No nodules, thanks very much but I know the dread of waiting for Fran’s scan results.
Instead I took your express train back to Lucy, (maybe 4) my first love—the daughter of the “super” in the next Brooklyn building.
We didn’t marry—Ashkenazy Jewish and Italian Catholic—but she asked me to “tea” with her new plastic tea set at her “house” where she lived in the next building’s basement
Her silky dress and tea set were both milky green. Her eyes were brown.
We sat on the floor, drank water in cups and pretended to eat cake. Delicious.
Her mustachioed father smiled down on us as her mother served him red spaghetti and purple wine.
Her mother said “finish playing, his mother might be worried”.
I caught shit when I got home. “Those people are dirty!”
I never saw Lucy again but my first wife Lyn was Italian-American. Her dad, a Dean at Columbia, still cooked pasta on Sundays.
My memories of childhood marriage (2nd grade) involved me marrying Paul McCartney with my baby doll (our child) as part of the ceremony while my best friend married John Lennon (she had several baby dolls with him).
I am someone who was diagnosed with thyroid cancer at age 42 and had my thyroid removed. They often say if you're going to have cancer, thyroid cancer is the most treatable and survivable (98.4%). To be honest, I've taken thyroid medication ever since (age 70 now) and essentially have had 0 problems.
You may already be aware that they don't always do surgical removal of thyroid nodules now; instead opting for radiofrequency ablation:
Love the Beatles-adjacent childhood wedding. Thanks for sharing about your thyroid cancer and treatment. It’s all so encouraging to hear. And thanks for the good wishes. <3
Yup. I have some nodules, too. In fact, I see my endocrinologist next week for another sonogram. I sure hope I never get a needle in my neck. That sounds terrible, Sari. Let us know how you make out in December. xoxox
I had thyroid nodules in 2024. The biopsy was unclear. At that time, the standard practice was to remove the thyroid (!?!), which they did to me. Turns out, they were noncancerous. Nowadays, they wisely watch and wait. I would advise 2 things: 1) take this as a sign to clean up your diet and improve your lifestyle with exercise, etc. 2) if they do operate and remove all or part of your thyroid, take natural desiccated thyroid (NDT) medicine derived frim pig thyroid. I take Armour, after taking levothyroxine only for over 10 years.You need all 5 hormones present in a thyroid. It made a world of difference, and I would never go back. Endocrinologists do not like to prescribe NDT. Pharmaceutical companies do not make lots of $$ on this. It took 3 different doctors to finally prescribe it for me. Also, make sure to get a full thyroid panel when you do labs--not just TSH. Check out stopthethyroidmadness.com. It's a patient-led site with the best info I was able to find. Hope this helps.
Oh yah! I can relate. Twice. Not thyroid nodules, but breast lump biopsies. No breast cancer runs in my family, but waiting for those results was nerve-wracking anyway. My husband's first wife died of breast cancer at the age of 40 years and 2 weeks. Whenever I get to fretting about aging, my sweet man reminds me that not everyone gets that chance. So yah, worry away, Sister! We can all relate. In the mean time, celebrate every day we have on this beautiful blue planet, whether there be body nodules, or bigger, more sinister worldly malignancies. If Tuesday's election results are any indication, we can irradiate those too!
No nodules for me, but the bodily surprises come thick and fast. Traitorous back, wobbly memory, lingering fear that one wrong turn will end my ski career. All reminders to celebrate my ableism while I can, and look for the less aggro pursuits that will occupy my mind when I can’t go go GO all the time. Thank goodness I discovered drawing, or I’d have to go out and stand in frigid rivers to fly fish. Or…oh god…take up golf again!
If it cost $1500 a few years ago, it's probably $2200 now, so that's something! I'm in the same boat, other end of the body, just having had a hysteroscopy and waiting for results. ($3200 plus the ultrasound and biopsy, $6500 deductible/$7500 out of pocket max here, oof) Hope everything goes smoothly and it's all expensive for nothing, for both of us!
When the doctor said, "Well, good news, you can have the ultrasound and your knee X-ray at the same time!" I said, "Does that say 'You're over 50,' or what?"
How I loved Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman. I was too young for it, and didn't really get it, but I was drawn to it all the same.
I once had to have 3 biopsies because they didn't get enough the first two $#!&ing times. The third time, the doctor (a different one, the head of the department) said they should've done the biopsy *this* way the first times. Oy. Hope all is well.
THREE times! Wow. I think they need to figure out how do to the biopsies right before subjecting us to torture, and also charging us for it. I was also too young to get most of the humor of Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman. We tried watching it a few years ago, and the storytelling pace was painfully slow.
I love your Huck wedding(s) stories and pics! My favorite line? "For some reason we both wore my mother’s nightgowns." And thanks for linking to my essay. Sorry to hear about the thyroid problems--ouch.
The biopsy of my thyroid nodule took place in the hallway of a hospital lab because they were "overbooked" that day. Imagine trying to stay very still while someone sticks a huge needle into your neck and other people are walking by, potential jostling the arm of the guy with the huge needle. (At least I was given a topical anesthetic.)
Mine was found to be benign, but that news came many weeks after a sonogram tech asked "Whoa, have you had this thing biopsied?" At which point I had not--which made the biopsy experience all the more enjoyable.
Felt weird to hit the like button at the bottom of that one. I wanted to hit the double thumbs down. Some emoji version of “Ptoo ptoo ptoo.” I don’t like thinking of people poking holes in your neck. Hope you get good results soon! ❤️🩹
Sari, Sorry about the nodules but holding positive thoughts for you! I hate costumes, especially when I was teahing but was expectedd to have one. So I dressed in black slacks and shirt with an oversized Candy Corn pinned to it and wore orange, yellow, and white rubber bracelets. I went as a "Candy Corn". That costume was always popular since I carriedd a pumpkin full of small, individually wrapped candy corn. Fondly, Michael
I had to have a thyroid biopsy about 15 years ago, Sari, which resulted in a hemithyroidectomy. It was a fast-growing Hurthl cell adenoma, thankfully benign, and I've been fine since. The other half of my thyroid compensated, so I haven't needed to take thyroxine. I feel lucky that that was investigated and treated on the NHS in the UK.
No nodules, thanks very much but I know the dread of waiting for Fran’s scan results.
Instead I took your express train back to Lucy, (maybe 4) my first love—the daughter of the “super” in the next Brooklyn building.
We didn’t marry—Ashkenazy Jewish and Italian Catholic—but she asked me to “tea” with her new plastic tea set at her “house” where she lived in the next building’s basement
Her silky dress and tea set were both milky green. Her eyes were brown.
We sat on the floor, drank water in cups and pretended to eat cake. Delicious.
Her mustachioed father smiled down on us as her mother served him red spaghetti and purple wine.
Her mother said “finish playing, his mother might be worried”.
I caught shit when I got home. “Those people are dirty!”
I never saw Lucy again but my first wife Lyn was Italian-American. Her dad, a Dean at Columbia, still cooked pasta on Sundays.
That didn’t last either.
Love these memories. Thanks for sharing, Irwin.
My memories of childhood marriage (2nd grade) involved me marrying Paul McCartney with my baby doll (our child) as part of the ceremony while my best friend married John Lennon (she had several baby dolls with him).
I am someone who was diagnosed with thyroid cancer at age 42 and had my thyroid removed. They often say if you're going to have cancer, thyroid cancer is the most treatable and survivable (98.4%). To be honest, I've taken thyroid medication ever since (age 70 now) and essentially have had 0 problems.
You may already be aware that they don't always do surgical removal of thyroid nodules now; instead opting for radiofrequency ablation:
https://columbiasurgery.org/news/new-interventional-techniques-eliminate-need-thyroid-surgery-nearly-one-third-patients-nodules
Needle biopsies are not pleasant. I hope yours is easier this time with good results to celebrate.
Love the Beatles-adjacent childhood wedding. Thanks for sharing about your thyroid cancer and treatment. It’s all so encouraging to hear. And thanks for the good wishes. <3
Yup. I have some nodules, too. In fact, I see my endocrinologist next week for another sonogram. I sure hope I never get a needle in my neck. That sounds terrible, Sari. Let us know how you make out in December. xoxox
Thanks, Cathy! Good luck with yours, and I hope you never encounter the needle!
I had thyroid nodules in 2024. The biopsy was unclear. At that time, the standard practice was to remove the thyroid (!?!), which they did to me. Turns out, they were noncancerous. Nowadays, they wisely watch and wait. I would advise 2 things: 1) take this as a sign to clean up your diet and improve your lifestyle with exercise, etc. 2) if they do operate and remove all or part of your thyroid, take natural desiccated thyroid (NDT) medicine derived frim pig thyroid. I take Armour, after taking levothyroxine only for over 10 years.You need all 5 hormones present in a thyroid. It made a world of difference, and I would never go back. Endocrinologists do not like to prescribe NDT. Pharmaceutical companies do not make lots of $$ on this. It took 3 different doctors to finally prescribe it for me. Also, make sure to get a full thyroid panel when you do labs--not just TSH. Check out stopthethyroidmadness.com. It's a patient-led site with the best info I was able to find. Hope this helps.
Thanks so much, Alexandra!
Love those weddings! Sadly there are still states in this country that allow minor girls to marry
Thank you! And, yeah, that's unbelievably messed up.
Oh yah! I can relate. Twice. Not thyroid nodules, but breast lump biopsies. No breast cancer runs in my family, but waiting for those results was nerve-wracking anyway. My husband's first wife died of breast cancer at the age of 40 years and 2 weeks. Whenever I get to fretting about aging, my sweet man reminds me that not everyone gets that chance. So yah, worry away, Sister! We can all relate. In the mean time, celebrate every day we have on this beautiful blue planet, whether there be body nodules, or bigger, more sinister worldly malignancies. If Tuesday's election results are any indication, we can irradiate those too!
Yes! Tuesday's election results have buoyed me. And also yes: aging is a privilege, and I'm doing my best to appreciate every day I'm alive. <3
Thyroid nodules, yes. But I did get a result (negative) from the biopsy. Synthoid since my forties.
Thanks, Victoria.
No nodules for me, but the bodily surprises come thick and fast. Traitorous back, wobbly memory, lingering fear that one wrong turn will end my ski career. All reminders to celebrate my ableism while I can, and look for the less aggro pursuits that will occupy my mind when I can’t go go GO all the time. Thank goodness I discovered drawing, or I’d have to go out and stand in frigid rivers to fly fish. Or…oh god…take up golf again!
😂
If it cost $1500 a few years ago, it's probably $2200 now, so that's something! I'm in the same boat, other end of the body, just having had a hysteroscopy and waiting for results. ($3200 plus the ultrasound and biopsy, $6500 deductible/$7500 out of pocket max here, oof) Hope everything goes smoothly and it's all expensive for nothing, for both of us!
Ouch! Good luck with all of that. Thanks for sharing here.
When the doctor said, "Well, good news, you can have the ultrasound and your knee X-ray at the same time!" I said, "Does that say 'You're over 50,' or what?"
Hilarious.
How I loved Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman. I was too young for it, and didn't really get it, but I was drawn to it all the same.
I once had to have 3 biopsies because they didn't get enough the first two $#!&ing times. The third time, the doctor (a different one, the head of the department) said they should've done the biopsy *this* way the first times. Oy. Hope all is well.
THREE times! Wow. I think they need to figure out how do to the biopsies right before subjecting us to torture, and also charging us for it. I was also too young to get most of the humor of Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman. We tried watching it a few years ago, and the storytelling pace was painfully slow.
I love your Huck wedding(s) stories and pics! My favorite line? "For some reason we both wore my mother’s nightgowns." And thanks for linking to my essay. Sorry to hear about the thyroid problems--ouch.
Thanks, Vincent!
Loved your childhood weddings. Pretend is such a huge and wonderful part of being a kid.
Yes, I was big into make-believe. :)
The biopsy of my thyroid nodule took place in the hallway of a hospital lab because they were "overbooked" that day. Imagine trying to stay very still while someone sticks a huge needle into your neck and other people are walking by, potential jostling the arm of the guy with the huge needle. (At least I was given a topical anesthetic.)
Mine was found to be benign, but that news came many weeks after a sonogram tech asked "Whoa, have you had this thing biopsied?" At which point I had not--which made the biopsy experience all the more enjoyable.
Oh, that sounds awful. Both experiences. Thanks for sharing, Pam.
Felt weird to hit the like button at the bottom of that one. I wanted to hit the double thumbs down. Some emoji version of “Ptoo ptoo ptoo.” I don’t like thinking of people poking holes in your neck. Hope you get good results soon! ❤️🩹
Sari, Sorry about the nodules but holding positive thoughts for you! I hate costumes, especially when I was teahing but was expectedd to have one. So I dressed in black slacks and shirt with an oversized Candy Corn pinned to it and wore orange, yellow, and white rubber bracelets. I went as a "Candy Corn". That costume was always popular since I carriedd a pumpkin full of small, individually wrapped candy corn. Fondly, Michael
I had to have a thyroid biopsy about 15 years ago, Sari, which resulted in a hemithyroidectomy. It was a fast-growing Hurthl cell adenoma, thankfully benign, and I've been fine since. The other half of my thyroid compensated, so I haven't needed to take thyroxine. I feel lucky that that was investigated and treated on the NHS in the UK.