Category: Emotional Recovery

Your spouse/partner; telling your children; telling your parents and siblings; reaching out to friends; friends who latch on for the drams of it all; when to ask for help; how to be grateful for help

Tips for Getting Through the Holidays During Breast Cancer

Posted on by

I have written about this topic before but each year I seem to learn something new. I hear from other people about being diagnosed or having surgery toward the end of the year. This can throw an extra wrench into holiday plans since so many people celebrate a number of different holidays in December. I learn from them and share my tips for getting through the holidays during breast cancer. My Tips for Managing your Phone Time This Thanksgiving, I gave myself a gift. I called family and close friends in the days leading up to Thanksgiving and told them I was turning my phone off the entire day of Thanksgiving beginning at bedtime the night before. I did not turn it back on until the morning after. They had the ability to get a hold of me in an emergency. I wanted to make sure of that. It was Continue Reading →

The Gifts We Know Mean so Much after Breast Reconstruction

Posted on by

Each weekday morning, I wake up, fix coffee, and sit at the computer in my office. I open Facebook and read the comments on the DiepCjourney private page I started and admin. Questions are answered, members share resources, and it  feels like a warm place to start my morning. Recently, I posted this infographic asking members, “What would you add to this list”? These are the gifts we know mean so much after breast reconstruction. Insights for Gifts from the Heart after Breast Reconstruction Surgery These ideas are taken directly from the comments members of the Journey willingly shared. They showed extreme gratitude for those who gave their time and treasure to these ladies when they were recovering from surgery and undergoing treatment for breast cancer. Listened, listened, listened. Have space for all the feelings. The best gift I got from people was grace…grace for forgotten meetings, grace for bad Continue Reading →

Episode 2: Sexual Health Needs After Cancer

Posted on by

Dr. Don Dizon is our guest on season 2, Episode 2: Sexual Health Needs After Cancer, of the DiepCJourney podcast. What are we discussing? Sexual health needs after cancer, a topic patients often have to bring up themselves to discuss with health care providers. Dr. Dizon tells us why this is the case and empowers patients with information to talk about this with specialists in cancer care regarding sexual health needs after cancer.  Don S. Dizon, MD, FACP, FASCO is Director of the Pelvic Malignancies Program and Founder of the Oncology Sexual Health First Responders Program, Lifespan Cancer Institute. He is the director of medical oncology at Rhode Island Hospital. Be sure to check out the DiepCFoundation YouTube video on the same topic with Dr. Dizon. What is the Definition of Sexual Health Needs After Cancer? I begin by recognizing the topic of sexual health is not often spoken about in clinic. Continue Reading →

Time to Consider Things While in Isolation

Posted on by

I have been fortunate not to have been affected by the Corona virus… until this week. The statement itself poses something of a paradox, “not to have been affected by the Corona virus.”  Our global population has been affected by this since the pandemic began in ways unthinkable, unimaginable. I felt the physical affects this week after testing positive. I have had time to consider things while in isolation. Perspective and the Regrettable Necessities of Life I am on the mend, thankfully. It feels a bit odd to write about this publicly after keeping it on the down low all week. Especially given the other world tragedies we are dealing with and as the pandemic numbers increase… again. Perspective! Folks are pent up, tired, weary of dealing with the isolation. Having celebrated a few trips around the sun, birthdays, and feeling fortunate to recuperate in the care of my mom’s Continue Reading →

Lessons from Mom Before, During, and After Breast Cancer

Posted on by

I want to start with a gentle reminder that not everyone is fortunate enough to have a mom like I do. Some Moms have passed and are missed dearly. Others are not present physically or emotionally even though they are still alive. On Mother’s Day, it is important to be sensitive to this when we speak to others. We cannot assume that they celebrate Mother’s Day. It anguishes me to think what my own sweet mom went through learning I had breast cancer, not once, but twice. I am fortunate to be able to share the experiences and lessons from Mom before, during, and after breast cancer. Lessons from Mom Before Breast Cancer I am one of four girls born to my parents. However, I never knew one of my sisters who died shortly after a full-term pregnancy. My mom sorrowfully anguished over this, most of the time, with dignity Continue Reading →

Fatigued by Being Affected by Breast Cancer?

Posted on by

People are affected by breast cancer in many ways. A person diagnosed can be fatigued from treatments. Some effects may seem short-term after finishing chemotherapy, radiation, or having surgery. Those in the metastatic breast cancer community have life-long effects they face for the remainder of their lives. I am speaking of the long-term effects of fatigue and being affected by breast cancer in both of these groups. The Fatigue that Effects Daily Living        Fatigue from breast cancer can come in many forms. You may feel physically fatigued from having surgery or undergoing treatment. It disrupts your body’s system causing it to work overtime during the healing process. As you sit in your chair feeling this way, you may become sad, feeling helpless, as you watch others trying to take care of you when perhaps a week or month before surgery or treatment you were the one taking care of others. Continue Reading →

Episode 17: Journey of the Caregiver

Posted on by

Caregivers are called upon in the most unexpected ways through disease, an accident, surgery, or treatment. This is the story and journey of a thousand miles, two breast cancer diagnoses, multiple surgeries, and the story of how my son, Brian, taught me more about this role and what it means to be a compassionate caregiver on Episode 17: Journey of the Caregiver, on the DiepCJourney podcast. No Instruction Book for a Caregiver When a friend or loved one faces a health event and you know they will need assistance, your call to duty to be a caregiver begins. There is no payment for this role and certainly no instruction book. Both the patient and the caregiver shift their daily routine and begin to think in terms of strategy to help the patient. Considerations can include any or all of the following: This can all become overwhelming and require a great Continue Reading →

Episode 24: Sexual Health Program for Cancer Patients

Posted on by

Sharon Bober, PhD, Psychologist, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, and Assistant Professor in the department of Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School, chats with us on this episode of the DiepCJourney podcast. I met Sharon through the Scientific Network on Female Sexual Health and Cancer where she is the current chair of this organization. Our topic in this blog summary of the podcast; sexual health program for cancer patients. Why Sexual Health is not Often Talked About I feel the intimate and sometimes uncomfortable nature of the topic, sexual health, is one of the major reasons it is not often talked about at consult for cancer patients. Dr. Bober points out very few medical professionals have formal training in sexual health. Further, she points out managing sexual disfunction remains outside the bounds of normal conversation. A noticeably clear statement she makes is, “We live in a culture that is suffused with images of Continue Reading →

My DIEP Flap Breast Reconstruction Seven Years Later

Posted on by

This morning I began my usual morning routine. I am an early riser. I open my laptop, check my phone for messages, begin sorting out emails to respond to, and begin my workday. But this morning marks a day on my calendar I never forget, or more appropriately, always remember. December 1, 2014, I was sitting on a gurney being marked up for my DIEP flap breast reconstruction. Writing about my DIEP flap breast reconstruction seven years later? How is that possible? Where did the time go? The Days and Months Leading up to my DIEP Flap My coffee is fresh and warm and my thoughts flood through my mind as I recall the events of the morning I showed up at the hospital. Yes, I showed up. But boy did that take a lot of decision making, planning, and a strong dose of physical and emotional fortitude in the Continue Reading →

How Are you Feeling Toward the End of The Year?

Posted on by

Are you feeling anxious? Peaceful? Introspective? Determined to roll into the New Year with some novel ideas and changes in your life? It is the time of year when we can feel any, and all of these emotions and they can change within a moment, a day, or a week because of an unexpected circumstance. As we roll into the month of December, it is time to ask, how are you feeling toward the end of the year? End of the Year Holiday Celebrations There are holiday celebrations in December like Hanukah, Christmas, Kwanzaa, Las Posadas, and similar celebrations around the world. I recall the excitement of children in my classroom during my years as an ESL teacher honoring each of these holidays. Students loved learning and experiencing the difference and similarities in all of the holidays. This was during a time when families were allowed and felt comfortable bringing Continue Reading →