2009- a new year!

Wow! I can't believe that is has been 3 months since my last post. I was so busy with the fundraiser,Thanksgiving, Christmas and radiation. I began radiation on Novermber 10th and had to go every day. Things went pretty well until almost the end of treatment. My skin got badly burned and the incision from the June surgery opened up and became infected. I ended up having surgery on New Year's eve. That night I forced myself to stay up and welcome in the new year with the hope that 2009 would bring a positive recovery, strength and good health. The surgery was done one week after stopping radiation, which is not the best time to operate, and the outcome was uncertain. But things are going great! Dr. Marble did such a good job and my surgical site is healing beautifully. So, other than my follow up appointments, I'm finally done! It has been a long and difficult year and I thank all of you for your continued love and support. I can not speak highly enough about the care and treatment I received from everyone at Exeter Hospital. Thank you all.
With hope and gratitude, Kathy

p.s. during my chemo haze I lent my ski equipment out to someone who stopped by the house to drop off food last winter and was going skiing and was going to have to rent equipment. The problem is I can not remember who I lent my equipment to. I have very little feet, so there are not many people who could fit into my boots. So maybe some of you could check your garage or basement and see if you have some extra downhill ski equipment floating around. The skiis are shaped Elans and the boots are new so I don't remember the brand. With that I also lent out my ski pants and a boot bag! I'm hoping they will turn up somewhere! I would love to get a little skiing in THIS winter! Thanks.

My own fund raising efforts.

Hello friends! It has been a long time since my last post. I apologize! It was a very tough summer and now that the boys have settled back into school, things are getting back to normal. I am hoping to get started with the radiation in a month or so. I'm back to teaching most of my classes and I am feeling GREAT! We had a great time on the walk in Exeter. I have done this walk many times in the past, but this time it was different. I guess I didn't really want to be walking as a survivor. It was very emotional and I appreciate all of you who were there supporting me. Thank you to all who donated to Making Strides. They raised an unbeleivable amount of money!!

I am embarking on a fund raiser of my own. This is really more of a grassroots effort. I want to give back to the medical community that has taken such good care of me. I am teaching a Zumba class followed by a Pilates class at Oyster River High School for the next 4 Saturdays.( beginning tomorrow). The proceeds will go to a different local organization each Saturday. I have chosen the Well-Fit exercise program- a three month, free, individualized exercise program for cancer patients as the first beneficiary. Beyond the Rainbow Foundation, the Women's Wellness Clinic and the Exeter Center for Cancer Care will be the other recipients. Zumba is 9-10am followed by Pilates 10-11 am. Any donation will be welcome and no donation is too small!! Please join me if you can. Kathy

Making Strides in Exeter with KC and the Sunshine Band

Kathy, family and friends joined the Clarks team K.C. and the Sunshine Band this morning for the Exeter Making Stides walk. Beautiful day, wonderful people, lots of pledges to help with breast cancer research - all good! Some photos from the day will be loaded later when some technical difficulties get resolved.

Many thanks to those who pledged and walked today.

Jennie

Making Strides

Dear coworkers, friends, and family,

This year, more than 250,230 women and men will hear the words, “You have breast cancer,” and there’s a good chance that some of them will be people we know and love. I have chosen to fight back against this disease and help make a difference by participating in the Oct. 19 American Cancer Society Making Strides Against Breast Cancer walk in Exeter, and I hope you will join me.

Making Strides Against Breast Cancer is our opportunity to honor and celebrate breast cancer survivors, educate women about early detection and prevention, and raise money to fund lifesaving research and support programs that help ease the burden of patients and their families. But Making Strides is more than just the name of a walk; it describes the amazing progress we can make if we work together to defeat a disease that 1 in 8 women will be diagnosed with in their lifetime.

Below is a link to my personal page. I hope you will visit my site and sign up to join my team. If you prefer, you can start your own team, sign up to walk as an individual, or make a donation. Hope starts with me and it can continue with you. Please join my team and walk with us to experience an incredible day of inspiration and meaning, and to provide hope for all people facing breast cancer, as well as the next generation.

To donate now, use http://main.acsevents.org/site/TR/MakingStridesAgainstBreastCancer/MSABCBlueprint?px=1208108&pg=personal&fr_id=11721

Sincerely,

Kathy Kerrigan

For cancer information 24/7, 365 days a year:
1.800.ACS(227).2345
http://www.cancer.org/
www.cancer.org/NEsupport

View the American Cancer Society Privacy Policy and State Fundraising Notices.

August Update

Apologies for the long delay in updating. Kathy has been on a bit of a roller coaster ride and I think I was just waiting for things to calm down a bit. Since the last post, she's been cleared of the MRSA, had her incision site restitched twice, she took a ride to the hospital in an ambulance with suspicious chest pain, and determined that what they thought might be a pulmonary embolism was most likely excruciating pain from her tissue expander being deflated (to help the incision heal.) That was the quick version of the last few weeks. I know it's been hard on Kathy and the whole family... It's never fun to watch the paramedics load your mother into an ambulance. But, thankfully, they are on vacation with the Kerrigans up in Maine and, I hope, relaxing and just enjoying each other. All they need - like the rest of us - is a little sunshine.

Improvements - baby steps

Kathy is doing a bit better. It looks like the infection is finally under control and the blood thinners are now the main focus. The clot has to disolve and the infections has to stay under control, and then they'll discuss when to start radiation- the last leg of this marathon. It may be possible that Kath can postpone the radiation until after they take their family vacation this summer. It would be nice for them all to kick back and have some fun.

Funny Boys and Healing

Abby and I went over to Kathy's today. She was released from the hospital on Friday night and has been taking it easy these last two days. The visiting nurses are keeping tabs on the clot and the meds with visits and blood tests. Kathy seemed in decent spirits when we got there, and then Jon and Sam came down and just started making us all laugh. They told us the nickname they have for Paul, told us some funny stories and just brought a lightness into the room that was good medicine for me, and I'm not dealing with what Kathy is. She clearly gets so much pleasure and joy from her children, little and big, and they are the best medicine.

Kathy is even more beautiful now than I can remember her being with long hair. I love her cute little G.I. Jane hair and I'm just happy to see her with a smile on her face. She's been through so many set-backs in the last month or so. The good news is that it appears that the infection is getting much better and there is no urgency to get the radiation started.

I know Kathy was so grateful to Dr. McGee, Dr. Marple and Dr. Itkin for their kindness and care over the last few days - maybe they'll read this and see how much it means to Kathy that they go out of their way to care for her as the whole person she is.