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Writer. Editor. Tired Person.

Laura Anne Gilman

Darkly HumanCollaredCover of Silver on the Road by L A GilmanDragon Viruscover for Sylvan Investigations - Miles To Go
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        • Retrievers #1: Staying Dead
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        • EXCERPT: Staying Dead
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      • Visiting Ground Zero

The State of the Meerkat: 8 Weeks Gone

Laura Anne January 19, 2020

After the surgery to remove Slimer, I was told that I’d  start to feel normal again around the eight week mark.

What they didn’t tell me was that this would be  the “new” normal.

Yeah, I’m getting better. Life has resumed – day-job, mild socializing, wearing jeans (this was a BIG deal, people!  I’d been restricted to soft-waistband leggings and pjs for EIGHT WEEKS!).  I’m even cleared to go back to the gym next week, so long as I keep it to a moderate walk on the treadmill, and light weights/lo reps.

But the road’s got a lot of miles yet to unroll.  I’ve spent the past few weeks adjusting for an almost total loss of core muscle strength, not to mention adjusting to surgical menopause (helLO hot flashes!).  I couldn’t sleep on my side or back until just last week.  I’m still easily exhausted, and you probably don’t want to know about my lingering digestive issues.  And those issues are requiring a new and very different way of interacting with food (damn it).

And last Wednesday, 8 weeks after I came out of surgery almost to the hour, a series of sharp, stabbing pains sent me back to Urgent Care, and another $$$ CT scan. Because my surgeon warned me not to fuck around with Those Pains, and paranoia is now a survival skill.

The scan didn’t show anything actionable, just a few things to keep an eye on (adhesions, oh yay!), and yet another adjustment to my diet.  But it drove home  yet again the knowledge that this isn’t a one-and-done, that “five year plan” doesn’t mean career goals, but life.  And when people say “I’m glad you’ve healed up!” there’s part of me that smiles and says thank you, and part of me that thinks, “I’m fucking not done, not yet.”  I still can’t make any long-term (or even short-term) plans, although I plan to be at Norwescon, and I’ve rolled the dice and signed up for the Nebula Awards Weekend this spring down in Los Angeles.  Beyond that, it’s a week-to-week mystery.

On the amusing side, I got to explain about appendiceal cancer and  HIPEC to my attending doctor in the ER, so that was fun.  Yes, the darker side of my humor is definitely getting a workout….

I meet with the oncology specialist in a week. Hopefully after that we’ll have a more definite game plan.

 

 


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Posted in Latest News, the (alleged) real world
Tagged cancer, state of the meerkat
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Next Post: The State of the Meerkat: Out of the Fire and Onto the Chafing Dish
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  • Laura Anne Gilman

        • The Complete Sylvan Investigations
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        • Finder’s Keeper
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        • An Interrupted Cry

        • Miles to Go
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      • The Devil's West

        • WEST WINDS’ FOOL and Other Stories of the Devil’s West
        • Silver on the Road
        • The Cold Eye
        • Red Waters Rising
        • GABRIEL'S ROAD: a novella of the Devil's West

      • Paranormal Scene Investigations

        • Hard Magic
        • Pack of Lies
        • Tricks of the Trade
        • Dragon Justice
      • The Vineart War Trilogy

        • Book 1:Flesh & Fire
        • Book 2:Weight of Stone
        • Book 3: The Shattered Vine
      • Retrievers Series

        • Retrievers #1: Staying Dead
        • Retrievers #2: Curse the Dark
        • Retrievers #3: Bring It On
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        • Book 5:Free Fall
        • Book 6: Blood From Stone
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        • Soul of Fire
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    Copyright © 2021 Laura Anne Gilman.

    • Home
    • Books
      ▼
      • The Devil’s West
        ▼
        • Silver on the Road
        • The Cold Eye
        • Red Waters Rising
        • GABRIEL’S ROAD: a novella of the Devil’s West
        • WEST WINDS’ FOOL and Other Stories of the Devil’s West
      • The Cosa Nostradamus Stories
        ▼
        • Lightning Strikes: Stories of the Cosa Nostradamus
        • Retrievers Series
          ▼
          • Retrievers #1: Staying Dead
          • Retrievers #2: Curse the Dark
          • Retrievers #3: Bring It On
          • Book #4: Burning Bridges
          • Book 5:Free Fall
          • Book 6: Blood From Stone
        • Paranormal Scene Investigations
          ▼
          • Hard Magic
          • Pack of Lies
          • Tricks of the Trade
          • Dragon Justice
        • The Complete Sylvan Investigations
        • Cosa Nostradamus F.A.Q. (updated 5/2019)
        • Excerpts…
          ▼
          • EXCERPT: Staying Dead
          • EXCERPT: Curse the Dark
          • Excerpt: DRAGON JUSTICE (PSI #4)
          • EXCERPT: Burning Bridges
          • EXCERPT:Free Fall
      • L.A. Kornetsky
        ▼
        • The Gin & Tonic Mysteries
          ▼
          • Collared
          • Fixed
          • Doghouse
          • Clawed
      • The Vineart War Trilogy
        ▼
        • Book 1:Flesh & Fire
        • Book 2:Weight of Stone
        • Book 3: The Shattered Vine
      • Other Works
        ▼
        • I Have Strong Opinions
        • Finder’s Keeper
        • The Collected Cases of Duchess, PI
        • Darkly Human
        • Dragon Virus
        • The Portals Duology
          ▼
          • Heart of Briar
          • EXCERPT: Heart of Briar
          • Soul of Fire
        • Short Fiction
        • Practical Meerkat’s 52 Bits of Useful Information for Young (And Old) Writers
        • From Whence You Came
      • Foreign Edition Information
      • Where The Books Are (direct buying links)
    • Signings and Appearances
      ▼
      • 2019 events
    • Contact Info & Publicity
      ▼
      • About the Author
      • Publicity/Publisher Inquiries
      • Mailing List
    • Social Media
      ▼
      • On the Blog
      • Twitter
      • Tumblr
      • Facebook
      • Mastodon
      • Pillowfort
    • Links
      ▼
      • LAG @ Curious Fictions
      • D.Y.M.K. Writing & Editorial Services
      • Where The Books Are (direct buying links)
      • Sundry Silliness
        ▼
        • Anything for Love (But I Won’t Do That)
        • A Contracts Line: The Musical – “One”
        • Under Deadline
        • Number One on the New York Times
        • “She’s Tired (agent’s remix)
        • The Hunting of the Catnap Vibe (with apologies to Lewis Carroll)
        • Written on the Occasion of a Book-Birthday
        • The Writer’s Psalm
        • The Tasty Goatherd
        • Sonnet 139 (the Cannabis Remix)
      • 9/11 Memories
        ▼
        • Observations and Trauma
        • Aftershocks
        • Giving Blood
        • Visiting Ground Zero