Calling My Readers
I’m starting something new on my blog. I have met so many people through my blog and learned so many things. For the next week, I would like to focus on how you have dealt with cancer personally or someon in your family. How did you cope? How did you find support? I think this may help those out there that are dealing with similar things. After all, The Mommy-Files is not only about me, but about my readers as well.
Please email me with a brief summary of what you want to talk about. I will need a rough draft once approved, as well as a picture of you and a link to your site.
My email is themommyfiles@gmail.com
***Again, November 9th through November 16th will be focused on how you get through cancer (personally or with someone in your family). November 17th through November 25th will be focused on Thanksgiving Family Traditions. There will be 1 writer chosen a day but plenty of opportunities in the next year to write more!***
This is a great idea Shannon! I am a cancer survivor, but I would like to share that story with my readers first, when I’m ready. It’s not something I like to talk about. But I would have loved to have a support group, or a place I could have went to for answers, so I think what you’re doing is really great!
I think that’s a fantastic idea!
I bet it will be a huge success 😀
One thing I’ve learned is that people deal with cancer in different ways. When my dad was diagnosed with non-Hodgkins Lymphoma and later with mucoepidermoid carcnoma, he told everyone what was going on. He e-mailed detailed reports to me and everyone on his mailing list at every step of the way. At first, he chose not to have any treatment. His oncologist told him he had about 7 years whether he took chemo or radiation or not. That was when it was “just” a lymphoma. When they found the mucoepidermoid carcinoma (a kind of lung cancer, but it was only one little spot on his lungs; it was in his bones, adrenal gland and elsewhere), he underwent chemo and radiation. He had radiation for a tumor in his brain as well. My mom took care of him at home, and I tried to help when I could, running errands for my mom, taking care of feeding the cats and changing litter boxes, washing dishes and stuff like that when I was over.
On the other hand, my father-in-law is being treated for prostate cancer, and he won’t talk about it at all. What little info his mom is able to get out of him, she’ll tell my husband, but I don’t get the impression that she is always with him at the doctor’s visit, which may be his choice. My dad didn’t care if my mom was there. FIL doesn’t ask many questions apparently. So it’s really hard to know what’s going on, how bad it is (or isn’t). I don’t know if they type of cancer is making him more reluctant to talk about it. At least my dad’s decline and death wasn’t a surprise. Hiding the facts doesn’t make it any easier on the family, I don’t think.
I have a great deal of fear that I’ll get cancer because it’s so prevalent on my dad’s side of the family. Both his parents died of cancer and several of his grandparents. His sister is a breast cancer survivor and one of my cousins survived testicular cancer. It’s scary knowing that I have those genes!
Shannon, I love how you are always there for your readers… you are such a wonderfuland woman who always gives of yourself. When I read this, you brought tears to my eyes, I had only my husband for support when my dad died of lung cancer as the rest of my family doesn’t have anything to do with me, but anyone who reads my blog knows he is ALL I need.
Thank you so much for being you – the worls is such a much better place because you are in it!