A medical drama, sadly more serious than the yellow jackets

The yellow jackets were a lot less worrisome

Dear Reader,

First, my apologies, it’s been a while since I last wrote, and I appreciate and want to thank all of you for reading, as well as your comments!

Since I think of this as a “news-you-can-use” column (and I know that dates me to my newspaper days), I thought I’d let you know what’s been so all-consuming, rather than keeping it private. When I told some friends about this medical challenge, I was surprised to hear that a few had already walked this path, and they greatly helped me calm down. (My anxiety levels have never been higher.) So I’m sharing, in case any part of my story helps anyone in some way.

I would have preferred to report on it after it was all zipped up, but it seems to take a long time to get from Point A to resolution. And writing it step by step would have made anxiety even worse. Putting this out there now (that it’s close to conclusion, I hope), is more manageable.

The nutshell version: I am having an excisional biopsy this week. Here’s some info about it from the American Cancer Society.

They are basically checking that the small benign (but suspicious) lesion found during a routine breast ultrasound is actually benign.

It’s a short outpatient surgical procedure; I’m told about an hour long, with light sedation, similar to that used during a colonoscopy (the happy feeling as you drift away is the only part of this I’m looking forward to, aside from just getting it done).

So that’s the story. Thus far.

I’ll take you back to the beginning of the drama, which began in early October, after I get the biopsy results. That can take a week or so.

Thank you for reading, prayers and good vibes!

See you soon.