This week I lost my mom, my best friend, my biggest fan. She lost a very courageous, tough, short battle with cancer. We celebrated her life every day she was alive, and at her funeral just one short week ago. I have been blessed with my mom’s positive outlook and optimism, countless life lessons, and the know-how to live, love and laugh.
I pride myself on being knowledgeable about health, although until I was faced with going through cancer with my mom, I must admit I didn’t know too much about this atrocity. Many know that ONE IN THREE people will get cancer at some point in their life. ONE IN THREE. Those numbers have steadily increased and within the next decade that number is set to go to one in TWO. This week’s blog is a look at ten things I didn’t know about cancer that I wish I didn’t have to see
Cancer changes the way your cells develop. It is basically a mutation of your cells. Once one cell is cancerous, it can spread like wild fire attacking you. Beating the shit out of you from the inside out. It will shut your organs and body down and hurt while it’s doing it. It will drastically change your ability to breath naturally and comfortably. Your energy level will be depleted beyond your comprehension.
Cancer coagulates your blood. It makes your blood thicker. In turn, you can get blood clots and swelling that is unbelievable. You kidneys and liver stop working. Your body is sore and uncomfortable, hot then cold, and there is nothing than can be done to fix this.
You can have cancer for two year (or even more) and have no signs or symptoms until it is too late for a cure or treatment.
Science knows less than we realize about certain types of cancer. In some kinds of cancer there has been zero development since the 1970’s.
Cancer changes your appetite, your taste buds and your sense of smell. The foods you used to love so much you can now not even handle the smell of. Everything tastes horrible and hurts to go down.
Sometimes people and their families just want to be alone when they are sick. An attempt to cheer people up sometimes is just too much. It is not only the most horrible physical situation to go through, but imagine for just one moment what the mental and emotional piece is like. Company is just simply sometimes not wanted.
Cancer has no judgment on who it will attack. Young, old; skinny, obese; Black, White, Asian, Native; Jewish, Christian, Muslim; the nicest woman on the planet or the meanest son of a bitch around. If cancer attacks you, it’s nothing personal it simply is what it is.
You garner strength both as a patient and a family member from each other and from some God-given place. I have no idea how my mom remained so strong through all of this. She was a warrior. An absolute warrior. And my family – we got through the hardest days of our life together. With strength, with compassion, with more tears than imaginable.
Sometimes there is just nothing you can do, but never, ever give up on the people you love. You can talk about having a healthy diet, staying active and fit, having a spiritual life, laughing each day. Yes, all of these things help, and I try to write about, read about, share that info, and live that way every day. But sometimes in life, there is nothing you can do. And that really hurts. It really hurts to watch one of the people you love the most in the world in pain, struggling, dying in front of you and not be able to do a darn thing.
The question of why will almost deafen you. Why my mom? Why THIS type of terminal cancer? Why can’t they do anything? Why can’t I walk into the hospital room one day and see my mom back to her energetic self because a miracle came and took the cancer away?
This terrible disease has increased my thirst for knowledge on the topic of health and nutrition. Why are so many more people getting cancer and what can I do to avoid it? My blogs will continue to be positive and uplifting and full of knowledge, and hopefully we can, together, discover a healthy way to live, love and laugh. And in the meantime, go and give your mom the tightest, most sincere hug you can.