There are other side effects of chemotherapy, which are perhaps not as frequent as the ones mentioned in my previous blogs. Peripheral neuropathy, a result of the damage to the peripheral nerves, often causes weakness, numbness, and pain, usually in the hands and feet. Walking may not be problematic but difficult when the feet feel completely numb. Handling food or a simple activity like handwriting can be tricky if we...
Chemotherapy cont’d
The swing of week 1 – totally wasted, week 2 – slow recovery and week 3 – functioning more or less, went on for six months! What the doctor’s pamphlets didn’t say was that my recovery after the treatment would never reach my previous levels of energy. I would recover physically but never to the extent of how I felt prior to the previous treatment. The side effects would...
Post-Surgery cont’d
The time I call “post-surgery” is the time for healing after the surgery. Depending on the individual and the seriousness of the operation, it takes four to six weeks to recover. Recovery, in this case, means the time before going to the next step of the recommended treatment. Increasing levels of anxiety, fear of the unknown and physical pain mark this four to six-week period. We are surrounded by...
The time of Diagnosis cont’d
After an agonizing time of waiting, we are asked finally to do a biopsy (in case of tumors). This is the only test that gives 100% certainty, but it is also the most expensive one. As we leave the doctor’s office after, the dreaded words: “It is Cancer!” still ring in our ears. But many people hear something different – they hear “Death is coming now!” Now comes the...
The time of Diagnosis
In this blog, we will consider the first stage of the cancer journey – diagnosis. We live somewhat balanced lives, with long and short-term plans and think that we know where we are going! However, a phone call from our doctor can destroy this balance with the news that “there may be a problem and we have to do more tests.” So, we now enter a new world where...
Cancer Journey from Patient’s Perspective
I am dedicating the next few blogs to the cancer journey from the perspective of a patient. There is extensive literature on traditional cancer treatments and on what is available. But so far, I have not found anything that would describe typically what a patient is going through during the cancer journey. When I say “cancer journey” I mean the time when we first learn that there might be...
Gap in Cancer Care
(Photo courtesy of Bryan Minear) There is a big gap in cancer medical care that I have recognized from my own experience. Typically, after surgery, cancer patients undergo chemotherapy and radiation, which may last from four weeks to a few years. Often, such intensive treatments result in severe mental and physical side effects. The allopathic medical system tends to take us to the point where all our chemical treatments...
How it all started cont’d
What is the main thing that you see that people don’t know about when starting yoga during or after cancer treatment? There is this widespread misconception that yoga equals doing strange poses called asanas, and that you have to be physically fit and slim in order to do it. Unfortunately, this is created by the yoga magazines depicting beautiful young and slim ladies in more challenging asanas. The concept...