Educate Thyself, Woman!

One of the first things Dr. Linden said to me was don’t Google because it will make me crazy. So what did I do the minute I got home? Well being the diehard renegade that I am…I Googled (I’m very bad at following rules). Was it a mistake? Probably. Did I learn stuff? Definitely.

Ask one question and I’m directed to a gazillion places. How to sort it all out is a bit baffling. How to sort it out without freaking out is nerve shattering.

Of course the first thing I wanted to know were about the side effects of the chemicals that my body is ingesting. So I called in the troops.

My friend Cathy is a genius when it comes to finding just the right article. Something not too complex for my feeble chemical altered brain.

And what have I discovered? With the exception of just a few symptoms, I’m totally text book in almost everything.

There was so much I didn’t know about chemotherapy that it was mind-boggling. I just thought everyone got the same old chemicals. Boy was I wrong.

Every person is different. Every cancer is different. Every stage is different. And the chemical cocktails for all of these cancers is different. Even if you have the same cancer. So many options.

I have talked with a lot of the people who go through treatment at the same time as I do. We hang out together in the big room, talking, sharing war stories and other assorted things like recipes, composting ideas (that would be Stu talking to an organic farmer who was across from me a few weeks ago) and just plain stuff, not always cancer related.

I’ve learned a lot from these strangers who are becoming familiar. We share a common bond and yet we are so different. After four sessions I have yet to talk to anyone with breast cancer. It breaks my heart to hear about the cancers these men and women have, the stages they are in and the treatments they are going through And yet they’re there smiling and getting on with it. They are so brave. Makes me feel like such a baby, whining about my upset stomach and lack of hair.

Here’s to those brave people who are battling the biggest war of their lives. God bless you all. It isn’t easy.

And now back to Googling.