Facing Cancer: 40 Days of Radiation

Imperfect but still beautiful 

A neighbour you wave to, a co-worker you work with, a distant relative you see maybe once or twice a year for family gatherings, or even a  stranger that you meet while waiting in line at the grocery store, what do they all have in common? They have probably been through a cancer diagnosis or supported someone through it. However, it's a totally different feeling when it is someone so close to you.

I've almost lost my Dad once (through his very unexpected encephalitis illness) which took a very bad toll on my mental and physical health, even after his own healing began. I could not heal, I was not able to process my emotions clearly and no matter what doctor I went to, I still felt like this was just a nightmare I was never going to wake up from. Thankfully,  I woke up and realized that the next time (there will always be a next time of bad news - this is the reality of life) I will handle things differently, or at least try to.

I failed. I failed miserably yesterday. I got so overwhelmed with the idea of researching to make sure I knew everything about my dad's condition (prostate cancer) and what he was in for. Truth is, no one knows because every person is so different. You get horror stories from people and then others say that it wasn't pleasant but it was tolerable, and then there are the in-betweeners.  I had booklets and tons of information that I thought were all credible sources. I suppose my thinking cap wasn't screwed on tight enough when I didn't question the title of  one article stating "your prostate wants you to be a vegan." A bit extreme. I am just going to look things up when I absolutely need to. 

This is a situation I cannot really control fully and my burning desire to be in-control of something, anything... is hard to let go of.  I also have to acknowledge my own boundaries of what I can and cannot handle. I am thankful to my brother for taking the reigns this time and helping out in areas that I'm not equipped for.

And so I start again.

Here is my Dad's latest blog on what happened on his first visit to the Cancer Center here in Windsor.  His oncologist is wonderful, not to mention the whole staff and volunteers there. 40 days of radiation, 5 days a week is coming up. https://tecumsehcityblog.blogspot.com/2019/07/my-good-and-bad-news.html/

The thoughtful words and on-going support never go unappreciated or unrecognized, so thank you. :)

Coping with Cancer One Day At A Time

Respecting my family's wishes to keep things private does not always work well, especially when it comes to topics like this.  Thankfully, my Dad has decided to open up and share his journey, a hopeful one. I feel content that instead of writing cryptic posts on Facebook and going to meetings at Hospice for my own self-care strategies, I can express my emotions openly and honestly, like you have come to know me to do on this blog.

I am really appreciative of all the support and I hope to update again soon.

The rock I found at Hospice after my first meeting

From my Dad:  https://tecumsehcityblog.blogspot.com/2019/07/im-baaaaack.html

<Gulp> I truly did not realize that I have not written anything on my website for about three months! I knew it was a little while but, seriously, I did not think it was that long until my daughter mentioned that people were asking about me. I did want to keep things private but realized that this was taking an emotional toll on my daughter's health and so I am coming out to share some news.

Here it comes… What is going on with me these days.

Do you want to know something silly? I really was not sure how many people were actually reading my articles. It did not really matter to me if anyone came to my website at all these days because I was really writing for my own purposes as a release from some of the tension under which I was living after my illness.

I am an old guy after all and who knows how many years more I am supposed to be around here. Until fairly recently, I felt so healthy that I expected it to be a very substantial number. Surprisingly, I really do not feel much different now but my situation changed significantly after one of my normal cancer screenings. 

I have prostate cancer. 

It is an illness that many men have. It appears to be in the early stages and localized, which has a better prognosis than later stages.

It took quite a period of time from the date that I had a biopsy done, and then various other tests to confirm the diagnosis. 

So what's next for me? I am booked to see a radiation oncologist at the Cancer Center on Kildare Avenue here in Windsor in a few days for a consultation. From what I have been told, he is a wonderful man and very knowledgeable in this area. I look forward to meeting him! He will decide what treatment options are best.

There are many forms of radiation available, some which occur every day for a specified amount of time and others that are shorter in duration but more aggressive to treat the cancer cells.  I'm not a doctor, I'm a lawyer, so I will leave it up to the experts to tell me what will be most effective.

The sad part of all of this is that I hope my treatments don't affect my attendance at such an important event coming up. My daughter is getting married in September and I must walk her down the aisle. 

I hope you understand now, dear reader, what caused my Website “invisibility” and I will update again soon.

Wish me luck on my first visit this coming week.