CANCER IS TRYING TO TEACH ME PATIENCE

Impatience was my worst trait growing up. I was constantly reminded how low my patience level was. I remember my mother repeatedly telling me over and over again, “You need to be patient.” Now that she is gone, my older sister has reminded me a time or two about this. I laugh......

HOW DO YOU REALLY FEEL? A QUESTION TO ASK CANCER SURVIVORS

I learned a long time ago whenever someone had a tragedy happen – such as a loss of a loved one – to say less rather than more. A platitude like “This is God’s will,” or “There is a reason for everything that happens,” is just not what the person needs to......

PARTIAL CANCER REMISSION: TAKING IT ONE DAY AT A TIME

When I have my “what if”moments I remember this: Try to take things one day at a time I am in a curious, coveted, yet uncertain period of my cancer journey. “Remission” or what my doctor calls “partial remission” is here! A blood cancer such as mine is not curable. I have......

CANCER CAN FEEL LIKE A TICKING TIME BOMB

How do we cope with the feeling that our body has somehow betrayed us and we have a ticking time bomb inside of us? When a person is first diagnosed with cancer, he or she is numb. We all know people who have this awful disease, but can’t believe it is actually......

TURN THE PAGE

A cancer survivor talks about being forced to turn the page after her diagnosis. “Don’t close the book when bad things happen in your life. Just turn the page and start a new chapter!” Those are the words of LaToya Jackson, which I feel exemplify my life since receiving a cancer diagnosis.......

TYPE A PERSONALITY AND CANCER

“Live all you can, it’s a mistake not to. It doesn’t matter so much what you do in particular, so long as you have your life. If you haven’t had that, what have you had?” BY JANE BIEHL, PH.D. PUBLISHED NOVEMBER 19, 2019 I often wonder how many of us diagnosed with cancer......

CANCER IS A LOT LIKE DRAWING

JANE BIEHL PHD PUBLISHED DECEMBER 04, 2019 What do erasers, drawings, cancer and life all have in common? More than you might think. One of the hardest things about life is our uncertain future. Will we live a long or short life? When will we die? Will we be sick for a......

PLEASE QUIT TELLING ME IT’S NOT THE CANCER

Many people have shared their experiences after a cancer diagnosis and treatment with me. I have several friends on Facebook, who mention a secondary cancer, a new diagnosis, or another medical problem that they feel is related to their cancer, but have been dismissed by both friends and professionals. However, I monitor......

BE A VOICE NOT AN ECHO!

A cancer survivor urges all of us to express our concerns, and assist each other through our individual and collective voices. Recently, I was shopping with a friend and came across a pretty sign that stated, “Be a voice, not an echo.” We stared at each other, I said I had to......

WHICH IS WORSE, CANCER OR TREATMENT?

A cancer survivor often contemplates which is the lesser of two evils – cancer or treatment? I know I have an unusual perspective on the question of which is worse, the treatment or cancer, due to my type of cancer. In 2010, I was diagnosed with Myelodysplastic Syndrome (MDS). I could not......

LET ME BE CRANKY

Recently, I wrote an article stating that we cancer survivors aren’t angels, always accepting of our disease or being grateful. We have our bad days just like everyone else. I get comments from survivors that they tire of people telling them everything will be OK and sending smiley emojis when they are miserable. Some......

CORONAVIRUS AND CANCER SURVIVORS

Cancer is an insidious disease and all patients know this. We are aware that it was one little cell that went awry in our bodies, which caused the cancer to occur. It doesn’t matter which kind we are diagnosed with. Cancer is caused by changes (mutations) to the DNA within cells or......