3 posts tagged “breast cancer support”
Hot off the press!
I started a group here on Vox.
Hopluv's Breast Cancer Survivor and Support Group
Pass the URL along to anyone you know that might be able to use the site as a resource.
- I struggled with a title, hence the one you see above. I thought this looked cool!
- 5 days post chemo treatment. I'm hoping I start to feel better over the next few days. Mainly muscle and joint aching has been the culprit following this cycle. I experienced this with the last treatment but it wasn't as bad as this go around. The is a side effect of Taxotere. The pain is making it difficult to sleep. I meet with my Oncologist tomorrow, I think I will have her prescribe something for the pain. The hot flashes started with is cycle too. I feel like I've aged 20 years!
- Still going to support group meetings at Gilda's Club. It's going "ok" what I'm starting to see though is that they do a lot of conversing about non cancer related topics/issues/concerns. I mean this week, 1.5 hours were spent with folks talking about their recent vacation to Ireland, walking dogs and grandchildren with about 30 minutes of participants speaking on their status and sharing. And there is one women that monopolizes the entire session! She talks too much, and when anyone else speaks she takes that over with her stories. I can tell that it annoys the faciliator and the other people too. Its called "group" for a reason biatch!
- Gilda's also has another support group that meets at their clubhouse once a month called "Sisters Network." C and I thought this would be a great opportunity to connect with African American women who have experienced breast cancer. So, we went to the meeting to check it out. It was very structured, with a formal agenda and everything - a little too structured - actually, I thought I was on a conference call for work! Anyway, it seems the purpose of the organization is to raise money for breast cancer awareness and community outreach - essentially knocking on doors to talk to African Americans about breast cancer. This is all fine and well and something I will be interested in doing once I get on the other side of treatment, however right now I'm looking for support groups to get through this ordeal. I was so syched for this organization too! The perfect group for me would be gay, African American women with breast cancer - I honestly don't think that exists.
I'm not a stranger to Cancer. My mother died from it, her father had it and died from it, my brother had childhood Cancer, but thank God he beat the odds!
But for me personally, this is new. I was a healthy child, and for most of my adult life I have been fairly healthy. Aside from my tonsils being removed, child birth 19 years ago and bouts of hypertension I've managed to avoid the doctor's office. I actually don't like going to the doctor - I have to be almost dead to do so!
I have been struggling with the emotional affects of my Breast Cancer diagnosis and all the information I've received about staging, surgery and treatment over the last couple of months. I've gotten through all this just fine for the most part, however with the start of chemotherapy I realized that there really is no one around me to talk with about this process. There is a very small support group consisting of family and friends which I'm extremely thankful for, but I need a bit more. I found myself frustrated because there was no one around that related directly to what I'm going through. I also found myself a bit angry because I didn't feel I was getting enough support. After speaking with my daughter T she explained that she was not real clear on how to help me - what to say, what not to say. Similarly for C, she wants to be supportive, but wasn't sure of the best way to go about it. I now understand that this isn't just "new" to/for me, it's new to everyone close to me also.
I had the expectation that my medical team would provide support group information - but no one really has. After some research, I found very little about BC support groups in my area. I came across a flyer for Gilda's Club and called to reserve a spot for the new member meeting today.
C went with me today and I have to say I was overwhelmingly impressed! The facility, named after comedienne Gilda Radner who lost her battle with Ovarian Cancer years ago, but desired a place for people with Cancer to come to share their experiences.
"The mission of Gilda's Club North Texas is to provide a warm and inviting home-like setting where men, women and children living with cancer — as well as their families and friends — can join with others to build emotional and social support as a supplement to medical care."
Gilda's house offers monthly presentations, workshops and networking opportunities along with alternative therapies like art, yoga and a fitness program.
~ Gilda Radner
