Last Friday, I accompanied my daughter on her 5th grade trip to Universal Studios in Orlando. It was a one-day bus trip that had us departing from Miami at 5:30 a.m. and returning at 11 p.m. It was exhausting to say the least, but we had a great time and the weather cooperated.
Physically, I felt great, despite 8 hours of sitting on a noisy bus filled with pre-pubescent kids, 6 hours of walking and going on every ride except the newest and scariest roller-coaster. (To my daughter’s dismay.) I was so proud of myself for being able to keep up with the kids and even seemed to do better than them in the sore foot department.
I was also proud that I was able to just let go and have fun. I tried not to think about my breast cancer surgery and the reconstructive surgery that’s coming up. There was one thing, however, that I did worry about:
The medication that I’m taking, tamoxifen. When it was time to take my pill, I briefly wondered if going on those roller-coasters and thrill-rides was a bad idea. Tamoxifen is known to increase the risk of developing blood clots and stroke, so I worried about that. Fortunately, I was able to brush those thoughts away and remind myself that “you only live once”. I know I have to live to the fullest and enjoy every minute, and that’s exactly what I did. I lived. I enjoyed. I realized that my life can be pretty much what it used to be. I felt joy and am hoping for more trips like this in the future. But next time, I might skip the noisy bus full of kids and go to a quiet spa instead.