The older I get, the more suffering and pain
I’ve experienced; and the more of both I stand witness to. From my wife’s (and
many, many of our friends and coworkers) battle against breast cancer; to my
dad’s (and the parents of many of our friends and coworkers) process as he
fades away as this complex disease breaks the connections between more and more
memories, I have become not only frustrated with suffering, pain, and having to
watch both, I have been witness to the suffering and pain among the students I serve
as a school counselor. I have become angry and sometimes paralyzed. This is my
attempt to lift myself from the occasional stifling grief that darkens my days…
We don’t know this from personal experience, but in the past few weeks,
three others we know have experienced a recurrence – ie., “When cancer returns
after a period of remission…[it] in spite of the best efforts to rid you of
your cancer, some cells from your cancer remained...the same cancer coming back
after some period of time.”
In an article from the Mayo Clinic, “A cancer recurrence brings back
many of the same emotions you felt when you were first diagnosed with cancer…
- Distress – The
shock of having cancer come back after you assumed it was gone can cause
distress — sometimes more so than your first diagnosis did.
- Self-doubt –
You may doubt the wisdom of your past treatment decision…Try not to look
backward. Instead, focus on your current situation and what you need to do
now to move forward.
- Anger – It's
very common and reasonable to be angry that your cancer has returned.
- Fatigue – It's
normal to feel that you can't deal with cancer again.
Take heart in the fact that you were able to do it the first time, even
though you might have doubted yourself back then. Also:
- You know
more now.
- You've
built relationships.
- You've done
this before.
- Use these
experiences to your advantage. They can help you feel more in control when
making decisions about your treatment.
Finally, encouragement from the Bible:
“Faith; it does
not make things easy, it makes them possible” (Luke 1:37)
“He gives power
to the faint, and to him who has no might, he increases strength” (Isaiah
40:29)
“I will
strengthen you and help you. I will uphold you with my righteous hand” (Isaiah
41:10)
“The Lord will
fight for you. You need only to be still” (Exodus 14:14)
Resources: https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/cancer/in-depth/cancer/art-20044575,
https://thegritandgraceproject.org/faith/words-of-encouragement-from-a-cancer-survivor
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