The Anticipated Update: Abbey’s Cancer Review
It’s the moment you’ve all been waiting for: Abbey’s thyroid cancer check-in.
So far, I would give the overall process a 8/10. Minus two because of the cancer, but the rest hasn’t been too bad.
I know most of you guys have no idea what’s happening, so I’ll just give a quick run-through of the past few months. And yes, I will be doing a rating system for kicks and giggles.
Getting the news.
Overall rating: -5/10
This sucked. Not because of the news, but because of how people acted when I told them. When I tell you people looked at me like I was about to die, I mean it. I felt so uncomfortable the entire time.
Yeah, cancer news sucks, but all I needed was a surgery and one round of radioactive iodine treatment to solve it. Surgery is nothing new for me, so I wasn’t really fazed. My anxiety skyrocketed when everyone around me acted like this was a bigger deal.
I will never forget the first day after I got the news. The number of unwanted calls I got from so many people almost sent me over the edge. I remember driving down I-565 crying on my way to a friend’s house. I wasn’t crying because of the cancer; I was crying from the reactions I was getting from everyone. Hearing the same “you’re so strong” speech over and over again made me feel worse. I just wanted people to act like everything was normal because guess what? I wasn’t dying.
I know it was coming from a good place, but it made me want to shut everyone out. I felt my walls immediately go up.
The complete thyroidectomy
Overall experience: 3/10
I was a little stressed about this surgery, not going to lie. I didn’t know how sore my neck was going to be. I didn’t know how my neck was going to look. I literally knew nothing. I just knew I had to get my thyroid taken out right away.
When I woke up, I immediately knew I wasn’t going to be able to move. My neck was so stiff. It was also so fun to go look in the mirror and see an over-the-top bloody incision. I literally looked like a main character in a horror movie. It was kinda funny.
My throat felt like needles every time I swallowed, and my nurses kept forgetting to give me my pain medication. That sucked. I also had a drain hanging on the side of my neck; I could literally feel it tug every time I moved. The reason this experience gets a 3/10 is because the cancer was taken out. If that didn’t happen, this would’ve definitely been a 0/10.
The birth of the serial killer scar
Overall rating: 12/10
I’m a big fan of the scar. I could tell people that I survived a serial killer, and they would probably believe me. It’s basically a built-in statement piece.
It was weird to look at right after surgery though; I had absolutely no feeling in my neck. Like someone could poke it, and I wouldn’t be able to tell. It also was pretty swollen, but after the first month it started to get better.
Calcium prison
Overall rating: -100/10 (absolutely vile)
This was the worst part of my experience. Milk is the most disgusting thing someone could force you to drink. If you disagree, you’re crazy. I’ve always hated milk, and all of my friends know this.
It’s so ironic I had to do so much to keep my calcium levels up following surgery. I remember my doctor being like, “Okay Abbey, be on top of your calcium! If your levels get too low you’ll need to go to the hospital. It can get really bad.” I thought, “Oh, great.” Next thing you know, I’m drinking three glasses of chocolate milk a day on top of my calcium meds.
I can’t even begin to explain the amount of joy this gave all of my friends. I was TERRORIZED. If I see anyone drinking milk in front of me ever again, they will catch these hands. That is a promise.
Missing the entire first month of the semester
Overall rating: 8/10
Only one of my classes was in person, but it was my capstone. So… it was stressful. There was a ton of makeup work, but I finished strong! Still can’t believe I made it through my last semester of college while also beating thyroid cancer. I guess I can finally check that off my bucket list.
Constant bloodwork and shots
Overall rating: 6/10
I don’t mind bloodwork. I’m used to it at this point. But getting multiple steroid shots around my incision???? Horrible. That was the weirdest feeling ever. I had to sit there and get jabbed with a needle for a solid 10 minutes. It wasn’t just a one and done; it was more like a 25 and done. I hated every second of it, and I’m probably going to need to get it again.
Constantly driving back to Huntsville
Overall rating: 4/10
Driving three and a half hours regularly is tiring. Yes, I love driving by myself, but I also hate that it’s so frequent. I’m ready to slow down and be in one place for longer than a month. My car mileage and bank account would definitely be happy about this as well.
There’s the quick run-down over the past five months (with fabulous ratings). Next step: radioactive iodine treatment. This is going to a breeze, and I’m so happy to say the worst is over. If there’s one thing I’ve learned throughout all of this is that I’m stronger than I thought I was. Whatever challenge comes next, I welcome it with open arms.
Sincerely, Abbey