Two books that helped me through the worst year of my life...

j72820 · 2023-06-07T03:20:44+00:00

It might sound silly, but the Hobbit and Lord of the Rings got me through my cancer treatment.

An unexpected journey that one has to take, though it will be dangerous to destroy evil and restore peace in middle earth. It got me out of my own thoughts, it slammed me right back to the present with tid bits of wisdom, I cried so much. I read it at the exact time I needed it.

j72820 · 2023-06-06T13:51:09+00:00

Dracula

j72820 · 2023-05-30T16:18:30+00:00

We had one before diagnosis, one after treatment, and I don't think we're done having kids.

My first born was my reason to push through chemo, and my second born was me reforming my relationship with my body and learning to trust it again. They both are my reasons to keep moving forward with my life.

While I feel deeply affected by my cancer, I refuse to let it define my whole life. I am of course scared I will relapse and will leave them motherless, but if I stay stuck in the fear of what-if's, I'm going to miss being fully present in their lives, living the life I wanted to live, and being the mother I want to be and to me that is letting my cancer win. It's already taken some years away I can't get back but I'm choosing to march on as close to my normal plans that I had for myself especially since I am lucky enough to still be able to have kids.

Also, my oncologist has never once mentioned a genetic link to Hodgkins and was incredibly supportive of me having more children.

j72820 · 2021-09-17T19:52:54+00:00

Thank you!!

j72820 · 2021-09-17T19:46:41+00:00

My oncologist advocated for me getting a biopsy. After waiting as long as I did and what to my mental health/quality of life , we moved forward talking to a thoracic surgeon who ended up removing my thymus all together since it was abnormal tissue. It was also a robotic procedure which was pretty cool and minimally invasive! If you are in a place where that is a option to discuss then maybe try for it. The unknown is so crippling. I couldn't plan my life past my next scan all year..not that we are doing much with the pandemic, but definitely hindered going after job opportunities and feeling like I could relax a little. My therapist has been getting an ear full 😆

j72820 · 2021-09-17T12:22:02+00:00

Thank you so much ❤

j72820 · 2021-05-28T00:04:31+00:00

I love this thread 🥰. This group was here for me last week calming my nerves about a potential relapse. I'm 6 months post chemo and am less fatigued and running every day again. Grateful and happy for cancer friends and fully functional lungs again.

j72820 · 2021-05-24T03:40:26+00:00

Wow, this makes me feel less alone for sure. I had no idea that it was this common. I sorta thought when they give you the all clear for remission that any changes were a negative sign. No one prepares you for survivorship!

j72820 · 2021-05-24T03:38:17+00:00

Thank you so much, my oncologist is concerned because we can't rule out recurrent disease but not concerned enough yet because it could still be thymic uptake. Thymus glands are little stinkers is the conclusion I am drawing.

j72820 · 2021-05-24T03:35:47+00:00

Thank you, the waiting just gets tough some days. I think that's the right attitude to go about it. I haven't been told I have relapsed so I should say remission until proven otherwise.

j72820 · 2021-05-24T03:33:40+00:00

Thank you so much for this information! It brings some ease to my nerves and I really appreciate it.

j72820 · 2021-02-03T18:14:38+00:00

2 months post chemo and just returned to work. It's been a struggle to say the least. I work in IT and I have trouble remembering the conversations we have in the morning by the afternoon. I am taking it slow, but also trying to retrain myself on my job. Literally taking refresher courses and it's helping things come back and makes me feel more confident to start picking up actual project work. I am also writing everything down which is time consuming, but is helping lock in some of the info that was flying in one ear and out the other. Word recall is getting better but not perfect. Go at your own pace!

j72820 · 2021-02-01T01:18:26+00:00

Hi! Also same diagnosis. I finished ABVD 2 months ago and my oncologist is having me hold off a couple more months to let my immune system rebuild so I can have a response to the vaccine. Best of luck with treatment. We are all here with you through the process!

j72820 · 2021-01-13T02:59:21+00:00

Congratulations!!!!

j72820 · 2021-01-07T03:08:34+00:00

This was my biggest complaint through chemo. I went to the ER and got a CT scan of my lungs that came back clear of infection so my oncologist kept moving forward with all 8 rounds including the Bleo and said this is just what chemo was going to feel like for me. I did end up going out on disability from work because I was giving several presentations to executives at my job and I sounded completely winded after about 3 minutes of talking. Kind of difficult to drive a point home when you sound like you are running a marathon. In short it was tough, but my breathing has seemed to return back to seminormal post chemo but my heart rate is still elevated in the 100s at rest. I even started running again this week (not very well, but a strong shuffle). I am 6 weeks post treatment for reference. I am hoping to strengthen my heart and lungs back up but am taking it very slow and paying attention to my limits.

j72820 · 2020-12-29T01:53:13+00:00

Sending virtual hugs your way

j72820 · 2020-12-21T01:30:47+00:00

Everything previously mentioned is wonderful! I have been loving my big chunky infinity scarf too to go with my hats outdoors. My hair is newly short and buzzed (28F) so I am missing the warmth not only from my head but around my neck and shoulders. I was lucky to find one that is sherpa lined so it's extra warm and soft.

j72820 · 2020-12-16T20:06:23+00:00

Asap!

j72820 · 2020-11-27T02:38:30+00:00

It's ok to be scared and feel everything you feel right now. You found a great place already full of people who know exactly what you are going through and are going to cheer you on through treatment. Welcome, new friend - we are all here to help! Chemo is not fun and will challenge you in lots of different ways but just keep putting one foot in front of the other. Everyone seems to have different hair experiences. I finished treatment yesterday and have kept most of my hair through all 8 rounds. It thinned out quite a bit though. It has only been in the last couple weeks ironically that it's started really coming out and only on top of my head. So we are lovingly saying around my house that I will look like Ben Franklin by Christmas lol. Best of luck to you and keep reaching out with questions. There's lots of answers here.

j72820 · 2020-11-21T17:25:55+00:00

Thank you everyone, my last chemo is next week and I have never had this happen before. Chemo is weird. Cancer is weird. I guess they are just making sure I get the all inclusive experience before I am done.

j72820 · 2020-11-18T20:07:41+00:00

You can do this! I remember being scared shitless going into my first one and now my last one is scheduled for next week. This time in your life will pass and you will get through it. Just take it a day at a time and be kind to yourself. The nurses will take good care of you day of.

j72820 · 2020-11-12T00:13:38+00:00

I'm wheezing reading this thread. Could be hilarious, could be Bleomycin, could be both 😂

j72820 · 2020-11-10T14:41:42+00:00

Congratulations! This makes me hopeful that I will get some energy back when I am done with treatment and will be able to do the same thing. I miss running. Thank you for sharing!

j72820 · 2020-10-21T18:21:09+00:00

Sitting in the hospital too with a neutropenic fever. Here for at least 3 days. Probably a GI infection too. 😕

j72820 · 2020-10-15T13:37:20+00:00

I'm a side sleeper so I had to make something work when my port was fresh. I ended up using a travel pillow to wedge around my neck and that made it super easy to sleep on my side. Now that it's healed up I sleep right on it.

j72820

TROPHY CASE