In shock

I dealt with it by using humour and also by using the mantra "this is treatable" as a way to persuade myself to go to appointments which I knew would involve things I didn't like and might cause me some pain. I do believe attitude is key to all this. I did feel, as many say, that it was happening to someone else, not me. I found out as much as I could, but did find that my questions were not answered at first, not until appointment with the actual Breast Surgeon. Use the Breast Cancer Nurses to get answers to things you don't understand. They will be able to look up the particular details of your case and help. After the operation I found every day brought a fresh challenge. Do not underestimate the operation itself - I was warned by the Nurses it was major surgery, but was floored by my weakness. This may have been because I developed a slow bleed (haematoma) and fainted more than once, which was awful when in public. So take it easy. Divert your attention during the waiting times for results and do nice things to compensate.

Hello.. Welcome.. i tried to keep busy.. its hard as its always at the back of your mind..Take it one day at a time.. I first got diagnosed on the 11th June.. So everything that your feeling ive been there.. If you need a friend to talk to, there are plenty of lovely women and men on this site.. Best wishesxx

Hi Big cat, I was called back for a mammogram assessment on 16th June and had a biopsy, they told me then but needed the biopsy to confirm, I just felt like I was in a very bad dream and wanted to wake up, I also couldn’t remember exactly what the surgeon said as it was such a blur, 2 1/2 weeks later I feel a bit more positive, i’ve seen the surgeon and talked to the breast care nurse and have been told what’s gonna happen next. I’ve been telling myself that’s it’s treatable and that there is nothing I could have done to prevent it and the only thing I can do is keep moving forward. I think it hit me worse when I went back for the biopsy results because even though I knew it was still such a shock. 
I have to have a lumpectomy and 5 days of radiotherapy 6-8 weeks after operation and take tamoxifen for 5-10 years, I had my pre-op on Tuesday so things are moving very fast.

My daughter who’s 27 just said I have squatters in my boob and they need to be evicted which made me laugh.

Take care

Diane x

Thank you

Hi Big cat

Welcome to,the forum and sorry to hear that you have been diagnosed with breast cancer. I coped by keeping myself busy doing the things I love and by telling myself that mine was caught early and that I would be ok.

Wishing you the best of luck with whatever treatments your medical team puts you on.

Best wishes

Daisy53

Massive thank you for that advice . I love my sewing so will throw myself into that for a start. X

Welcome. Your story sounds similar to me and the waiting game is hard but keeping yourself busy is a good distraction. Things happened fast for me too (click my name to read bio). I think I tried to do a bit much at first after surgery and am learning to take things a bit easier. I keep telling myself that I was glad I didn't ignore it, I've been lucky it was caught early and it is treatable. Your breast  care nurse should be able to help. I did look at macmillan site to explain things but I do advise you not to Google info as it can be a bit much and it is already a lot to take in. There is a radiotherapy page as well as an awake thread that may help you too. I'm not ashamed to say the first days following diagnosis was a blur of tears and not a lot of sleep but thats just the way I coped. Please post and let us know how you get on. 

Thank you - I am determined to stay positive

You do sound very positive - thought of something else ----don't think you're being silly by asking the medical staff questions more than once if you've not understood - depends how complex your medical problem is. My Breast Surgeon likes to draw pictures - both on paper and on my body with her purple pen. All of this has been way out of my comfort zone, so a very fast learning curve and often I got the wrong end of the stick entirely - I laughed when she pointed out to me the thing I was looking at on her diagram was not the tumour but the nipple - it's a long old "journey" - I don't like that particular word, but I coped by pretending to myself that it was just a temporary quick thing to deal with. I know I'm kidding myself, but it helps me to think I'm coping just with something temporary. In truth, for me it has been a series of small stages. I'm a person who likes to research and know what I'm up against, so in a way I find it an interesting process to find out about things like the lymphatic system etc etc. and do the best I can to help myself get through this unexpected rough time.

• I've just been diagnosed with breast cancer too after finding a lump. I'm all over the place too. After having an MRI another lump has been found so now have to go back for another ultra sound and biopsy. This will determine if the op will be a lumpectomy or mastectomy. I thought I was coping relatively well until  I woke up the other morning in a panic.