Tag Archives: pain

Released from Prison

Posted on June 13, 2014 by Scorchy

Where the hell have I been these past few months? Well, ever since my last episode with radiation of a painful bone tumor in my sacrum, I seem to have misplaced my voice. It could likely be lost among my yarn stash, but … Continue reading →

Posted in My Stage IV Life | Tagged breast cancer, breasts, career, compartmentalization, denial, depression, friends, frustration, guilt, knitting, metastasis, metastatic breast cancer, pain, pain management, pain. chronic pain, prison, scan, self-worth, social life, socialization, Stage IV, stage iv breast cancer, stigma, support, Treatment, vulnerability | 20 Comments

Purple Haze

Posted on July 29, 2013 by Scorchy

This is what my knitting looks like these days: Knit 4, yarn over 1, knit two together, knit 23, Yarn Over 1, Knit 8 . . . oh wait knit SEVEN! Okay, unknit 1. Now continue . . . knit … Continue reading →

Posted in My Stage IV Life, Stage IV Musings | Tagged awareness, breast cancer, knitting, metastasis, metastatic breast cancer, Methadone, Oxycodone, pain, pain management, Radiation, side-effects, Stage IV, stage iv breast cancer, talking in sleep, Treatment, vulnerability | 40 Comments

Emergency Room

Posted on July 17, 2013 by Scorchy

It has been awhile since I have posted. I apologize for my silence; you can probably reason that it takes quite a bit to shut me up. And you would be right. But this paincation has been particularly brutal. And … Continue reading →

Posted in Advocacy, My Stage IV Life, Stage IV Musings | Tagged advocacy, alone, breast cancer, Cigna, constipation, emergency contact, friends, impacted bowel, invisibility, invisible, invisible patient, Letrozole, Lupron, metastasis, metastatic breast cancer, Methadone, nerve ablation, nerve block, nuclear constipation, Oxycodone, pain, pain management, pain scale, Stage IV, stage iv breast cancer, support, Tamoxifen, Treatment, Twitter, Valium, vulnerability | 72 Comments

Seeing Stars

Posted on July 4, 2013 by Scorchy

There’s a popular saying among knitters: “I knit so I don’t kill people.” Over the past two months I’ve been saying “I knit so I don’t kill myself.” This paincation has been brutal–thus my prolonged absence from the blogosphere. When … Continue reading →

Posted in My Stage IV Life, Stage IV Musings | Tagged bone metastasis, breast cancer, knitting, Letrozole, lytic lesion, metastasis, metastatic breast cancer, MRI, nerve ablation, Oxycodone, pain, pain management, Paincation, PET/CT, Radiation, Stage IV, stage iv breast cancer, Tamoxifen, Treatment, vulnerability | 67 Comments

Progression

Posted on June 8, 2013 by Scorchy

When I ended the call I stared at the screen looking for an app that I could consult for answers. But the reality? There was no app. I had just spoken with my oncologist and learned that Tamoxifen, the drug … Continue reading →

Posted in My Stage IV Life, Stage IV Musings | Tagged advocacy, breast cancer, breasts, Diagnosis, disease progression, Femara, Letrozole, lumbar spondylosis, Lupron, metastasis, metastatic breast cancer, pain, pain management, PET/CT, Philosophy, progression, spondylosis, Stage IV, stage iv breast cancer, support, Tamoxifen, Treatment, tumor, Xgeva | 94 Comments

Cancer is Hard When You’re Alone

Posted on May 22, 2013 by Scorchy

I sure do love historical analysis–as you have no doubt observed if you’ve read The Sarcastic Boob with any regularity. Breast cancer is a fascinating subject and fits right into my love of knowledgeable discourse. The implications of gender and … Continue reading →

Posted in My Stage IV Life, Stage IV Musings | Tagged alone, breast, breast cancer, depression, frustration, metastasis, metastatic breast cancer, pain, pain management, Stage IV, stage iv breast cancer, stigma, support, Tamoxifen, Treatment, vulnerability | 93 Comments

Paincation Redux

Posted on May 15, 2013 by Scorchy

I’ve been on a two week paincation. I apologize that I forgot to take pictures of the great time I had. You know, of the television tuned into Game of Thrones and MSNBC, the Kindle versions of B.V. Larson sci-fi … Continue reading →

Posted in My Stage IV Life, Physicians | Tagged advocacy, awareness, Diagnosis, facet joint injection, fluoroscopic-guided injections, fluoroscopy, Information resources, Marcaine, metastasis, metastatic breast cancer, pain, pain management, Stage IV, stage iv breast cancer, steroid, support, Treatment, vulnerability | 20 Comments

Rear View Mirror

Posted on April 27, 2013 by Scorchy

The human body does a wonderful thing by making you forget pain. You know you had it. You can kind of describe it–using the words you coined when it was at its worst. You can sometimes point to where it … Continue reading →

Posted in My Stage IV Life | Tagged breast cancer, chronic pain, Diagnosis, frustration, hopelessness, lumbar spondylosis, metastasis, metastatic breast cancer, nerve block, neuropathic pain, pain, pain management, pain relief, Stage IV, stage iv breast cancer, Treatment, vulnerability | 21 Comments

Two Weeks In

Posted on March 17, 2013 by Scorchy

“We’re ya been, Scorchy?” I saw that subject line in my Inbox and realized that I have not been writing. And there’s a reason: I’M WORKING AGAIN! I’M WORKING AGAIN! Ah, what a wonderful thing. This tumor flare/spondylosis crisis that … Continue reading →