24 Weeks Post-Op…. 6 Months since one of the scariest days of my life. I am so thankful to be on the other side of this experience and to be getting stronger every day.
At this point, I am still sleeping on pillow wedges at night. My incentive spirometer levels haven’t changed and I am able to lift the same amount, roughly 20-25lbs for just a minute or two. I have been in less pain daily and have only needed to take Tylenol or Advil when I have over exerted myself. I have been able to lean on things a little more, which has been so nice. You don’t notice how much you lean on tables, chairs, couches, etc. until it hurts to do so. I have my CT scan, Ultrasound and Mammogram in a couple of weeks. My chest is still having some painful popping in the center, so hopefully the CT can give some insight into what’s causing that pain. I am also still have some pain in my left breast and armpit, as I did before the surgery, so hopefully the Mammogram and Ultrasound can shed some light on to what is causing those issues. Making progress and thankful to be feeling better and better every day.
I am so glad that I committed to the elimination diet a few months ago. I am physically and mentally feeling so much better. I have lost 22 lbs and plan to continue to get healthier and stronger. Being so helpless this past year is something I never want to feel again, so I plan to keep this healthy lifestyle going for myself, my relationship and for my future family. If you missed my elimination diet post, I highly encourage you to check it out and give it a shot! You won’t regret it! CLICK HERE
This entire experience has not been cheap, to say the least, but I did have some success with the insurance company that I wanted to share with you. Once I received my Mayo Clinic bill, that after insurance was roughly $20,000, I filled out a financial aid application and sent it in. The Mayo Clinic responded and informed me that my insurance rejected 6 of the claims, totalling $14,000 of that $20,000 bill! I was shocked. Mayo encouraged me to reach out to my insurance company to see if there was anything they could do. I searched for forms from Blue Cross Blue Shield of TN for this, but did not find anything that could help. I ended up emailing them and asked for help. A few weeks later, after a few “Regarding my last email…” emails, BCBS responded and to my utter surprise, COVERED EVERYTHING! They re-submitted those 6 claims and they all came back as accepted. In turn, my Mayo Clinic bill went from $20,000 to $6,000! All because I went back and had them re-submit the claims. If you have any medical issues in the future, I highly recommend re-submitting the claims with your insurance and then applying for financial aid. My Mom always said, “You don’t know, if you don’t ask”.
During this past month, I had the opportunity to work two events. This has been such a difficult year for myself physically and for the music industry itself, that I was very unsure of when I would be strong enough to go back to work and when I was strong enough, if there would be any events to go back to.
I worked the ACM Awards, which originally were scheduled to be in Vegas in April, but due to the Pandemic were postponed to September 30th and moved to Nashville, TN. I have worked the ACM’s for seven years and am so thankful that I could still be apart of this years show, despite all of the difficult circumstances. I am very lucky to work with people that have become friends over the years and that were so willing to help me get back to work. My supervisor was so thoughtful in assigning my position, which required me to stay seated indoors for the duration of my shifts. I was very nervous about getting back to work and was worried that I was not ready and that the pain would be too much for me. I ended up taking Advil and Tylenol around the clock, and one of my dear friends brought me bags of ice for my chest. Ultimately I survived and am so happy that I dove back in to events. With the climate of our industry right now, I couldn’t fathom turning down an opportunity because they are so far and few between at the moment.
I must say, I was so impressed with how well the show was executed and how safe the organization made their staff and artists feel. Everyone had to have a negative Covid test prior to starting to work. Masks were required, hand sanitizer was every few feet, social distancing was necessary, and anyone working around talent had to also wear a face shield. They had safety officers making sure all guidelines were being followed and had a cleaning team that sanitized all surfaces, door handles, etc. every 30ish minutes.
Now despite all of the covid protocols, cleaning measures and social distancing, I somehow ended up catching something at my first show. Thankfully it was NOT covid…. but I did manage to catch Strep Throat. My immune system is depleted from being on steroids all last year, so I can get sick very easily. I don’t understand how I caught anything since everything was so clean, but if you have read my journey you know…. if it’s going to happen to someone, it’s probably going to happen to me. I spent the two weeks between the shows sick in bed, on antibiotics and sleeping almost every day.
My second event was also handled excellently when it came to Covid protocols. This show required me to be on my feet all day each day, which was more difficult. I believe the adrenaline I had from the position kept me going. Again, I took Tylenol and Advil to get through the event and snuck an ice pack underneath my zip-up jacket when I could, to help with the pain in my chest. Being surrounded by so many friends in the industry is why I love working these events and each one of them were so thoughtful during the show, continued to check on me and offered to help when they could. I love working in the music industry and hope we can get back to a normal show season soon!
In my journey to health, I have been learning about sustainable products and clean recipes. In my post each month I plan to start sharing at least 1 product that I am recommending, as well as 1 healthy recipe that I am loving. Let me know what you think!
Sustainable / Healthy Product:
During the elimination diet, I really started looking into the ingredients in my food and in the products I use on my body. The first product that I switched out was my toothpaste. I have always used Colgate Total toothpaste but after researching it and the ingredients in it, I learned that long-term there can be some bad side-effects from this product. It contains Triclosan which can cause hormone imbalance and can harm the immune system, among other side-effects. I switched to Hello which is a naturally whitening fluoride toothpaste. It is made with farm grown mint, tea tree and coconut oil and works great! It is also bpa-free, has no phthalates, is made in the usa, is cruelty free and vegan.
Healthy Recipe:
Since my diet, I have been really loving beets! I will get 2 bunches of beets and roast them on Sunday and then have them to eat on all week. Beets are loaded with vitamins and minerals and low in calories and fat. They also contain inorganic nitrates and pigments, both of which have a number of health benefits.
Preparing Beets: I scrub them clean in the sink and then season them with olive oil and a pinch of salt. I roast these in the oven at 425º for 45 minutes to an hour, depending on their size, until they are tender when stabbed with a fork. Once they are cool enough to touch, I run cool water over them and this makes it easier to remove their tough exterior skin. Voilà, now they are ready to chill in the fridge until you want to eat them.
Beet Salad Recipe:
- 2 Small / Medium Roasted and Chilled Beets – Diced
- 2 Oz Goat Cheese – Crumbled
- 2 Clementines – Diced
- 1/3 Cup Shelled Pistachios
- 1 TBS Honey
- Fresh Basil or Mint to taste
- Salt to taste
Mixed these ingredients together and enjoy. It is so easy to make and tastes great! If you make this recipe, find me on instagram and share it, would love to see how you like it and how you change it to make it your own!
That’s it for this month! Thanks for following along with my journey. I have been so touched by how many people have reached out and have shared personal stories with me. I appreciate each of you and hope my story continues to be shared and can encourage people to keep going! Fight for the answers to your questions! I encourage everyone to make decisions that will help ourselves, our community and our planet. Love you all!
