Shermance's Cancer Fight: Return from Hygienist Conference

Shermance returned from her mega-weekend at the Texas Dental Hygienist Association (TDHA) convention with load of goodies and lots of great stories. She overdid it at the vendor corral – with necklaces and all things with bling. She is dangerous there!

Among the notable stories was one while she was shopping in the vendor corral. One of the vendors, noticing Shermance’s short spiked hair engaged in a conversation about her cancer. She was so touched by Shermance’s story that she gave her some earrings with the cancer ribbon on them. It brought tears to Shermance’s eyes just how generous people have been for her throughout this struggle. There have been highs and lows throughout, but the wonderful people have lifted her up throughout.

Another touching story was from the silent auction to raise money for the association. Shermance hadn’t given much thought to what she might donate, until it dawned on her that she had a hand-made necklace from a dear woman at church. The necklace was pink with a breast cancer theme and a stone cross that looked like white marble. Shermance thought it might bring in $20-$30 for the organization, and every bit counts. At the auction, bids jumped quickly and a bidding war ensued. There was lots of excitement for the necklace and for support of Shermance. It climbed over $100 and kept going. It surpassed $200. As the dollar amounts increased, so did Shermance’s astonishment at the generosity and love in the room. It kept going above $300 and finally settled at a whopping $350. The dear woman who bought the necklace was beaming to have won it and proudly took a picture with Shermance. As Shermance walked up to deliver the necklace she receive a standing ovation from the packed room. It’s one of the moments in life she’ll never forget. Hugs and love filled theroom.

Although it was an amazing weekend, Shermance pushed herself too much. She had grown used to going to sleep by 9:30 and getting lots of rest to help her recover from her chemo. Over the weekend she stayed up past 11:30 as she enjoyed the dinner and festivities with her girls. They had a pajama party and made Smore’s, They had hula hoop contests and shared stories…And they laughed. It was great medicine for Shermance after long days of discussing legislation and next steps for the committee she leads. She was in heaven and didn’t realize how sapped she was for energy. The last night made it even worse when the alarm sounded-off at 2:30 in the morning at the San Marcos Embassy Suites hotel.

Shermance had taken 2 sleeping pills to get her through the night (because the chemo makes her anxioux) so she was extra groggy when her roommate tried to get her up. She tried 3 times to sleep through the alarm by pushing her earplugs in further and snuggling in, but after some insistence she got up. The hotel lobby said not to worry, but as the fire trucks showed up she knew she needed to get out. Once outside they didn’t see smoke but it smelled sort of like natural gas. They never told her what happened, but she didn’t get back to bed till after 4 am. Uugh. So much for slepp.

So when she got home on Sunday she crashed while the rest of our family and her parents had a marathon MIB movie session. Mimi and Boppa bought MIB #1 and #2 so the kids could follow the saga before watching #3. We stopped after 2 because Logan had some homework. It took Shermance napping much of the day Sunday and sleeping early through the week to catch-up on her sleep

On Monday, Shermance had her perfomance review at the end of the work day. She was a bit aprehensive about it because of her lost days, but the owners of the business were completely understanding and have been very willing to work with her through the treatment. In addition, they were gushing about how much positive energy she has brought into their practice, and appreciate the new ideas she's brought in. They were amazed at her depth of knowledge and skills after just one year out of school. Shermance finally felt an integral part of the Trade Wind Dental family, as opposed to just the new kid.