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A monthly newsletter for
cancer patients and those that support them, including |
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Announcement: See my article in the May/June issue of Coping with Cancer Magazine, page 14! Article: "Change Doesn't Change" We Were Featured in The Wall Street Journal!
Cancer humor from the trenches
This and that
Meanwhile, back at the ranch... About the Caring and Coping Newsletter Please forward us to everyone you know who is a patient, caregiver, survivor, or medical professional. (Be sure they know it's from you, though; I don't want them to think I spammed 'em!) Patients/caregivers: please tell your doctors, nurses, family, and friends about us! Medical professionals: please tell your patients and colleagues about us! |
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Article: "Change Doesn't Change" Part of the stress of cancer, at least for us, is going to unfamiliar places and finding our way around, learning where to park, how long it will take to get there, places to eat, etc. Sometimes merely finding a doctor’s office is a challenge in itself; down the hall, turn left, then right, then left again to a bank of elevators, go to the 3rd floor, turn right, then left, and it’s the 5th door on the left. Been there? At first we had to find a doctor’s office behind a market, then go to the hospital for blood tests which was down a very busy street and through a busier intersection. Left turn into the parking lot (note to self: that left turn took forever, so next time we have to go a different way so it’s a right turn instead). To park we had to go past the kiosk, get our ticket, be careful not to park in the doctor’s lot, and so forth. Next: find the lab in a large metropolitan hospital. What? There are four labs? Which one are we supposed to use? Oh, no; I forgot to bring the parking ticket to be validated… I didn’t know! Then it was off to the pharmacy, down the block, the parking lot was being repaved, when we tried to turn around we were on a one-way street going the wrong way, which lead us to another one-way street going the wrong way and so on. When we went for the second opinion there was a whole new set of new places to find, construction, traffic jams; it goes on and on. I’m not a wuss; I can handle finding my way around new places! But when you consider the added stress of Chris (my wife) having cancer and all of the new responsibilities on my head, it was a new stress that I didn’t need. It occurred to me one day while finding a parking place at the umpteenth facility in our cancer journey that no matter how convoluted and complex the surroundings, you soon get comfortable in each new place. You discover where the vending machines are, where the bathrooms are, the traffic patterns, etc., and you even get to know some of the people. All of a sudden the next new place seems normal. We became comfortable with our first doctor and hospital. We went for our second opinion to a large university medical center and learned our way around there. Then we moved to there permanently for treatment and things soon became normal again. The surgery was in the medical center, so there was a new regimen to learn, but that, too, became normal. Chemo was about 3 miles away, so there was another change of scene. Parking was $9 so we learned the side streets and where we could and couldn’t park. It wasn’t long until we were comfortable there too. Then, because of geography and the distances involved, we had to start all over again for radiation treatments. And then THAT became normal and comfortable. Here’s the point. No matter what facility you’re in, the “newness” goes away and you get comfortable in your new surroundings. Always. The next time you have to “learn” a new facility and you feel even the slightest anxiety about it, try to remember that. |
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Cancer humor from
the trenches ...from audiences, readers, and me! In a recent discussion with a oncology nurse navigator in Richmond, Virginia she told me about one of her patients who wore a number of creative hats to her chemo infusions. Picture this: a refined, elderly lady in... dreadlocks!! |
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Last month I mentioned visiting the Space Coast Cancer Center in Titusville, FL and I wanted to share something that I learned there that was absolutely astounding. Dr. Levine was proudly showing me his new GE light speed PET/CT diagnostic imaging machine. He told me that it takes one month to calibrate it!! Isn't that incredible? Then... he proudly showed me his new Varian Trilogy Linac, which delivers radiation therapy with photons and electrons. That machine takes 3 months to calibrate!! 3 MONTHS! Now THAT's what I call state-of-the art. Ain't technology grand?? |
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Meanwhile, back at the
ranch... We have had an apple tree for about 6 years and during that time it has produced maybe 10 apples. Maybe. We had completely ignored it for all this time and finally decided to prune it, so I found some instructions on the Internet complete with diagrams, etc. and we went to work. I was putting all of the clippings into the trash last night and noticed that we had "pruned off" 7 little baby apples, and that's just what I NOTICED in the very large pile; heaven only knows how many we actually cut off!! When I read the instructions, I guess I missed the part about "Don't remove growing apples." |
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Our mission is to reduce stress and restore hope for cancer patients and their families. We do this by sharing our unique perspective in order to:
Caring and Coping is a no-cost component of
The
Patient/Partner Project.
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Your information is safe: we never share subscriber information with anyone. Ever. Period. The Patient/Partner Project (c) 2008 A Few Good People, Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED |
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