Driving the back, country roads to my own therapy appointment, I reveled in the beauty of fall as I listened to a podcast with Brene Brown, author of Daring Greatly. Brene was talking about how people struggle with painful experiences, but often talk about it afterwards by skipping the middle of the narrative. The story goes …
Spoons. Who would think that this simple table utensil would become such a part of my vocabulary. But it has thanks to Christine Miserandino. Christine, who has Lupus writes on her blog, “But You Don’t Look Sick” about her attempt to share what her life with Lupus is like with her best friend. Sitting quietly in a …
The moment my eyes popped open this morning I thought about how today was the beginning of a new time. For the first time in seven and a half years, I did not take a cancer drug this morning. Brightly colored supplements and vitamins, yes. The drug Tamoxifen, no. Today, I officially stop treatment. Nine …
“I don’t want you to be mad at me if I die too soon.” As the words tripped off my tongue, I felt something click inside. Boom. I had just given voice to my deepest fear. If I make the decision to stop treatment, will Brandi, Amber, and Brie be angry with me if I …
This past weekend brought more statements about John McCain’s cancer prognosis from his family. It was ripe with statements using words like “fight” and “battle”. This language seems consistent with Senator McCain’s history of military service and imprisonment at a Vietnamese POW camp. But aggressive language about cancer makes me feel uncomfortable. You know, uncomfortable …
This week has been an opportunity to reflect on how one responds when life says “no”. I was listening to a podcast with the late Maya Angelou and Oprah on yet another trip to and from the doctor’s office. Maya was discussing how she responds to life’s greatest disappointments with gratitude. “Thank you for firing …
My wise friend told me last week that she is going to make a T shirt for me that says, “Be careful what you say to me. I might blog about you.” This conversation took place after I ranted for a few minutes about thoughtless things people say to cancer patients. I had been on …
I am sitting here on Sunday evening and quietly reflecting on the past few days. Friday began with an amazing appointment with my oncologist, where Brandi and I learned that I am holding my own. There are no signs of new cancer in my kidney, uterus, or liver. The worst news I heard from the …
Sometimes I think my brain is totally emptied of any thought I would want to share with other human beings. I wonder if this is the end of writing this blog. And then life happens. Today life happened in my lymphedema support group meeting at the hospital. In case you are not aware of lymphedema, …
This week brought the sad news of Senator John McCain’s diagnosis of brain cancer. No matter what side of the political aisle people sit on, many used social media to wish the Senator well. I believe many of the tweets and posts were well intentioned when they described Senator McCain as “strong” or “a fighter”. …
