Health & Wellness
It isn’t easy being pink
It’s that time of year when the world is washed in pink, and people prance around in their favorite tongue-in-cheek, boob-aware apparel. But how much awareness does all this bring to the realities of breast cancer, and how much does this just turn our attention to boobs? Don’t get me wrong, I have nothing against […]
Letting go of the illusion of control
I like to think of myself as having superpowers. My favorite superpower is the ability to make things go away by not believing they are true. I’ve had a lot of practice using this superpower; I was diagnosed with stage 3 breast cancer while I was still breastfeeding my baby.
I have a lot of practice using this superpower, but not much success.
One of the first things that hits you over the head with a cancer diagnosis, after confronting your mortality, is the understanding that you are not in control. Control is an illusion. That is a very difficult concept around which to wrap your brain.
Not Now
let’s face it: sometimes NOW sucks. Sometimes it’s downright unbearable. If I lived only for the moment, I wouldn’t have gone through chemotherapy. If now was all that mattered, I’d eat chocolate all day.
Dear Gem – Month 23
Today is the one year anniversary of my cancer diagnosis. This is actually a big day for me. It’s the anniversary of the day my life was turned inside out, and it has put me on a wild emotional roller coaster ride. Thinking about this cancerversary has eaten up all my energy and focus lately – […]
Walkthrough of Radiation Treatment for a Cancer Patient
Curious what radiation treatment is like for cancer patients? This post will walk you through one day of radiation treatment for a patient with breast cancer (me).
Reasons I Love Seattle: #1 Sunset Over Lake Union
I was running late for a meeting, but I just had to stop and capture a couple shots of this sunset. I pulled over alongside the lake, rolled down the passenger-side window, and clicked away. As I continued on my way to the meeting, the sunset intensified. Each time I pulled through an intersection, the […]
Scarred
My attitude towards these scars is changing. Each scar tells a story, and since I’m still kicking, each scar represents a challenge I overcame. I’m learning to accept them as a kind of private little merit badge.
Refresh
I stopped to capture a few pictures on my way to the medical center yesterday afternoon. I was feeling a little cranky about having to go in every day. It was cold. frigid. Chunks of ice were still clinging to the edges of the 8-inch-deep potholes in the road. But views like this make me […]
The Day My Husband Threw Up and Saved Our Relationship
I’ve been procrastinating on writing a blog post for a very long time now. It’s Christmas. It’s the end of the year. It’s the beginning of the new year. So much pressure to write a deep, meaningful, soul searching, profound piece that sums up the meaning of life, and what I’ve learned this year. Or […]
Pinkwashing and Breast Cancer Awareness Month
As we wind down the end of October and Breast Cancer Awareness Month, I’ve heard a number of complaints that go so far as to say we should just forget Breast Cancer Awareness Month altogether because of all the pinkwashing. What is pinkwashing? When corporate jerks slap a pink ribbon on a product or service […]