Cancer Crawl 5 Feb 2025 Erratum: there was a 4th option I failed to mention on Thursday which is a sort of radiotherapy whack-a-mole where they radiate lesions as they start to cause symptoms. We’re not considering this one (for one thing, that’s a potentially infinite number of radiation treatments) so I’m not saying much …
Category Archives: Text
24 Jan 2025 Cancer Crawl: Pause or Shift?
This will be another symptoms and side effects post. I really want to write about shrinkage and some other more philosophical topics but that has to wait. The good news is that there is good news to share. Let’s go! Good news: sleep. I put the 15 degree foam wedge on top of the 25 …
Continue reading “24 Jan 2025 Cancer Crawl: Pause or Shift?”
29 Dec 2024 Cancer Crawl: shake it like you mean it, or not chillaxed
A request before we get into the weeds with this post: I would be very curious to know from other chronically ill friends how you prepare for a debilitating “flare up” or “episode” when you are on your own. Over the years, I’ve learned a lot from years of watching Carrie deal with blood sugar …
Continue reading “29 Dec 2024 Cancer Crawl: shake it like you mean it, or not chillaxed”
27 Dec Cancer Crawl: old cancer books: Susan Sontag Illness as Metaphor
“So what are you doing to distract yourself and stimulate your mind?” asked a friend on a recent Zoom call. My reply was “well, I’m rereading some classic cancer books.” Feel free to judge my mental health harshly, but it’s working for me. I’ve finished Audre Lorde’s Cancer Journals and Susan Sontag’s Illness as Metaphor. …
Continue reading “27 Dec Cancer Crawl: old cancer books: Susan Sontag Illness as Metaphor”
17 Dec 2024 Cancer Crawl: Exhale slowly
Tl;dr we got some good news, and we are waiting for a little more. This morning we awoke before dawn to get to the Mass General for an 8:30 appointment–first bloods, then nurse practitioner, then oncologist. (There’s probably a whole post in how I am now very slow in the morning compared to my former …
Cancer Crawl: 14 November: The Gear Post
I hate Martin Heidegger but the one quote of his that I allow myself is as follows: “there is no such thing as an equipment”. (from Being and Time). It’s 21st century America. Cancer = consumerism. Time for some product reviews. Soundcore Sleep A20 Earbuds Beyond Carrie, actual treatment, and friends, I think these earbuds …
5 Nov 2024: A Visit to the Mothership
Yesterday was our first trip back to Mass General since my hospitalization. The place is truly massive. My oncologist here calls it The Mothership and that truly makes sense. I had to be wheeled around in a wheelchair because it would have been impossible for me to walk in my current condition. The first stop …