October…I wear pink for my friend Susan
Meeting Susan for the first time in Next Level Extreme Fitness… I LOVED her!!!! She has a CAN DO spirit & is always revved up. We named her Mighty Mouse because she’s this itty bitty little thing that has so much energy. Always cheering on those around her. I immediately was like a magnet to her. I LOVE her energy!!! We became fast friends. And I looked forward to seeing her at NLXF every day. What a blessing her happy self has been for me.
Susan & her family
It was so heartbreaking to find out that she had breast cancer. When she shared her devastating news I cried for days. I couldn’t even IMAGINE her sorrow. Every mother’s worst nightmare. Possibly leaving your children motherless. And to top that off…your kids have to see you sick…I mean REALLY SICK. My heart literally ached for her and her family. This strong (physically & emotionally) woman had IT! BREAST CANCER.
In honor of Susan & her fight…our Next Level Extreme Fitness class dressed up as the Rosie Riveter “WE CAN DO IT”!
Next Level Extreme Fitness
To see this beautiful spunky woman go through pain & suffering with this horrible disease was just terrifying.
I’ve put her story into my post. Susan’s story was written by her. Please read and share. You never know who’s life Susan’s story will save or encourage to keep fighting.
My Story
Susan Shier
As I sit here and write this a little over a year later it seems like just yesterday. I can remember my birthday this year I was so full of emotion and sadness like I was reliving that same day just a year prior. My story begins in February 2013.
My story does not start with lumps but with visual changes. I had noticed that my left breast seem to be getting bigger then the right. At first I figured it was nothing and was common for woman to have them different from each other. Then I will never forget one day when my kids came home from school and they were sitting at the table getting ready to eat and talking about their day. My son had mentioned a teacher at school had been diagnosed with breast cancer and she was going to be having surgery. I know this may sound strange but there were so many bells and whistles going off in my head I could not sleep that night.
The next morning I immediately called my doctor to make an appointment. She had her nurse call me back to tell me that she was just going to send me in for a mammogram. There are two people that I have to thank for saving my life, my kids teacher and my doctor, Heidi Prose. After this everything really moved very quickly.
My mammogram was Wednesday Feb 20th, 2013. Like many women, I went alone and had assumed I’d go to work when it was finished. Well the biggest mistake I made was going alone! My mammogram took about 2 ½ hours and when she was all done she led me to the radiologist. He told me right then and there that it did not look good. I had calcifications that were showing up on my mammogram. I had no idea what it meant but that in a woman my age it was not good.
On Thursday Feb 21st, 2013 I went to see Dr. Duven at the Breast Care Center. He performed an exam and explained what the mammogram calcifications meant. And to my surprise the issue was with the right breast and not the left. He performed a stereotactic biopsy that day. He told me that the results would be in a few days. I was optimistic that it was nothing and tried not to worry.
Monday, February 25th, 2013 was my 36th birthday. I was excited and it felt like it was going to be a good day. In no way was I prepared for that phone call at 12:43pm on that Monday afternoon. It was Dr. Duven’s nurse calling to tell me that the results were in and I needed to come right in. In my 36 years I have never felt like I did in that moment. My knees buckled and I felt like I couldn’t breathe. I wanted to pinch myself and wake myself up.
The biopsy showed Ductal Carcinoma In Situ also known as DCIS. He was pretty confident we caught it early and it was staged at a 0. Really cannot get better then that I thought. Stage 0 is the best you can have. But he reminded me that we would not know for certain until after I have surgery. WOW Cancer, breast cancer, I really could not believe what I was hearing.
This was supposed to be my birthday not the day I was diagnosed. I think at first the word cancer did not fully sink in. I had a MRI of the breast the next day that showed right breast involvement and the left had a few spots. The next few weeks seemed so busy and full of appointments.
My surgery was scheduled for March 18th, 2013 three weeks from my date of diagnosis. After a lot of research I decided to have a bilateral mastectomy with reconstruction. The morning of surgery I also had the lymph node mapping to see which lymph nodes needed to be removed. I had three on the right and one on the left. The preliminary report showed no lymph nodes involved and everything looked good at that point.
Emotionally this was the hardest thing I have ever been through. I felt like I had to stay strong for my kids. And the pain, wow it was unbelievable! After surgery we found out that the cancer had micro metastases into one lymph node and I also had a tumor that was about an inch big. In English this meant I now had Invasive Ductal Carcinoma In Situ with lymph node involvement stage 2.
I began my chemotherapy treatments on April 23, 2013. This was the first of 16 treatments. One of the most exuberating moments I had through this experience was September 10, 2013 the date of my last treatment. Chemo was scary and at times I just wanted to cry but I knew giving up was never an option. I was not only fighting for me but for my two kids and my husband.
As I sit here 16 treatments, 4 surgeries later I am proud of the woman I am. I have been told how strong I have been through this but I would never have gotten through this alone. The love of my family and friends is what got me through this. My husband who was amazing through this showed me that what I looked like on the outside was not who I was on the inside. I am not ashamed of my scars or my story. Each scar tells a story about me and my fight against cancer.
Susan
To read about statistics on breast cancer click here
Through all of her treatments this beautiful woman STILL has a smile.
Already had lost her hair but starting to grow back.
This picture just makes me tear up for so many reasons…Susan & her sweet daughter.
the 16th treatment & the last!!!
Running for the Cure
Susan’s hair starting to grow back….Susan with her sweet son.
God is so good. He has answered prayer & allowed Susan to fully recover from her cancer & her surgeries & treatments. It was not an easy road for her. Painful, exhausting, scary, and just so many more emotions. I’m honored to know this strong & brave woman who never gave up. Such a wonderful example of a true fighter with a HAPPY spirit. LOVE TO YOU AND YOUR FAMILY SUSAN!!!!
Categories: Family, Health & Fitness, Inspiration
Oh my, what a story. Amazing that she caught it in time and is recovering! God is good.