So, what do cancer and chemo rob you of? There are so many things that we take for granted each day until we lose them. Personally, there are so many things that you can lose. You may have the feeling of being physically and emotionally robbed by cancer.
When your house gets broken into, you can feel violated. It turns into many inconveniences and huge hassles to replace the life you had. With cancer, you really cannot replace the life you had. It’s not possible. Unfortunately, it’s not like just replacing a TV or a piece of jewelry. And it’s way more of a hassle and more of a catastrophic inconvenience. I say every day most of us that endure cancer, still feel violated.
You can also be robbed literally of yourself with identity theft. This happens to approximately fifteen million people per year, resulting in over fifty billion dollars of loss. It is a long hard road coming back from identity theft. Imagine that you basically have a clone running around as you but not really you, doing things to destroy your life. HMM, sound familiar? Cancer is like having someone steal your entire life. You end up in a life that is sometimes unrecognizable. There are several things that cancer can rob you of. I have compiled a short list of these:
- Clear Thinking: Can you say chemo brain?
- Healthy bones in some cancers
- Sound sleep. Let’s say Dex or Dex or Dex!
- Time: You spend so much time in appointments and waiting for tests, not to mention cancer coming back around
- Energy: This is one thing most cancer patients lose at the very beginning …
- Careers or jobs at some point
- Potential fertility (although my shop has been closed for years)
- Proper weight, uncontrolled gain or loss
- Hair loss: Very chemo dependent
- Good skin: Sometimes feel like an alligator…
- High heels. I know you are laughing at this one, but neuropathy caused me to stop wearing my favorite shoes! Had to do a shoeicide, incredibly sad …
- Taste of food or eating in general. Craving sugar from the Dex!
- Family time and normalcy due to treatments, etc. Goes back to #5
- Certainty of the Future: Financially and just living
- Peace of Mind: Always wanted this …
- Freedom to continue your life as you have been doing
- Travel: Fear of getting sick with COVID/Flu
- Who am I now (my identity)? Who am I post-cancer?
What Cancer can’t rob you of:
- Hope
- Gratitude for each new day, your family, and your support network
- Love
- Creativity
- Courage to keep on fighting
- Faith that there will be a future
- Resolve: Knowing what is coming and being able to handle it
- Bravery: Dealing with all those needle sticks and poison going into your body
- Desire to be healed
- Self-Pity: You can continue this occasionally, it is needed
- Sense of Humor: Make yourself laugh every day!
- Sarcasm: You still need to find a way to make fun of the processes around treatments, ordering Chemo, etc.
Anyway, hang onto the important things that get you through each and every day. Cancer does not define us. It can change your thought process. Hang in there, warriors. Do not let cancer rob you of everything. Until next time, please find something funny to share and laugh about.
Best,
Cathy