Still Catching Up...

Gosh.... So it's 3 in the morning and despite being exhausted, I can't sleep! Argh! I hate it when this happens. I was so snug in my bed, and I know I slept for at least a few hours so there's something going for me. Anywho, since I can't sleep, I'm going to take the time and update. LOL...

So, yes it's true. I have been working an absolutely crazy amount of hours at work. When I changed jobs and started handling the QA/QC job, I started working some really strange and unusual hours to meet the needs of the various teams. About 6 weeks ago though, I was asked to help out another team during their management team restructuring (know what I'm saying?). While helping out, I've REALLY worked insane hours and I mean INSANE. As a result, everything around me has needed to change - or the way I function (or don't) has had to change.

I haven't had the time to update here, hang out at The Pad (I really do enjoy working with the great gals there - and I will continue just in a less active role), get pedicures, sleep, or even just hang out. My laundry has piled up (and awesome Steve has done it ALL!), we've eaten a crazy amount of quick food (mostly fast food), and my studio has now branched into two rooms (which is a HUGE problem!).

In the middle of all that crazyness, I went to the doctor to have a few spots checked out on my shoulders and back. If you've met me in real life, you may have noticed how very fair skinned I am. That means I burn incredibly easy in the sun. Incredibly. Easy. Knowing my bodies penchant for cancer, off to the doctor I went. I had a few spots which I thought ought to be checked out. He did a few punches, and razored off a few others. All of the spots I wanted checked came out perfectly fine. No problems at all.

The spots I didn't consider though, and that my doctor did, didn't come back fine. Most of them came back as Basal Cell Carcinoma and a few of the others came back as Melanoma. My doctor is very confident that with a few more punches and some regular monitoring, we'll be able to gather the rest of the "bad" cells, and eradicate it from my skin. While it won't be comfortable, and I will need to take a few days of much needed time off from work, it is totally survivable and livable.

The warning I want to pass to you is what really caught me off guard. Both of these types of cancer would normally have shown up in spots where I had some sun exposure. The shocking thing (at least it was to me) is that the spots my doctor found, were in locations that would never and have never, been exposed to sunlight. They're on my side, and on my lower back. I've always been a fairly modest person, and due to my extreme weight (before I lost the weight) would never EVER have worn a swim suit which would have exposed these parts of my back. In fact, the spots my doctor was initially suspicious about, are super small.

To me, these spots looked like very small freckles. VERY small freckles. They are flat, smooth, and nothing which I would ever have given a second look at. I have photos that I intended to share with you, but haven't been able to edit them so that you can see what I'm talking about. I've been very private with many of my previous health issues, and I was going to keep this to myself too. Then, I read that skin cancer is more common than any other kind of cancer and that most people don't even realize they have it. I know I didn't. So, my hope is that by sharing this part of myself, you'll be more aware of your body and perhaps if you have something that looks suspicious have it checked out. Who knows what may have happened if I hadn't had mine looked at.

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