March 17

                Today was another busy day where there were a million things that needed to get done. The morning started off beautifully- Briana showed up with muffins and orange juice! I had several appointments that day and she willing volunteered to come with me as moral support, since Chase really needed to make an appearance at his engineering classes.

               . The majority of the day was spent running between hospitals and campus. I needed to do a blood test for the fertility clinic, get my birth control implant removed from my arm, fill out the paperwork for the foundation that would be providing me with my fertility medications, pick up my cap and gown from the grad fair, and go to class and meet with my professors to let them know what was going on.

                It was constant running all day long. There was hardly any time to even stop to eat as we hurried from one thing to the next. Briana was a gem and stayed with me all day, and came to all my classes. While we waited at the hospital for my blood test she even called to see if she could my birth control removal. Because I choose to do a progesterone implant in my arm as my birth control I had to have it removed by a doctor before we could begin the fertility preservation cycle. Waiting at the hospital also gave me time to fill out my paperwork for the fertility medicine, and drop the doctor’s part of the paperwork off at the oncology center.

                After blood work we went to another class, and then the grad school fair where I ordered my cap and gown. It was strange to be there with so many people who were only thinking about graduation, while I was worrying about so many other things. Then it was off to another class. Chase had a break and offered to scan and send in the paperwork we needed to for the fertility preservation foundation, while Briana and I were in class.

                After all the classes were over we went to visit with my professors. I knew that I was going to need some help and flexibility if I was going to be able to graduate in 6 weeks. The last thing I wanted to do was drop out of my classes this close to the end. I want to graduate, cancer or no cancer! Fortunately I have some wonderful professors who have been more than willing to work with me and have offered to help me in any way they can.

                I also went in to tell my department head that I would be stepping down as the president of AIS (Association for Information Systems), the club for our major. I was about to have so many thing to worry about I knew that I wouldn't be able to handle the club as well. It was already causing me stress before all the cancer stuff started, and I felt like I needed to eliminate as much of that as possible. He was very understanding and assured me that they would take care of everything and I just needed to focus on getting better. It was such a relief to hear that, and I am so lucky to have people around me who are more interested in me than they are about the logistical stuff.

                After talking to all my professors it was time to go to the last medical appointment of the day. Birth control removal. I called Chase before we left to see if he was interested in coming along, since he had been enjoying seeing all the medical procedures up to this point. He said he would meet us at the clinic. The clinic turned out to be more difficult to find than I had expected. There are two women’s centers in Logan. One in the hospital, and the other one in a building behind it. I didn't know that until I tried to check in to the wrong one and we had to go on a search for the other building. Luckily they were close together and we weren't too late for the appointment.

                Chase met up with us right before we went back and the process was going very smoothly. With just some local anesthetic they were able to do the whole procedure in the office. Just as they were finishing up I heard a funny sound. Because there weren't enough chairs Briana had been standing against the wall while the implant was cut out of my arm. The sound I was hearing was her, sliding down the wall in a dead faint. Fortunately she didn't fall forward or hurt herself, but the combination of a busy day with very little food, standing with her knees locked in the small and stuffy procedure room, and maybe the sight of the blood (Briana continues to maintain she is unaffected by blood and horrors) were just more than she could handle.

                Suddenly all the attention in the room was not on me, but on the crumpled heap in the corner that used to be my moral support. Chase helped her to a chair while they finished bandaging my arm. After a minute or two we asked Briana if she could get up and walk out. She insisted that she was fine and stood up, only to lose all the color from her face and go down again in the chair. Since I was done on the table, we decided to move Briana up there to lay down. The sweet nurses brought in some juice and crackers for her to sip on. It took a few more minutes for her to really come out of it. Once she did she wanted to know what happened and how she ended up on the table.  

                Chase and I could barely stop laughing long enough to explain what had happened. My strong moral supporter had fainted, and kicked me off the table to sip on juice. We ended up leaving the clinic with Briana on Chase’s arm, and me trailing behind, bandaged and laughing hysterically. The looks people gave us on the way out were priceless! I could tell they were trying to decide why one man came out with two women, all of them laughing. It was without a doubt the funniest moment I'd had in several days, and it felt good to laugh that hard.

                After a few more errands, like the grocery store, and picking up my new contacts, Briana headed for home. I can't believe how lucky I am to have such a wonderful and supportive friend. She knows that it is ok to laugh about what is going on, and that the best way to beat anything is with a positive attitude. Lucky for me she has positivity and energy to spare, which will come in handy in the days to come.

The last thing I had to do that evening was to go to our AIS club event. I knew I owed it to the guys that were there to explain my situation and why I wasn't going to be around much anymore in person. They have really made this club possible, because there is no way I could have done it on my own. Most of them were shocked, which is a pretty common reaction to this kind of news. Once they got over that they were all very understanding and supportive. They told me to not worry at all about anything other than recovering. I'm still trying to get used to how nice everyone is once they find you that you have cancer. Seriously, no one is mean to a cancer patient.