Cancervive diary
The Big C05 march 2008
princess alice hospice, esher
I've just had an offer of help from the Hospice. It's been a long time coming but I've finally got there. Cancer does NOT stop after treatment....sadly for some of us :-(
The majority of people who survive this crap disease (and I make no apologies for swearing here OK cos it is!) go on with no major problems. Then there are those of us, whose life changes and we have more problems now than we EVER had before.
Although I do have these problems I try not to let it get me down. OK occasionally it does, that's life, but most of the time I've got a smile on my face and to quote a good friend of mine, 'a glint in your eye and a spring in your step'!! I don't think I'd quite say a spring in my step but I know what he means!! :-)
So what am I going to the Hospice for? A TENS machine demo.....it might help with the pains in the legs where the new lumps are hopefully. Well that's what I'm hoping for anyway.
I have pain patches on today though and we're not convinced that it will work with those on, and the machine was on a high'ish level before I felt it. So the pain patches are doing something too which is good news.
GREAT NEWS! I'm allowed to take a machine home with me to use too. Isn't that a fantastic service?! Hospices are NOT just for people who are dying - this one is a wonderful place and full of fantastic people all helping others. It has a Day Hospice too so you can go for the day and come home again with a volunteer driver.
Having cancer has certainly opened my eyes to how many wonderful people there are in the world...we just don't get to see them all until something like this creeps up on us and causes havoc!
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15 march 2008
relaxation day
This is one of the big CREST events held. A Relaxation Day for cancer patients and their carers. Workshops and therapies as well as lunch is provided. All done with volunteers and an amazing bunch of people!
Well done everyone, this was a superb effort and again all our patients and carers went home very very happy and a lot more relaxed.
I even had a therapy myself, a massage. Obviously it had to be without the legs being touched so I had a "Back/Shoulder/Neck/Head/Arms/Hands Massage" instead and it was SO relaxing and if I could've just been left there I think I would've slept for hours :-)
Keep going with your studies James - you will be a fantastic therapist!
19 march 2008
fasting blood test, gp surgery
Oh dear, this was not going to be good was it. Sara tried so hard to find a vein, looking at both arms. They were already bruised from my last Blood Test at UCH. It seems to take ages for bruises to go now. I've had one on my leg for about a month now and it's still only just fading.
Anyway she couldn't find a vein and I had to go outside to the Reception Girls and ask them for a few glasses of water. Hopefully this would help my veins and Sara can get some blood when I get called in again.
In the end I had four glasses of water. I bet everyone was wondering what I was doing and if I needed a 'Urine' test and not a blood test. Never mind. It has to be done sometimes, my veins are definitely crap now - they weren't that brilliant before - now they are even worse!
Eventually I went back in and Sara got some blood - it had to be done via syringe though as the normal route wouldn't work :-(
It was then put into the other tubes ready for the Lab to do their stuff.
More of this later....I've since found out it was a total waste of time....but hey....more pin cushions are always needed and I'm the number one pin cushion it seems!
20 march 2008
the movies!
Yes, you read that right. This time it wasn't an appointment but my friend Carol said we both needed cheering up and said we should go to the movies. So off we went.
She said she'd like to see 'The Other Boleyn Girl' which is not my normal sort of film, but I said I'd give it a go. Otherwise it would mean going in to see a film with all the other 'kids' and we didn't fancy that. Having popcorn thrown around and kids shouting and causing aggro isn't our idea of a relaxing time!
So off we went to watch it. About half way through I noticed the cinema get quieter. It wasn't loud to start with as it was mostly adults, but you get the normal packets scrunching and drinks being slurped. There was none of this though, it just went silent.
In the end we were amazed. It was nothing like I thought it would be, but it was so good and we really enjoyed it.
I remember parts of it from school - no comments about it being light years away either - I'm not that old!!!
So now when Carol comes back from her hols we're gonna go again and see what we have this time. Luckily we have similar tastes so enjoy all the films we've seen so far.
26 march 2008
princess alice hospice, esher
As a cancer patient I have tried to get here before but got nowhere. Now as I have so many side effects and other diseases I didn't have to start with, they can take me as a 'Day Patient' and I can have access to some of their services.
I've already borrowed a TENS machine to help cope with the Reflex Sympathetic Dystrophy or Complex Regional Pain Syndrome as it is sometimes called. It appears to be helping, as I regularly put the machine on now. Either during the day or in the evening to help with the pains from these lumps that I have. I can't wear it when I have the pain patches on but when I don't it helps.
So what am I here for today? Well I can have four therapies - so I am booked in for Aromatherapy and this is the first one I've had. The Hospice is a wonderful place and contrary to belief it is NOT somewhere that you go to die. They have a lot of patients in for day care and respite care too.
The Aromatherpay Massage was wonderful I had lavender oil in there as it relaxes you. She did a "Back/Shoulder/Neck/Head/Arms/Hands Massage" for me which works well. When I get cramps in my legs/feet I can move them without disturbing the massage at the same time.
I've got another three of these booked - I do hope I can have other things but we will have to see.
Sadly I am the 1 in 5 who has more problems post cancer treatment than before. Research is being done into this. It also notes that the other 4 in 5 have more health problems but not to such a severe level as the 1 in 5.
They did offer other services at the initial consultation too but they haven't appeared yet as there has been communication problems along the line.
Hopefully this will get sorted and I can get more help. Keep everything crossed for me!