Here’s an update from A4D friend Tonya Kay. On April 1, 2020, Tonya was diagnosed with invasive lobular carcinoma, an uncommon type of breast cancer that has the potential to spread to the lymph nodes and other areas of the body.
This update is from September 17, 2022:
It’s been 9 weeks since my double mastectomy with same day implants and I’m feeling physically great! The doctor said 8 weeks, and almost to the day, the recovery was 8 weeks.
This was a resting recovery - not a rehabilitation recovery. I wasn’t ALLOWED to even take walks for six weeks. If you’d asked me at any of the 1-6 weeks points, I’d probably said there’s no way I’ll ever feel good again. But here I am week 9 and I’m back doing things I love!
The only thing I’m still working on athletically is range of motion. I’m missing about 3% in my pec area (which is probably either cadaver skin or other scar tissue that is shorter than my pecs). Anyone who isn’t a dancer/yogini wouldn’t even notice but in my hyper-mobile joints, I’m still limited and ouchy when I get to those edges movement wise. I DO expect to gain that last 3% back and probably quickly. BECAUSE…
I’m currently in Los Angeles participating in the Urban 728 Hot Yoga Teacher Training and Practice Intensive! It’s a 21-day program guided by Joe Komar. I can offer my experiences as a career dancer, a woman who experienced breast cancer, and my recovery from life-changing surgeries. If there’s anything I’ve learned through the last several years of trauma, it’s that I’m not alone.
Today I may be 97% recovered from these amputations, but that’s just the physical. Now my mind needs the healing. The body I existed in my whole life looks different. I don’t recognize my reflection.
Thank you, everybody, for being out there. You matter. I’ll check back always with any updates I think you might be interested in and of course after future scans and follow ups. With love, TK
Tonya has a Go Fund Me page to help with her expenses. Any size donation makes it possible for medical treatment for this amazing person who continues to fight through this most difficult challenge.
DONATE & READ TONYA’S FULL STORY HERE >
Donations toward this Go Fund Me page are going directly to Tonya through a 501(c)3 nonprofit, Kalopsia, so your donation is tax deductible.
Tonya in action in one of her many A4D videos. Use this image to watch.
