So finally have some (3) new pics up! lol (actually stole them off friends facebook pages!) hehe :-) but YAY!! :-)
So the ones of me at the ball was about August 2008, and the one of me at the party was in Jan of this year :-) my hair is super curly these days! I'm really enjoying it! Its so different from having straight hair, which I've had all these years!

So whats new?
Well im working at uni at the moment do some research with one of the lecturers here. Im really enjoying it, its really interesting. Am looking the cortical excitability in relation to physiotherapy techniques in chronic stroke patients. hehe :-) Its really cool.

Am also doing relay for life next weeknd in North Shore. So am really excited about that also! :-) Gunna get lots of people together for a really fun weeknd! Details on how you can sponsor our team soon! As we are just in the process of finalising details :-)

Otherwise not much else with me... But Megan (my lil sis) just moved into her very first flat!! WOW! Im so proud of her, she is growing up!! hehe
I'm also very proud of my other sister Laura. Whom is graduating from police collage next month! also WOW!! :-) She has done so well - and cant wait to have her home! :-) Going down to her graduation soon! YAY!

So all is well in this camp, hope everything is well with you too! :-)

Take care
xoxo
Jen

sorry guys!!! :-( 

Sorry for the long awaited post. I had been extremely full on with assignments and exams and don’t have the internet at home so find it difficult to get on. Anyhow, no excuses aye.. J

Exams went really really well!!! J passed everything which is really exciting!! J Still at uni at the moment as our course was to full this year and so we have to do a summer paper, so haven’t finished for the year yet, still got a couple weeks to go!! So cant wait for that to be over! Then bring on 4^th year! Which is all work placement J Im really excited because ive been placed in Auckland central which is specialised. I can’t wait to put things into practice.

I have finally finished my Herceptin treatments! YEY! J It was so nice to finish them, although I will miss going and catching up with everyone!! (won’t miss the needles though!)… its hard to believe that this time last year Denise and I (along with a lot of other people) were trying to get bald brand buddies up and running!! Amazing how fast time flies huh! ...so the only treatment im on now is Zoladex (the hormone treatment) which goes for another 1.5years (apx).

And the other really exciting thing was my ING life promotions in Napier. I had sooo much fun, and they are really neat people!! The first one mum came and the second one dad came, both occasions we were put up in a really lovely hotel!! The seminars went really well and received good feedback. This meant ING gave $2,000 to other people that need herceptin!!! – AWESOME!! – I can’t thank ING enough for giving me this opportunity, I feel privileged to be working along side such a supportive company!! - Thanks ING!

So it seems I generally have time at the end of every month to do an update!! lol :-) Sori they aren't more frequent! :-/ ... here goes anyway! :-)

Im feeling really good!! slowly getting back into my sports and its true how they say exercise makes you feel 100x better! I feel like I can do more and concentrate harder. Which is what im going to need if im going match my TWO A plus's I got last semester!!! haha yup thats right!! not one but TWO A plus's!!!! hehe!! my first A plus mark ever and I got TWO of them!! YAY!! lol.... ok i'll stop now.. :-)

So my Promo work! Well I'm working alongside ING insurance, which you may or may not know is the only insurance company that pay out for treatments that Pharmac dont cover!! ie: Herceptin! So I'm going to help them help others... I'm going to be talking about my experiances and how cancer and herceptin have affected me, and how my medical insurance (with a different company) hasn't paid for hardly anything, let alone herceptin!! and everytime I talk, they will give $$ to other people who need herceptin!! I'm really excited! :-)

Megans head shaving is happening on September the 12th. She has a whoping 43 students shaving their heads!!! thats amazing!!! lol. And Hilcrest Hair Design are going to be doing the shaving. - Big thanks to them - if you need a hair cut, look them up! :-)

My round of Herceptin is nearly finished! Im quite excited!!! only 2 left!!! yay!! :-) I'm going to miss catching up with everyone though!! It's actually quite fun! (after you've got over the paying for it part! ) lol
So after that has finished I'll just be on zoladex. Whahoo!

Also I got my Breast shaped the other day by removing/adding saline solution from/to my small implant. And I would proudly like to say that it looks fantastic! Perfect size and shape!! :-) YAY!! :-)

For all you new and curent crazy sexy cancer gals (and guys) going through your journeys, hang in there!! Life does go on afterwards, there is hope, and if you embrace the good days you have and discard the bad ones, it makes your journey so much more bearable! Take advantage of support crews too! they are there becoz they love you and want to help! :-)

Love to all
Take care!

xoxo
Jen

What a break! It was soo good to have holidays! Been working solid since 21st Jan! Wat a mish! lol, uni found it in their hearts to not give us any work for our mid year 2 week holiday... Thanks!! haha (wow mid year already!!! its crazy to think Christmas is creeping round that corner again!)

 Been busy with getting things organised for this semester, we've only been back for like 2weeks and its crazy how much work we've got to do already!!! So worth it though!! We are going to visit a spinal unit soon to see what happens there. I think it will be really fasinating, coz that is the type of phyio I want to get into! :-)

Doing quite a bit of promo stuff for Breast cancer at the mo. Its really cool being asked to do things like this as I would never have had these oppertunities before! My little sister is doing a shave off at her high school so am going along to talk to her school about breast cancer and support her. Hopefully this will raise their awareness that it can happen to younger people too. I'm not sure how public the other promo stuff is at the mo so will keep you updated with what is happening with those! :-)

I've just brought my ticket for the physio ball too!!! :-) When I left high school I thought gone were the days of wearing a ball dress! but no! Im quite excited as it will give me a chance to hopefully ?look pretty with my short hair!! Ive never had hair this short before so don't really know what im doing with it! I need2 go to a stylist (or maybe it needs to go to obidence school) or something!!, cos it doesnt do what i want it to do!! :-( lol

Well ill let you know how it all goes! :-)
Hope everything is well with you!!

xoxo
Jen :-)

 Hey team! :-)

Yup its officially gone! well, sitting in the cupboard for the time being!! hehe :-) My hair is growing and getting longer each week its so exciting!! :-) Can't wait till it gets long enuf to put in a pony tail!!!!! lol

I have Herceptin with this lovely lady called Annie, She too also has to fundraise for herceptin and doesn't know where to start! She has enough to get a couple but thats about it :-( If anyone has any fantastic fundraising ideas, we'd be keen to hear them! Because so many of you have helped me, I really want to give something back too, so am going to do my best to help her! Flick me an email if you have any ideas! :-) xo

Also I've just had my mid year exams and all went well :-) studied my butt off and it was well worth it!! :-) Have to go back to uni for a week before we get to go on holiday, lame! Never mind!! :-p

Herceptin is going well and Last week I gave a talk to some newly diagnosed breast cancer gals and it was such an amazing feeling being able to show them that despite all the ups and downs, they will eventually make it through. It kind of feels like if I can help other people go through their journey, it makes my journey and everything i went through a little bit more worth while... what goes around comes around aye!!
anyway as I was talking I found myself unintentionally talking about probably one of the most important aspects of finishing my journey. This will particularly relate to people that are going through their cancer journeys, however could be appropriate for anyone going through a tough time! :-) ...I found that going to the good grief workshop in chch with canteen was single the most cruicial thing I have done throughout my journey. I remember talking about being in 'Limbo' and not knowing what to do next and how to transfr from a 'cancer patient back to a normal person' and this course was it!!

I was able to put that stage of my life behind me, leave all everything that belongs to that journey in that place and move on. Of course im never going to forget it and its always going to be apart of me. but the course gave me a kind of closure and has allowed me to move on. I feel so much more alive and more like a healthy person that can look forward to the future rather then be stuck and labelled as sick. In my view I feel that it is extremely important to attend one of these courses, Iv heard health journeys in NZ does an amazing one!! I also believe that you have to be ready to let go though, you have to be at the stage where you are ready to put it behind you. (and hey if you weren't the first time, whats to say you don't do another one later on!!) :-) I used it as a transition phase, and it was the best thing I have definetly done. -big thanks to Canteen for taking me on it too!!! It was really powerful!

Take care guys! :-)

Jen xoxo

So Che has been at work for a couple of weeks now. He is really enjoying it and loves doing the work! which is great! :-) he hates the traffic though which isnt really a surprise. And with the weather we've been watching a few movies2...

Holidays were good, just relaxed, didnt really do a lot. it was nice. :-) Not alot to say about it. haha

Im now into my 2nd week of placement from uni. Im working at the Wilson Centre in Takapuna. Which is a rehabilitation centre for kids. I love it soo much its alot of fun and ive worked with some kids that have been through ALOT and are still really happy and taking life as it comes. Its such an eye opener but at the same time so inspirational and im so proud of to be working with them! :-)

Exams are coming up really fast and its kinda scary! 3 weeks to go! :-/

I'm going to go to Christchurch with Canteen on the 23rd of June for a 'good grief' course. I'm quite excited coz I havent been to christchurch before and it'l be kool to meet some other people going through similar experiances...

My wig is still off and on. Im mainly wearing it to work but when its off i love wearing hats and scarfs and headbands etc... My collection just keeps growing! haha :-)

Hope all is well! :-)

xoxo
Jen

And so it does. :-) things arent really back to normal, they probably won't ever be "normal" but I do feel kind of in limbo at the momnt.. trying to make the transfer from a cancer patient to just an ordinary person again. Its kind of like youve sat the final teaching or science exam, so youv qualified as a teacher or scientist but your just waiting for that peice of paper for proof!
I reckon thats what they should give you, a degree in breast canser or something! :-) It feels really strange not going back into any hospitals or constantly having appointments (pretty much planning my life around it), I'm kind of lost and not really sure what im supposed to do. lol.

But as you know life goes on.... Ive just started my 2weeks of uni holidays. which most of it im probably going to spend studying and doing my assignments coz Im a tad behind! :-P ooops! And then Im going on placement for 2weeks at a Child Rehabilitation Center! and Im sooooooooo excited!!!! :-)

And.... Che is finallly making the big move to Auckland... haha yip you read it right! :-) We have a really cute 2bdrm house in Ellerslie and I'm really excited about him coming up! So hope all goes well with that!

Jen
xoxo

P.S... I got this really fantastic book from the fantastic lady herself - Denise- :-) and in it were all these tips on how to get through canser... one of the tips were to spell it wrong so it gives you power over it. hehe. It really works!!! xo 

:-)   :-)   :-)   :-)

I could never imagine how this day would feel, I always thought of it as being so long away and felt like it was never going to arrive... my LAST radiation treatment! Thursday the 03/04/08 at 9pm... I can't even describe how it felt walking out of the hospital that night, it just felt like a weight was lifted and my journey was nearing an end...

At the moment i am staying in the cancer lodge in the city in auckland and it is really great! :-) Che is hunting and on his Roar trip (where the deer roar) haha and when he gets back we will be looking for a house to live in up here... yup Che is finally doing the big move!! :-) lol

I know im not fully out of the woods yet, I still am having herceptin til Nov and will get hormone injections every 3mths for 2yrs.. but it feels like everything is finally coming together and im finally getting through it. :-)

From what felt like an eternity away, is finally here, the light at the end of the tunnel...

Jen
xoxo

yup, still trucking on with the radio. Still disliking it but hanging in there. My last one is on the 4th of April so i cant wait till easter!!! (coz then i'll only have like 3 to go or something. :-) been a bit down lately and having a pretty rough time coming to terms with everything.. I think its all kind of hitting home which sux :-( but as i said im hanging in there and can see the light at the end of the tunnel!! 

Did ok in my exams so that was a relief!! :-) Begun two other papers straight away so its still been pretty full on! :-)

Have my next herceptin tomorrow and also am starting on the Zoladex which is the hormone injection. Once a month for 2years. Ive heard its quite painful so not really looking forward to that one!

did the relay for life in hamliton on the weekend and that was really fun! Had my omas birthday on the sunday, so was good to catch up with the family!

hope all is well with everyone else :-) still really appreciating the txtz :-)

xoxo
Jen :-)