach weekend With... more

Third Blogiversary Thanks!

Today is the third anniversary of my blog. In December of 2008, I was getting over Lawyer Boy, working on my thesis, and battling the side... more

Cancer Buddy vs. Cancer Bully

Are you a Cancer Buddy or a Cancer Bully? What's a Cancer Bully? I regard a Cancer Bully as anyone who belittles or is being judgmental about... more

A Blip

During my interview 14 months ago with Let’s Talk Live, I mentioned that cancer would be “a blip” in my life. By “blip,” I meant... more

Seven months later

He was there for her during both surgeries and six rounds of chemotherapy. No matter what she asked of him, he was there. When she... more

Surviving to thriving

One year ago last week, I got back together with Best Boy. In a post about that decision, I wrote: In the midst of treatment, all... more

City Girl 2.0

I've been thinking of ways to take this blog in a new direction. What's next for me? Let's go to the videotape! Video Introduction: Capital Breast Care Center... more

Helping a loved one during a health crisis

I've written before about how to show support for a loved one experiencing a health crisis. It's important to acknowledge that this is a difficult... more

Readers' Choice #9 - Mr. Officer

Thank you to all who attended my End of the Treatment Celebration and Fundraiser on Thursday night! For those of you who still wish to... more

The light

There’s a light bulb, brightly illuminating the room that represents my life. When my mom died in 1997, that light dimmed. Permanently. Everyone experiences grief and loss... more

She loves him

He told her that he loved her, and she stared at him. Words escaped her, as her brow furrowed slightly and her eyes squinted in... more

Readers' Choice #8

I have Post Concussion Syndrome. No, I’m not an athlete, and I thankfully was never in a car accident. [Excuse me for a second as... more

Great is all relative

A month from now, I’ll be done with cancer treatment. I’m sure I’ll celebrate with close friends after I recover from the mediport removal, and... more

How to show support during a health crisis

A friend was told that she has Parkinson’s Disease. A co-worker just learned that he has cancer. Your old college roommate had a stillbirth. How can... more

Readers' Choice #1

The Concept: Dating Blog Meets Choose Your Own Adventure Book The Players: City Girl, Interested Readers and Eligible Men The Setting: Washington, DC The Rules: I provide three... more

Shaking things up

A year ago this week, I met Mr. Agency. A few days later, we grabbed drinks together. A year ago this week, Best Boy spent... more

Bang and roll

At some points during my six weeks of radiation treatments, I wasn’t in a lot of pain and actually enjoyed being at the Cancer Center... more

The Breastern Front

I’m so close to being finished with treatment that I can taste it. My last IV is scheduled for September 14, 2011. I can get my... more

The breaking point?

As my radiation treatments came to a close in March, I felt quite unsettled about my relationship with Best Boy. What were we? Had sex... more

Radiation boobs

Radiation therapy may be used during cancer treatment to shrink the tumor and kill the bad cells. In some cases (like mine), radiation has been... more

Just plain awkward

Receiving radiation treatments five days a week was both painful and exhausting. I took a lot of afternoon naps and had trouble keeping my eyes... more

I smell sex and...cancer?

Every 30 seconds, someone in the United States is diagnosed with cancer. Last year, at age 37, I was one of those people. I needed a lumpectomy... more

My go-to guy

In 2011, Best Boy and I went from seeing each other twice a week to once a week. (I wasn't exactly sure why that was,... more

The Evil Cancer Med - Part II

In late May, I started an oral medication, tamoxifen, to block the estrogen in my body in the hopes of preventing my cancer from returning.... more

A Cancer-versary Thank You

A year ago today, I was sitting in my stylist’s chair at my hair salon, when my cell phone vibrated in my lap. I saw... more

The lumps that aren't so lovely

I know boobs. I love tits. And, I'm all over breast health. In fact, since I was diagnosed with breast cancer last June, it seems... more

Opening the lines of communication

Best Boy and I were stuck somewhere between friends with benefits and a relationship. Limbo City was traditionally not a place that I enjoyed, but... more

Simmering

I felt like a little girl in a grassy field, holding a daisy in her hand. I love him. I love him not. I really like him. I don’t... more

Open to interpretation - Part 2

Best Boy had just told me that he loved me. Did the fact that he said it for the first time ever while we were... more

A brunch to remember

After I was finished with chemotherapy, I just decided to simmer. Treatment and all the accompanying side effects had drained me physically and emotionally so... more

Taking inventory

I spent New Year’s Eve at the beach with a few of my closest friends. It wasn't hard for me to keep a smile on... more

Getting it

My energy and strength finally started coming back toward the end of the third round of chemotherapy. My iron counts were up after five transfusions,... more

Baffling yet again

I saw Mr. Agency a fair amount during November and early December. By that point, I had managed expectations about our relationship. I saw him... more

Her reflections

Prior to heading into her last radiation treatment, she went online and logged onto Facebook. She saw a notification that it was Rod’s birthday. Tears... more

Bed rest

I had just started to feel better from the second round of chemotherapy when I needed to return to the doctor's office for my third... more

But, I'm done!

I finished radiation yesterday. I thought that I would be elated, but I’m honestly in too much pain and too exhausted to rejoice right now.... more

Cancer Actually

After Mr. Agency left my place, I pulled out my laptop to log into Facebook. Within 10 seconds of scanning my news feed, I burst... more

A content morning

When Mr. Agency and I woke, there was one thing on my mind. Correction. There were two things on my mind, but I knew that... more

A night of many emotions (Part II)

I tried to contain my shock, as Mr. Agency walked toward me and gave me a kiss on the cheek. (For all intents and purposes,... more

A night of many emotions

On the night of the party to toast Sisarina’s amazing redesign of my website and raise money for the Breast Cancer Research Foundation, I wasn’t... more

What a girl wants

I accepted the fact that Mr. Agency wasn't interested in being in a committed relationship with me and focused on what would make me happy. ... more

The next chapter?

After my second round of chemotherapy, my concerns about whether or not Mr. Agency was going to be there for me were placed on the... more

Proceeding With Caution

I wasn’t sure if Mr. Agency would be in a position to be there for me during my next round of treatment, but I was... more

Needs

I had expected that Mr. Agency was coming over to my place in the middle of the day to end our relationship. He had gone... more

Time to Talk

Had Mr. Agency lied to me about when he returned from Chicago? He had texted me that he got back to DC on Saturday morning... more

Back In The Saddle

I felt so sick after my first round of chemotherapy that I didn’t have sex for almost a week. When I finally did have sex,... more

Too Much Information

Mr. Agency stepped up and stood by me as I was recouping from having my medical port installed. The night before my first chemotherapy treatment,... more

Feeling Lucky

I had let Best Boy know that we needed to take the “benefits” out of our “friends with benefits” arrangement. It surprised me that he... more

Chemo Room Musings

I spent 26 days in the Chemotherapy Room over a period of three and a half months. In that time, I observed a lot and... more

Graduation Day

She dresses in layers on a bitterly cold morning in January, as she heads for the doctor’s office for her last round of chemotherapy. Her... more

The Bald Truth

She looks in the mirror and doesn’t recognize her own reflection. She’s bald. The bags under her eyes display how little sleep she has gotten... more

The Aussie Man Cometh

The gallant Aussie Man arrived in DC for our dinner date. He called me when his flight landed. Aussie Man: Is there a favorite restaurant of... more

Mr. Windy City - Part 6

Bad Things Happen In Threes by Autumn My time in NYC with Mr. Windy City had ended on a perfect, bubbly note. But, as I prepared to... more

Round Two

Her hair is gone now. In only four days, she has lost half of her long, thick red mane. She donates the rest to Locks... more

Getting Warmer

Mr. Exec and I didn’t contact each other after our heated discussion about my blogging about our relationship. My friend, AP, speculated that he would... more