[tehluckster]

Within the last two weeks I have discovered a lump in my breast, had a needle biopsy, then a lumpectomy. I haven't had the motivation to exercise, eat right, and all the things that go along with weight loss. I've tried very hard to though, and I realize a lot of women have it much worse than me, but I have no one my age that I can relate to. I want to so very much to get back into the swing of things like before, but this has caused so much emotional, and physical pain that it is hard to recover for me, and I really don't understand why. I know I have gained weight, and I'm apprehensive about finding out because I know it will only make me feel worse at this point. I gain weight really fast it seems, so Im sure Ive gained between 5 and 15 pounds, and I tried so hard to get 10 pounds off, I'll feel like such a failure.

[JayEll]

Hey tehluckster,

I'm sorry to hear about what you've been through--but think how good it is that you found out!

I'm sure that you're feeling really scared about now. It's not unusual for something like this to make women feel really vulnerable! Do you have any support groups through your hospital or your doctor for women who have gone through this? I know that resources are available if you look around a little bit. You'll find you're not alone!

Your title is "minor setback," and it really can be a minor one! Concentrate on eating healthy foods to support your recovery--and stay away from junky foods that might taste good but only add too many cals. You already know what to do!

Mild exercise would also support you. Is there a place where you can walk?

Just know that you're doing OK! Maybe you have gained--get up your courage and find out one of these days--but in the meantime, get back on your plan, one day at a time.

You can do it!
Jay

[lynnm39]

Jay has given you some good advice, tehluckster. I would only say that if you just cannot muster the energy to count calories (or count whatever), just focus on healthy eating. Focus on nourishing yourself so that you can feel your best.

I'm sorry about your situation. I'm sending good wishes your way . . .

[lumifan4ever]

Oh hun...the good news is you caught what could have been a life threatening problem early and took care of it. If you are in physical pain, you should definately start out with just something simple like a relaxing walk. Definately try to get back on track with healthy eating. And don't feel like a failure....you are not a failure. You noticed something different about your body and you did something about it. That was brave. Some people would put that off until it might be too late. You are not a failure...you are BRAVE!!! Just take things slow, work at a pace you are comfortable at but don't let it be a major setback by giving up. You can do this!!! And we will be here for you in any way we can!!!

[NotTheCheat]

I had the same thing happen about 7 years ago and I can totally sympathize. I also lost both my mother and grandmother to breast cancer so I know how scary it can be. The important thing is that you didn’t ignore it – you took care of it. You took care of the physical part and got it removed, but now you also need to take care of the emotional. The thing is, eating won’t heal the emotional part – it will only delay it. Do some nice things for yourself. Give yourself some quiet, restful time. Don’t beat yourself up.

The other thing is that you may need a few more calories than normal while you body is healing because it is a lot of hard work for your body to regenerate all those cells and heal everything up. You may be hungrier than normal.

[tehluckster]

Thanks for the support everyone. It's really overwhelming with worry to think of this, plus trying not to over eat, or eat things I'm not supposed to. Admittedly I have ate a lot of "comfort food" because my family and friends are big on "awe here lets go have ice cream" and such. Im going to try to get back on track and only eat healthy foods, or meals I have to cook...for some reason if I have to cook it then I don't want to eat as much lol. My hospital does have support groups and it helps some, but in a weird way it makes me feel really depressed because I'm the youngest person there, and they look to me a lot to tell them how I'm coping at a young age, and I don't have any answer other than take life a day at a time rather than expecting things to happen in the future.