josigirl13
josigirl13's Cancer Blog
June 29, 2008
Greetings bloggers! Long time no see! Thankfully, the last six months have been focused on getting healthy and rehabilitated to my former self. I am one year from my diagnosis date and happily cancer-free! YAY! I went back to work at the end of January after a nice long trip home to Minneapolis and a fantastic vacation in Key West. I started back in misdemeanor trials and it took a little while to get back in the swing of things. Almost everything had changed: new supervisor, new leads, new co-workers, new secretaries, new office mate and most difficultly, new expectations. Once I did my first trial though, it seemed like I was back on the horse. I won that one and one other and was soon promoted to the Domestic Violence unit. I started in DV at the beginning of May and couldn’t be happier! I finally have my own office and I am loving the work. This is really why I became a lawyer and all of those social work skills from College are coming in VERY handy. It’s a diverse unit and I get to work with a lot of felony attorneys who have a wealth of knowledge and experience to share. They like to share it over lunch, telling war stories on the couches in our unit. I find myself smiling more these days.
My doctor assures me that my health is good and that I should keep following the program. I am on 6MP and an anti-biotic daily and take methotrexate pills once a week. My blood counts are good and no sign of any “polka dots” on my skin. We have monthly checkups for the next 2 years and after that my chances of relapse decline significantly. I recently started working out with a trainer, John. He was recommended from a friend at work and he is really kicking my ass into shape. It was unbelievable how much muscle I had lost during those 6 months of chemo. It was very frustrating getting back in the gym and not being able to do any of the things I used to be able to do. But John had me whipped quickly into shape and I am starting to amaze myself with the progress. He even has me running on cardio days! I have been feeling great as a result and my energy level has really bounced back. Now that the weather is nice it would be great to go hiking in the mountains, and enjoy being in good physical shape, for the first time in years.
I have been out and about with my friends on the weekends and recently took a trip to Portland Oregon just for fun. I had never been there and had heard great things about it so some girls and I decided to pop up there for the weekend. We had a great time and ate in some fantastic restaurants. This peruvian restaurant in the Pearl District really blew my mind.
I’m sorry I haven’t had time to blog much lately. I have had so many of you asking what’s new with me and asking for a post and missing my postings so I thought on this, the one year anniversary of my diagnosis I would satisfy your requests and curiosity. I am posting some recent pics too, because I am sure you are all dying to know what my hair looks like these days. I am continuing to will it to grow faster but it’s finally getting to a point where I can stand it.
Enjoy! Miss you all! Smile!
Josi
Thanks for your support - 
You are such an inspiration. So glad to hear you are doing well.
Welcome back, it looks like you are off and running
again,
Hug Sherri
Hi Josi, You look absolutely fantastic in the pics you shared with us AND CONGRATULATIONS on your 6th month anniversary! God is so…good to us and I believe every trial and tribulation we endure only makes our life sweeter and our constitution that much stronger (no pun intended :) Healing Thoughts, Lily, a 15 month cancer free Mainer!
Josi,
I have been through ALL three times and just got diagnosed a 4th. I have faint spots on my skin that resemble bruises and my doctors are baffled saying they have never seen a presentation like this. Your description seems close to mine and like you I have no other symptoms.
I would like to know more about your diagnosis and treatment. Please email me at browsermc@hotmail.com
Thanks,
Mike
There are specific medicines to cure your anxiety if you are suffering from it and xanax is one of the prominent anti-anxiety medicines available in the market. Similarly, to deal with erectile dysfunction, you can hold of Viagra; Paxil and Marplan are medicines to treat depression and moreover comprehensive details on all these medicines can be accessed just by logging into http://www.pill-care.com/.
Hi there gal,wanted to drop in and see how life has been treating you.
Hug Sherri
Josie,
I stumbled upon your blog online and really enjoyed reading it. I was diagnosed w/ALL in early July and am about to start my maintenance phase of treatment. It sounds like what you have gone through is very similar to what I am going through now. Glad to hear that you are back at work and life is becoming more normal again! Congratulations! Stay strong…and thank you for sharing your story.
Hi Josi,
i had ALL 10 years ago had 5 months of chemo and then bone marrow transplanr – i have been great – v few side effects, working – sports med doctor , play tennis, in orchestra ,gym etc – go well , if you want to chat anytime you have my email
rob mck melbourne australia
I see that you had a transplant 10 years ago and are doing great. That is so wonderful. I was diagnosed with ALL 6 years ago and did very well, going right into remissions with the treatments and following a 2 year plan. Just recently, I relapsed and am now going to have a Bone Marrow Transplant from an unrelated, but 10/10 matched donor. I was just wondering if you’d be willing to share some of your experience with me, especially if you had an unrelated donor (that’s part of what is giving me a lot of anxiety). Thanks,
Sarah
Hey Josie,
Congradulations! I’m not a cancer patient but i am interested in what it is like. i have been working on a project for school and i would love to talk to someone with ALL. If your interested please email at sweetblueeyes_14@hotmail.com
Thanks, good luck in the future
Hi gal it has been a while, just thought I would jump in and see how you are doing.