Reunited And It Feels So Good

This morning, I got up, ate some high protein Kashi cereal (pretty tasty and a good source of protein for this vegan), got dressed, and headed off to see the King of Oncology, the Master of Killing Cancer, and one of my most valued teammates in my beat down of "the cancer": Dr. Lenz. 

I have been waiting to see Dr. Lenz and give him the biggest hug ever from the moment I learned that the chemo he so brilliantly chose for me had annihilated a substantial amount of "the cancer" that had formerly lived in my belly. This man -- quite literally -- saved my life. And on top of it, his kindness, humor, and positivity gives me an incredible boost every time I see him. I look forward to chemo treatments, in part, because I get to see my doctor. How cool is that? I was smiling all the way to USC Norris today.

We had a wonderful reunion, got on the same page about my next three months of chemo (which will begin on March 24th, giving me plenty of time to heal), and got on the same page about my current exercise regimen (this one was much tougher for me to agree to, since I'm still limited to plain vanilla walking until further notice). 

You know, after I got back home from my surgery, I felt like I had lost my focus in a way. Rehabbing is slow and, for someone like me, boring work. "Taking it easy" and "not pushing myself" are not things I can really get excited about doing. After Sugarbaker's surgery, I felt like I had done all the hard work that I needed to do, and didn't know exactly how I'd revive the "game face" that had propelled me so far. In a way, I felt like an athlete that had won the championship game, and was simply coasting on adrenaline and applause, not at all thinking about gearing up for the next season. And I didn't know when I'd feel ready to reload for that next season.

But today, when I saw Dr. Lenz again and discussed our next steps, I felt that focus come back, clearer than ever. I felt like the same warrior that worked so hard to kill that cancer pre-op was back and even better post-op. My game face is back, and I am so excited to rock these next three months of chemo. 

I guess I just needed to be reunited with my teammate.