
You know that phrase: “The more things change, the more they stay the same”? Well, that’s how I feel about the second year of life after cancer.
I have now been cancer free for two years. My life continues to change in many ways, but in some ways it is very similar to my life when I walked out of my oncology clinic on the last day of radiation. Today I wanted to outline those similarities and differences for you, as you might be wondering about life after cancer (or maybe you’re living the life of a survivor and wondering if you’re alone in some of your feelings at this point).
(Are you a FRESH breast cancer survivor or still going through treatment, you might be interested in my post: What No One Tells You About the First Year of Cancer Survivorship.
As always, my hope in sharing my story is that it will be helpful to someone fighting a similar battle. If you want to read my full breast cancer story, you can find it here.
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Let’s start with the physical things:
HAIR

WHAT’S CHANGED – This was my hair length on the last day of radiation, as it had started growing back during my 12 weeks of Taxol chemotherapy. I lost my hair in March and this was in September.
And below is a recent picture of my hair. I no longer have any awkward hair stages that make people wonder if I am a cancer survivor. My head gives no clue as to my history with cancer.

WHAT’S THE SAME – My hair still has much more curl than it did before I lost it. Before I got sick, my hair was wavy-ish and could scrunch with some effort, but nothing like now. I just get out of the shower, put a little product in it and it looks like this.
I also STILL have the urge to grow super-long hair. Let’s see how things look a year from now! LOL
And one more hair-related item: My eyebrows never grew back quite right. I still have to fill them in a bit. (And I still have no idea what I’m doing. I’m hopeless when it comes to makeup).
BREASTS

WHAT’S CHANGED – This year brought my nipple reconstruction. You can read my post about that here. That surgery helped my brain finally chill out when walking past the mirror after getting out of the shower.
WHAT’S THE SAME – I have found that my reconstructed breasts are still prone to “zingers.” They feel like little nerve misfires that come out of nowhere.
On that note, another thing that remains the same is the limited sensation in my chest. Even though my nerves seem to be trying to figure things out, I haven’t regained any sensation. From what I’ve read, it would be pretty uncommon for that to happen, but I’ve always held on to hope!
WEIGHT
WHAT’S CHANGED – I buckled down and lost ALL of the weight I piled on during cancer treatment. Over 30 pounds!
WHAT’S THE SAME – My habits of stress eating, paired with my menopausal metabolism, caused me to fall back to familiar weight-gain patterns. I’m basically right back where I started and I’m feeling pretty bummed about it.
MENOPAUSE
WHAT’S CHANGED – I feel like things have calmed down in regards to certain aspects of menopause. I have way fewer hot flashes!
WHAT’S THE SAME – I still feel like I’m losing my mind some days and I struggle a lot with mood swings. I use essential oils in an attempt to help, but this year I’m going to try adding meditation to the mix. Exercise definitely helps regulate my mood, so I will try to get back into a good routine.
I think that’s most of the physical reminders of cancer…now let’s dig into other things.
APPOINTMENTS

WHAT’S CHANGED – I am finishing up with some of my doctors! I just recently had my final appointment with my plastic surgeon (until it’s time to check up on things down the road). I’m also getting ready to switch to 6-month checkups with my oncologist instead of the 3-month checkups.
WHAT’S THE SAME – I still find appointment days to be emotionally draining. Just this past week, after a 3-month checkup with my oncologist, I got into the car and cried. Not for any real reason other than the fact that there were too many emotions to process at once. My body just needed to release them.
FEAR
WHAT’S CHANGED – This is kind of hard to explain. My fear of cancer recurrence used to come at least daily. But rather than a huge feeling of FEAR, it was this odd realization of “Oh, yeah. I just dealt with a life-threatening illness. It could come back. Oh, CRAP!” It felt like a blow to the gut and the best word I can use to describe it is “fear.” It used to come regularly, but now I rarely have those particular moments.

WHAT’S THE SAME – Even though the manifestation and frequency have changed, I definitely still fear cancer recurrence. I have had a chest x-ray, leg ultrasound, head and neck MRI, and a breast MRI to address various concerning symptoms that I was having. Neither me nor my doctor truly suspected cancer, but we did it to alleviate some of my fear. Because the fear is there, no matter how logically I think about things.
I think that’s why my employment situation remains what it is. Mr. Blue Eyes and I have been talking about the future and what I might want to do once the kids are all in school (taking on a teaching job, starting a different career, working from home, etc.). Sometimes I even toy with the idea of becoming the main breadwinner so that Mr. Blue Eyes could find something with better hours (which would most likely mean a pay cut). But then the fear shows up and says “Whoa, Nelly. What if you DIE?? You can’t have the family relying on YOUR income!”
So, yeah. Fear’s still there…even after two years.
PERSPECTIVE
WHAT’S CHANGED – Even though I have that underlying fear that prevents me from making huge commitments for my future, I do find myself actually thinking of ME having a FUTURE. I am definitely thinking more in the long-term. Sometimes this invites fearful thoughts, but I’m at least grateful that my mind is going to the future more often.
WHAT’S THE SAME – I still have a pretty zen outlook on life. I can definitely get riled up, but it’s usually over big things involving my family. Small, petty stressors just aren’t really a thing in my life. Granted, I have built a pretty low-key post-cancer lifestyle, but overall I just don’t get worked up about most things any more. Life is too precious for that!
FAMILY
WHAT’S CHANGED – I can’t speak for the grown members of my family and extended family when it comes to how they feel about my current status, but I know that the memory of cancer has dulled for my kids over time. They mention it less and less frequently.
WHAT’S THE SAME – My kids still get nervous when I mention that I’m going to the doctor. They ALWAYS have follow-up questions when I mention an appointment (which is pretty typical for all kids, I would imagine). Also, our cancer books and cancer doll are still around and they make appearances during play time every so often.
So that’s a little snapshot of my life…two years after cancer. As my breast cancer experience sinks deeper into my past, I hope that I will be able to look even more confidently toward the future.
I would love to hear from you! Where are you at in your cancer journey? Did any of this ring true for you?
I too am in year 2 of survivorship!! Reading your year One and Two articles really made me feel less crazy!! Everything, right up to the scans in Year 2 was like a map of my past 2 years! No one can truly understand the internal (nor external) trials that cancer puts you through, and your articles truly made me feel so much better!
I am so glad you found some validation in my posts! You are definitely not alone in your feelings. I wish you the best as you continue down your path of survivorship. Hugs!!
I appreciate your article. I finished all treatment this past summer and reconstruction in October. Still trying to figure out and process all he feelings I have and figure out now who I am mentally, physically and emotionally. Reading this helps. Thanks!
Thank you for your comment, Amanda. Congratulations on being done with treatment and reconstruction! Best wishes as you continue on the path of survivorship. I’m so glad that you found some comfort in this article. Hugs to you!
This upcoming Cyber-Monday will mark 2 years after being diagnosed with ovarian and uterine cancer. I’m 1 1/2 in remission after surgery in December 2017 and 6 months of chemo afterwards. I came across your article and found I wasn’t alone. Thank you for your insight and shedding light on many issues that unless you’ve been there it’s hard to understand.
Congratulations on your survivorship! I’m so happy that you are on the other side of cancer. Six months of chemo must have been quite the mountain to climb…you are amazing! Hugs and best wishes to you!
I’m a month ahead of you with your diagnosis timeline. I’m grateful you put my thoughts into words. I can’t express them like you did. I love the rainbow concept in your other post. I’ve related to all those emotions @ one point or another. I’m also grateful for the triggers are fewer apart, but the fear is real. Thank you, We’re the Lucky Ones, but it still happened.
Thank you so much for your comment, Stacey. Congratulations on being done with treatment. I agree, we are among the lucky! But there is definitely still that complicated web of emotions that we have to face (as you know)! Hugs and best wishes to you.