An Update on My Health

Since my last post on the subject about a month has passed, and boy did a lot happen during that month.

The super traumatic biopsy I went through didn’t yield results, so I had to be hospitalized again (for the third time) to get a mediastinal biopsy under full anaesthesia. My first ever operation.

The procedure went well, but my recovery took more time than planned, and the results of the biopsy took two weeks to arrive (hello, Grey’s Anatomy with your very realistic “8 minutes for a biopsy result”). By the time the results arrived I had more and more difficulty breathing, to the point where on the day of their arrival I came into the hospital to be hospitalized for the fourth time, this time because I just couldn’t breath.

I never thought about my breath so much as I did during those few days. I was connected to oxygen and pumped full of steroids and still had to consciously think and struggle for each breath, for every inhale and exhale. You can’t talk, you can’t sleep, you can barely eat, you just breath, breath, breath.

Luckily the biopsy results were better than any of us could anticipate: I have Classic Hodgkin’s Lymphoma. It’s very treatable, and though it requires chemotherapy, the course is less intense than I had anticipated.

Two days after my biopsy results arrived I got my first chemotherapy treatment (ABVD, for those interested), and an hour and a half after treatment I could breath independently. I didn’t need oxygen. I could speak in whole sentences. I could be released home.

View of succulents and other plants with the sea in the background.
I have to replace my runs with walks now, but luckily I live in a place with nice walking views.

I have a chemotherapy treatment every two weeks. I’m slowly rebuilding my routine around those treatments, and so hope to start posting more often now that my life isn’t a complete chaos of hospital/home/hospital/home. There are things that I won’t be able to do for a long while (such as running, which is a heartache), but luckily most of my hobbies and all of my work are things that I can do indoors, at a computer or a desk.

Take a good, long, deep breath for me and appreciate it. It really is precious.

12 thoughts on “An Update on My Health”

  2. Daphna Kedmi

    After such a difficult ordeal, finally some good news. I’m glad you’re managing a routine that includes walking outside, and we’re all waiting for some new sketchings. Be well Nofar, and please keep us updated.

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  3. Mitch Zeissler

    I totally empathize with you. There’s nothing quite directly confronting something like this to make one truly appreciate what we have.

    Listen to the doctors for their guidance, but temper your recovery by listening foremost to what your body tells you. And if your body says it’s a day for naps, listen to it – don’t fight it. I learned during my recovery that the doctors would typically be over-optimistic about what I could do versus what I couldn’t do.

    It’s now been just over 3-years since my cancer was declared to be in remission, and I feel that I’m finally approaching what my “new normal” is going to be – I no longer have chills outside in the height of the summer heat, I don’t need to nap as much as I did for many months, I don’t have to sleep with all the blankets on, etc. – all of which were known side-effects of my treatment, but were downplayed by my medical team in their efforts to keep me positive.

    The single best thing for my recovery was walking. I walked and walked – miles each day – which was strongly encouraged by my doctors. Walking was good for getting my stamina back and getting my head into a good space. Granted, I would often be totally exhausted afterward, but it was totally worth it.

    Good luck with your recovery, and please keep sharing the progress on your recovery.

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  4. Diane

    I’m glad that you were able to breathe better so soon after treatment! That must have felt amazing. Thank you for reminding us to appreciate our own ability to breathe. I hope the ABVD does it’s thing and puts you in complete remission.

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