Here we ago again...

2018

    It has been a while since I posted anything, but 2017 was a busy year for us and it was my remission year. We have moved to another state in February  2018 and before we left i when to do a last check up with Dr. D. The last words he said to me was that everything was looking great ....yay me, I was still in remission.

    May came around and It was time for a check up. I schedule an appointment with Emory which specializes in Multiple Myeloma. My New Dr.  didn't have all my records from prior and with the new lab works  he past down some bad news. He said "I don't know too much of your history but you Proteins are beginning the rise and this may mean that the cancer is awakening.
           WOW...................... What.. ..........Here we go again...

     My heart was crushed and of course I held back my tears like always. We talk about options and of course informed him how headstrong I am about certain things specially if it will damage my body.  Oh lord what am i suppose to do now? I prayed and stayed positive and once again trust in him because if I don't I would have lost it along time ago.
 
 It has been about a year that I have not been strict on my diet and it was time to go back to the roots. You know one thing that bothers me is that no doctor can tell me Why.. Why is it that I have this cancer? Where is the root from? How can you treat something you don't know where the root is? Back to the drawing board and lets see what God has in store for me..
 
 

Thank you for being part of my Journey, God Bless. Yvette Norris

The great news

 February 27 , 2017

     I had my last bone marrow biopsy on July 2017 and I was glad to hear that was the last one this year. I am bless to have such great doctors that helped me get through that rough patch but most of all thankful for my husband who was always there with me. During that last visit Doct. L told me my mproteins were down to .1 🤗😊 I was healing and getting closer to becoming in complete remissionn.
     Fast forward to last week I had a folllow up with Dr.L and I asked what my mproteins looked like with the last bone marrow biopsy. He said well , there is no sign of the M spike so it's in remission. A bit confused but then he said I need to see my regular doctor D. So I told him I would and called to schedule an appointment with my oncologists Doc. D. Wednesday morning came along with such great new .... I am in complete remission... yay
     Bless by the lord and heal my body. Now my mission is to help other do the same so if anybody needs anything please reach out to me at my email yvette1985@msn.com

Second infusion

   Today was the second and the last infusion. I am scheduled to come back in two weeks for lab work and a month later for a bone marrow biopsy. 😂
     I am feeling tired than usual. Mark tells me my breath is kicking when I get the infusion and the smell that comes out of my body changes. I can't  smell it unfortunately but it makes me a bit nausea. I'm glad he tells me these wonderful things 🙄. My back began tingling more frequently so I began stretching again. I did get my results and i am at .2 for my M-proteins. In January i was a .3 so im dropping slowly but surely. I hope with this treatment it puts me in complete remission. 😆
   I know I have been slacking off a bit with my diet and fitness.  I am slowly getting back to my clean eating diet leaving flour and sugar out. What makes it difficult is not being prepared. You have to be one step ahead of the game if you want to achieve success.🤔  Making lunch and snacks is key, specially if your going to be on the road. Every fast food meal comes with bread from burgers to pasta , oh and baking goods my favorite.  Once I get over this hump I will be straight. My way of life will change for the better. indulge once In a while  portion size of course,  will be what I do later on. I'm not perfect but I do try.

Immunotherapy update

   Today is good Friday and ready to go to church. I am on the second week of the immunotherapy and this week I have been so trained.  I haven't worked out for months. This treatment has me feeling like I have been doing workouts because I feel so tired and sleepy. I don't want to push my body and let it do what it needs to do. In a way my body is in a  battle right now and that's why I'm on overload exhaustion. I didn't really think about it that way but my wonderful husband constantly reminds me I need to rest. 
   Next Tuesday I will be receiving the second infusion  which will also be the last. I hope this will help bring down my M-proteins from .2 to 0 then I will be in complete remission.

You guys have a bless weekend. Thank you for reading  and God bless

Immunotherapy

    Tuesday April 4 was the first immunotherapy treatment. The hard part was the bone marrow biopsy, you know how I feel about that, ugh. I know mark hates watching the procedure and me screaming with pain. I rather give birth than do those biopsy. I was tricked, Last time I spoke to doc. L  he said he would put me under a bit which i tought what a relief. The day of the procedure he mentioned i would be ok and that I was gonna get all the anesthesia I needed. Dang...
     After that was over and done with I had blood work done and now we wait to get the immunotherapy t-cells. When  the t- cells were infused in me doctor L said I would be getting a garlic taste in my mouth and it might cause nausea so they would get me some candy, nice. But I didn't taste it so I was fine. Mark told me my breath was smelling funky. Lol , dammitt. We waited for an hour to make sure I had no reactions before we were released. 
     Usually people do immunotherapy after they hsve done the transplant but I'm not really interested in doing the transplant and decided to skip ahead. I am hoping and praying that with me doing things differently , they can discover something new that will help people and have more options available to them than just the usual. Everyone has choices and you know what is best for your body.
     I'm thankful for a wonderful family, friends and specially doctors that I drove mad with my non sense but for all their help and support. I know people get scared when they don't understand your mission and fear death. God knows why he does what he does and I'm here to fulfill my duties in this journey he gave me. Take the bad and turn it into good. Faith.

A year

     I can't believe it has been a year that I was diagnosed with cancer at 8 months pregnant. Man how time flies,  my baby girl is turning the BIG 1 in a couple of days. Wow ..
     Thank you Lord for blessing us with Alejandra. Even though I was battling cancer, I didn't want to Miss a moment in her life. My mornings with her are the highlight of my day. Even if I get no sleep I love being with her. I got to take it all in while I can because before we know it she will be running off with friends.😅
     I got to buckle down and start planning her birthday party. I got 3 weeks to get things squared away.  Excited , I made her tutu and it's so darn cute. Man she is spoiled with love. ..
    I have a doctor's checkup on the 20th and doing some blood work so I'm praying my count is till low. Well that's another blog I'll write.
     



Thank you for being part of my Journey, God Bless. Yvette Norris

Marathon

         I began the year with a goal to accomplish and that was to run the marathon. I told myself last year when I was diagnose with cancer that I was going to run that marathon no matter what comes my way. It had been a goal of mine for years and I was too busy with life that I never acted on it.
     I was scared because everything got in the way of me training specially doing the stem cell collection 4 weeks before the race had my body feeling pain on my joints. The week of the race I was able to do close to 2 hours of running.  I was content with that.
     The weekend of the Houston chevron full marathon my good friend Lauren and the her family came down from Atlanta to run the race with me. I love her for doing this race with me,  both our first time. Lauren  just had a baby back in August so it was going to be a challenge for the both of us. Excited and nervous,  damn these mixed emotions we were feeling but we were determined , mind over matter was the key.
     The day of the race we woke up early and got the crew ready. The crew being our husbands and babies. Two of my friends had also joined us that  morning to the race. I made us breakfast but we were so nervous we couldn't eat the whole bagel. Lauren and I took off road the center to get ready for the race . My group of friends were already there getting ready. 1 out of the  6 of us had done the marathon before so we were all nervous.

     We got into our section which was the last wave to be released and we took off. We tried to stay together to keep each other motivated but after the 8 mile we split apart.  At 10 miles my feet began to go numb. I focused my mind on praying and enjoying the people in the side  that would cheer us on. He weather was chill and at 11 miles it began to rain, yay just what I needed cold water. I put my shades on and kept running at a comfortable pace. I picked up every water they offered and kept moving. I would take my less than 1 minute walk every mile or so. At 15 miles I saw people huddled around and I past by  I saw the medic giving cpr to a runner. Some stopped and prayed. I began to pray while trying to hold back some tears. This emotion came down on me hard I couldn't control it. I kept going wiping the tear off and I paid real close attention to my body. I was so close and I didn't want to go down like that.  I kept praying for strength and endurance. The weather was chilling so it was hard to tell if you were fatigue,  I caught myself hyperventilating twice so I would stop and calm down my breathing.  I couldn't help to tear up because of how far I had gotten. I was so happy and thankful to my  God for being with me in this journey. My faith was growing stronger and stronger each second. It just doesn't stop growing and that is when it hit me the love is forever growing. 
     Finishing the last 1/4 mile and seeing husband standing there with his sign for me and my baby Alejandra amp me up and closer to the finish line was my family with their matching shirts that we made for cancer awarness just cheering me on to finish strong and so I did. Took.the last pit of energy I had and sprint to the finish line.  As soon as I stepped over the second count I teared up.. yes I was a big baby but thankfully I had my shades on so no one suspected a thing. .
     Mission accomplished with God by my side. I ran for a reason and that was to proof that just because cancer enters our lives doesn't mean our world has to end. I am proof that with God by your side you will overcome any obstacles that come your way. Cancer has no power  over us.


Thank you for being part of my Journey, God Bless. Yvette Norris

Bye 2016

   2016 .....where to begin. This year has been a  blessed overwhelming exciting grateful peaceful crazy lovely year. It seems pretty confusing doesn't it?
    Well we were blessed with a beautiful baby girl this year and overwhelmed with our cancer Journey. Watching my baby girl grow and spending time with her has been very exciting. I am grateful to have such amazing family and friends in our lives that support us in our journey. I found peace with God  in this chaos which I never have felt in my life. It's crazy but overall this has been such a great year and going to finish it strong.

How was your 2016?


Thank you for being part of my Journey, God Bless. Yvette Norris

Crazy or not ?

     After the stem cell collection, my body has been aching and in the mornings it's hard for me to move😤. My hands feel like I have athritis making it difficult to close them. It takes me a good hour to get warmed up and moving. 😭 It kind of Reminds me of the Tin Man, I just need a little bit of grease to get my joints working. Squeak squeak squeak..🤖
     I have 2 more weeks till the marathon and I have so much training to do. I'm starting from scratch. Everyone thinks I am crazy 🤑and perhaps they are right, but I am done waiting to do things. This has been a goal of mine for a while . I just never had time or it wasn't the right time. You know all the excuses we give ourselves, I did them. So now or never, I am not getting any younger and health is questionable meaning not knowing what else god has in store for me, so yeah I am a bit crazy😬 you can say. So here we go..😉


Thank you for being part of my Journey, God Bless. Yvette Norris

Stem cell collection

   It's been a long time since I have posted anything.  Well let's catch up, shall we.
    Friday December 19 , I began the stem cell collection process. I had to give myself 2 shots every morning of neupegene on my stomach,  ugh. I hate needles, I don't mind getting shots but to give myself  shots was the hardest thing for me to do. The nurse who taught me was very patient, It took me about a good 10 minutes  or so it seemed like to do the first one. After day 4 I became a pro. Certified shot giver . .lol
    That day the doctor made me aware that I would feel pain in my bones and advised me to get my medicine asap. I listened and turned in my prescription  to the Pharmacy . I just didn't pick it up on time that night. It took me hours to fall sleep with the excruciating pain that night. Lesson learned😣
     On Monday my numbers were low so they pumped me with a special medicine and another two shot the next morning. Side effects of that special medicine was facial numbness. Sure enough 2 hours after the medicine kicked in  my face went numb. It reminded me of that song By the weeknd "I can't feel my face when I'm with you and I love it." I wonder if he had some of this medicine when he wrote that song..lol jk.  Yup that was my jam for the night..
     By Tuesday I was looking great and the collection began. 5 hours hooked on a machine unable to pee or move from my seat, yay how exciting. During that process you loose calcium and you begin to feel that numbness and tingling feeling all over your body ,when that happens they inject you with calcium giving you a warm sensation all over.  Methodists has such great staff. My hubby stayed by my side the whole time. He is such a great guy.
     The goal is to collect 6 million stem cells and that day we collected 8 million stem cells. Thank goodness. My body feels so weak . The rest time begins.


Thank you for being part of my Journey, God Bless. Yvette Norris

Failure

      Last Wednesday was my doctors appointment to see if I was in complete remission.  I have been so nervous for this day. Sad to say that I am still at .3 in my m protein so not a complete remission. I am not gonna lie I was a bit depressed that day. I really tought my goal was going to be met and yet disappointed settled in. Yikes, bummer... I had a cookie with my depression that afternoon and tried to get out of this rude I was beginning to sink into. It's not hard to get into that funk..
     Well, I am not in complete remission but the year is still not over. Right? I have been off chemo for 2 weeks now and I am gonna make December a hard working month to heal my body with good clean food. I know it's a high change but it's worth a shot.. I have to keep moving forward to keep my body from collapsing on me.
     Dr.D Highly recommend me doing the transplant and I know the severity of my disease. I just don't feel comfortablewith that and till I do I can't do it. I am not playing around I am just choosing a different route that I am ok with. I have to try it a certain way because that is were my heart is taking me. Till then will I be comfortable with some




Thank you for being part of my Journey, God Bless. Yvette Norris

Restless

 I have come to total exhaustion of my body. I don't act like a person who has cancer. I keep up my pace and keep busy, especially with the new baby. Managing two jobs, training, a baby, husband, house chores, doctor appointments and chemo.
 My body has completely crashed in the past two nights. The worse part is not being able to get up and get Alejandra when she wakes up in the middle of the night. 7 months of chemo has finally beat me to the ground were I can t say no. I need rest.

Thank you for being part of my Journey, God Bless. Yvette Norris

The masterpiece you can't see

      At bible study we read this book called “what if” by author Mark Batterson.  In  the chapter  the Rosetta Stone , Mr. Bouchard an engineer working for the napoleon armed was in Egypt doing demolition on the rosetta wall when he discovered a black granite stone with ancient writings (the rosetta stone) and save it.  Then Champollion was the one whom worked to decipher the 3 ancient language writings.  This rosetta stone was the key to the Egyptians civilization without it, it would have been a mystery, wow. This is what chapter 8 in Roman comes about. To those who are called according to his purpose.  Roman 8:28
     Living is going through life lessons and those lessons are not always good happy ones. We will suffer in many ways from mentally emotional and physical. If we didn’t have the struggles in our lives we would have not been able to appreciate the good things that's s including all the little things we take for granted. Count your blessings , I know I do and being able to take a first breath every morning is a blessing. God didn’t say we will not have suffering.  He does promise that all of our suffering will be for good. Like Batterson mentioned, “ By not being able to see Gods masterpiece tends to freak us out because all we can see is odd shape pieces that don’t seem to fit together”. This is where our faith comes in to trust in God. When you don't the question rises “ Why do bad things happen to good people?” its all for a great purpose of good that we are not able to see at the time.
        I Worked as a receptionist at Mossy Nissan dealership when I was 19 years of age.  My desk faced these 3 big sky high windows where I will always look at the sky and ponder about whatever came to mind. It was a day I was reflecting back on all the struggles I had gone through growing up from relationships, family and money. That is when I realize that in life  you will SUFFER and STRUGGLE , you have to find the STRENGTH to SURVIVE from all SINs. My philosophy. .. If you seen me and my S tattoo on my back which is 5 S's in one with sin the middle, now you know what it stands for. Its not superwomen. lol I know that’s the first thing that comes to peoples minds. I remember when I got the tattoo done. I showed my dad and explained to him with excitement what it stand for . his response was "you couldn't have just wrote it on a piece of paper instead of tattooing it on?"   I said "nope" .. . It’s the first piece of the puzzle so I’m not quiet done with my tattoo. I tried to take the bad and turn it to something positive, I am only human so yes I will probably be upset at first till I collect myself and pray. I know I will not understand it but I’m ready to walk the path. I have Never been at such peace as I have been this year. I know you guys are saying “ WHAT”. . with all this going on in my life I have never felt so blessed and loved.. I love and thank God for a beautiful healthy baby girl that I was able to bring into this world with no complications,  experience this pregnancy that really made me comfortable with my body, weird huh . This cancer journey that I am able to experience and learn so much and hopefully help millions of people. Blessed to have such a great employer that has worked with me and my crazy schedule. I don’t know how we make it work but God has provided for us. How can I not trust in him, how can I not have faith in him when he has been by my side through all these year from the good to the bad always holding my hand even when I would refuse to obey. Thank you for all the blessings you have bestowed on us.
    Give thanks for all the blessings in your life. Even if we are not doing good we are still good and it will only get better so keep that in mind. All things happen for a reason, we may not comprehend but its part of his plan.

Looking the part

     When you hear that Someone has cancer, what do you automatically think? Lets see Chemo, loss of hair, looking sick, weak person.  When people learned that I was diagnosed with cancer, they thought it was nothing too serious because I look fuller and healthy.  As time went by they became aware of what type of cancer it was , then they began to ask questions. I was a stage 3 of myeloma which is pretty bad. I tried to never loose my cool but you know I am only human and I can't help it. I am an emotional person even tough I may not look like it. I promised myself and god that I was gonna try my hardest to be myself which is a hyper active person always positive and having fun with the world. I was going to keep my joy no matter what.
     I was in pain from the day my daughter was born with back problems. I began my natural protocols and months later began chemo. Chemo is poisoning  your body making you  feel like your not alive. Next thing you  know your walking like a zombie, on autopilot living in a foggy mind. Reaching with my hands out through the thick white fog trying not to hurt myself. How I hate those days. I fight them each time but, nothing changes. I come to work and but on a smile even through these shitty days. My facial expressions always give me away but I keep smiling . Its not gonna conquer me, not by the grace of god. I keep my head up with God on my side who can be against me.  My motivation everyday all day my true medicine.

    I may not look like I have cancer but that doesn't  mean im not suffering, sstruggling finding the strength to survive. Don't underestimate people in what they are going through. We all have different pain tolerance and that's the same thing with cancer, we all tolerated it differently but one thing is for certain.  It's a beast and its never easy. Its harder than giving birth, trust me I know. Its harder than any marathon,  triathlon, toughmudder , iron man deal. Everyday is like riding a roller coaster, you don't know what's coming. I will tell you this for sure, To everyone who is or had a journey with cancer comes out as an Ultimate Beast Warrior.... Unstoppable .
       To all my cancer patients,  Stay Strong in beast mode and remember your not alone God is always with you.

Truth

     When I first got diagnosed with multiple myeloma cancer, I was in disbelief.  I never heard of that cancer there for i didn't know what it was.  I don't like not  knowing what's conquering my body and for doctors go push you towards chemo right away because you don't have time is pretty fudge up. If I am not comfortable going in, I am not gonna do it.
     Research reaserch reaserch is so important. Know what's exactly going on in your body.  I know doctors have the degree and they know their stuff but you know your body best. Cancertutor.com taught me so much and that led me to the truth about cancer. The world is not just black and white. The world is 90% gray so open your eyes and see what is infront of you. You have options and with more research you do the more options you Discover.
     Here is a bit more information for you. 
https://go.thetruthaboutcancer.com/uls/?ref=698462b0-f9dd-4fc5-a4ee-7d32041b99d1

    Bring awareness and lets stop this disease called cancer from taking our love ones. Be ready , be prepared for the battle.

Detox is key

     Many people don't know the importance of detoxifying and I was one of them. As I got older I became more aware of proper nutrition. Thanks to my mother I love veggies and I love trying new things. Now just because you eat healthy doesn't mean you don't have to detox. I know that's a mistake that many do and I am guilty of that. Your suppose to detox at least twice a year.
    The reason you need to detox is to remove chemicals, harmful organism and toxic metals in your organs that we tend to absorb from our surroundings. You don't realize how toxic the environment around you is till you start to pay attention to it.  Everything is electronic and connected to Wifi now a days, think of all the electromagnetic waves passing through your body. The air you breath surrounded by exhaust fumes. The cleaning products you use for your home. The makeup and lotion we use in a daily basis, everything is toxic to our bodies. We owe it to ourselves to detox and cleanse.
    There are so many ways to detox. Best way to start is by doing a colon cleanse followed by a liver then kidney cleanse. Enemas is another way to cleanse specially if your taking more than one medication a day. The benefits of cleansing are beyond believe.
     If your going through chemo or taking more than one medication a day, it will help to get rid of the toxic from the medicines so its not over working your liver. I do mine once a day and I noticed the difference right away. Depending on your level of toxicity you might need to do more than one a day, all depends on your body.  Before I did enemas, I was feeling nauseous and drugged up because I  was not getting rid of the toxins fast enough.  I couldn't close my eyes because my world would be spinning,  my body was always aching . When you don't get rid of the toxins fast enough, they  will circulate through your body again and that was happening to me. My husband Mark ordered the stuff And said this will help me. Omg who wants to do enemas? Not me that was for sure , but feeling that way was frustrating and was ready to try it. Thank you God
     I use S.A Wilson coffee and you can order that online. I bought the enema bucket here Enemabucket. Buckets are better and easier to clean and disinfect than bags. Enemas are part of my routine to fight this cancer and keep it away for life.
     Remember to care for your body and it will heal itself the way got created it to do. 

     http://sawilsons.com

The results

     I did a bonemarrow biopsy two weeks ago and today is finally here. The appointment was at 8 am so you can only imagine the rush we were in to get there on time.  I get nervous about anything and everything so I tried not to think about it. I pray everday for God to point me in the right direction in my healing process. I wanna do things his way so I pray for guidance in All that I do.
     Well, the results are in and my body is in Remission. Ooohhh yeeaahh Wohoooooo what what yeehaa baby😀...sorry had to get that out. What does that mean? It means that there is no traces of cancer in my body or bonemarrow But, that doesn't mean it won't come back.  The next step is getting with Dr. C for a transplant. If you know me and have been following me, you know how I feel about autotransplant, hell the F***no 👎.  In logic I see no point. 😝
     I willset an appointment with Dr. C and see whAT happens. I will be praying for the right path to take. God has everything under control.

Red swollen eyes

     In July I got a bad case of swollen red eyes. I didn't know if it was something I ate or touched that got into my eye causing a reaction in my eyes. I didn't think it was a big deal and figured it will go away in a couple of days. Well. If life was that easy right. My eyes did get better in two days but then the following day it came back again. I knew it was coming because it felt like I was punched in the eye and had that bruise ache. My eyeball itself was not red just the lid around it and swollen too. It was always one side more than the other. Its already bad enough I have big eyes but when they get swollen omg do i look like a beetle car.. Lol. Not good at all.
     I wondered if it was my make up so I stop using and still getting them every week.ugh. I tried eye drops and eye ointment but still the swollen was coming back. The only thing left is chemo. I called my doctor and informed them of the reaction I was having with my eyes. I send them a picture so they can see how bad it was. I asked if it was a normal side effect  and they said no. It is for me I suppose. 
     It has been two months and they have gotten better but still getting them. Not as bad as the first time but it does occur.  I don't t know what to do or try anymore. I need your help. If you know anything that will help me in this situation please write me. Let me know what's worked for you.

Bonemarrow biopsy

     Today I have chemo In the morning and a second bonemarrow biopsy in the afternoon.  I am so nervous because of the darn weird pain you feel. Best described as your soul being pull out of you. Ewwww make me quiver just thinking about it. 

     I am actually sitting in chemo right now waiting on my valcade shot. I take this time to catch up on things like prayer, write blogs, edit videos which I'm trying to get better but I am shy while filming.  It makes me nervous 😜

My phone was acting up and I was unable to post this that day. My hip was hurting so bad the next day , it felt like I got hit by a bus. It was hard to sit down or lay down. I don't remember it hurting this bad afterwards but I'm wondering if it was because they had to go at it twice since the first sample was not good 😲😨😧😭😭





     Now its the second day of recovery and feeling so much better.  It's a bit sore but not bad.i was able to work out except crunches that require me laying down. Oh well ..the results will be in next week so I hope and pray god is working miracles in me.

Thank you for being part of my Journey, God Bless. Yvette Norris

Alejandra

Children are little blessings that bring happiness into our lives no matter what the condition we seem to be in.
I am so blessed to have the opportunity to watch my daughter grow. I know many parents don't get to because of work, sickness or accidents so I count my blessings. Thank you God for giving me another day to enjoy with my love ones.  I wouldn't want to miss it for the world.
      I'm still amazed how fast she is growing up and that she is a little piece of me. If only I could slow down time, that would be nice ;) but since I can't I'm living in the moment. My little Alejandra is unstoppable. She is 6 months and acts like she can walk when she can't even crawl forward. lol.  I can't leave her unattended for a second because she is already getting into something or heading into something. I can only imagine how it's going to be when she begins to walk..ay yah yah .
   The main reason why I have to be in the best shape of my life is because I will be chasing her down. What can I expect when both of us were hyper active kids when we were young, so that concludes Alejandra is going to be TaZmania..lol who remembers that character?  Well ladies and gentleman be ready for the live version coming soon to a playground near you.
    As she gets older I can see her little character developing. For a second we worried that she was going to be a serious baby.  We couldn't get her to giggle or smile only when she was asleep did she laugh and smile. As you can see she is our first and were not familiar with newborn's stages of seriousness. I think Ale won first place on that stage. Way to go Alejandra ... Now as she gets older she is more alert and of course giggles like cray cray.. which brings us great joy :)

    Love being a mommy. The greatest blessing ever.
    

 Thank you for being part of my Journey, God Bless. Yvette Norris