• About Christine Cochrane
  • Blogs
  • Home Page
  • Links
  • Publications
  • Reviews

Harping On

~ A Writing Journey

Harping On

Tag Archives: target ovarian cancer

When I get older, growing my hair …

05 Sunday Jun 2016

Posted by Christine Cochrane in Cancer challenge

≈ 8 Comments

Tags

National Cancer Survivors Day, Ovacome, Penny Brohn UK, target ovarian cancer, The Big C and Me

It’s that birthday coming up soon, the one in the Beatles song, somehow no longer ‘many years from now’. How did I imagine, in years past, that I’d be spending this milestone day? I thought there would be a bit more to life than ‘knitting by the fireside’ and ‘Sunday mornings go for a ride’, but I never imagined I’d be in a state of excitement watching my hair grow back after cancer treatment. Since I finished chemo back in March it’s been a slow but interesting process to observe. What colour will it be? Will it be curly or straight? My hair has sprouted in tune with the seasons, with a few shoots in spring and a more steady growth now as we move into summer. Miss Wiggy has been ditched in favour of scarves, and soon those scarves will go for the big reveal!  At the moment it’s only ready for half a reveal:

14642092182930_cr

As someone said on Episode 1 of the BBC Programme, The Big C and Me, coming through cancer treatment is like being reborn, because things are not the same again; the carpet of normality could be swept from beneath your feet again, so you cherish and enjoy the things that really matter. This uncertainty makes us want to be labelled, to know what category we’re in. Is it remission? Am I cured? I am, apparently, now a Cancer Survivor, and what better day to announce it than on National Cancer Survivors’ Day.   My condition is ‘under control’.  I am still on Avastin, a biological therapy aimed to deprive any remaining cancer cells of blood supply.  Things will remain like that till January next year, with scans and check ups every three months. In between these I lead a normal life. I’ve adjusted and reduced some of the things that I do so that I’m not rushing or putting myself under pressure, but this last week has been a wonderful kaleidoscope of activities, all played out under sunny skies –walks and lunches with friends, a choral workshop, a poetry-writing day, a concert at the Sedbergh Festival. Lucky me.

So how will I spend my special birthday? I will be forever grateful to the medics that are treating me and have given me my life back, but now’s the time to take more control, so I am attending Penny Brohn UK’s course ‘Living well with the impact of cancer’, just to help me with the wobble moments and to give me some pointers on diet, lifestyle and mental attitude.  No alcohol or coffee, and I’ll be switching off my mobile phone. Wish me luck! It’s being held in a conference centre on the Bonnie Banks of Loch Lomond which looks wonderfully relaxing.

After that we will be escaping to a cottage on the Isle of Islay and enjoying all life has to offer.

Advertisement

Race for life

30 Wednesday Mar 2016

Posted by Christine Cochrane in Blogging on, Cancer challenge

≈ 7 Comments

Tags

Cancer Research UK, Helena Sanderson, Ovacome, ovarian cancer, Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month 2016, Penny Brohn UK, Race for Life, target ovarian cancer

I have awarded myself a medal!  I just happened to have three kicking around the house, from when I did the ‘Race for Life’ in aid of Cancer Research UK in 2004, 2005 and 2007 in memory of my mother and a university friend who both died of cancer.  So when I completed my sixth chemotherapy on 10th March there was a small reward ceremony to mark the end of this stage of treatment.  Of course, I never imagined when I ran those 5 Km races that the funds raised would help to save my own life.  Very appropriately, I finished my chemotherapy treatment in Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month, and I encourage anyone who is not sure of the symptoms of this disease to check out the websites at either Target Ovarian Cancer or Ovacome.

http://www.targetovariancancer.org.uk/

http://www.ovacome.org.uk/

DSC00438As I’ve discovered, treatments have come a long way since my mother was diagnosed with cancer in 2001.  My initial horror at the thought of having to undergo chemotherapy for ovarian cancer was based on fear and ignorance; the reality is that my chemotherapy drugs zapped my disease effectively and, most surprisingly, allowed me to enjoy a reasonably good quality of life during treatment.  There were other things that helped too, and I list them here in the hope of encouraging others who find themselves on the same path.

WALKING.  Nothing has helped me more than daily exercise and nature.  It didn’t matter that I wasn’t climbing the mountains I used to climb – in fact, I like the new walking routes which look very much like this:

DSC00429Which leads me on to FOOD AND DRINK. Coffee, scones, pub lunches – all have fortified me on my way, and we’ve bumped into lots of friends and had a pleasantly social time.

CHOCOLATE:  It deserves an entry of its own.  Thank you to all who took note of its therapeutic effects and supplied me!

TALKING.  I have kept on talking – to my family, my friends, my chemo nurses, the other patients.  It’s been good to be open and to give and receive support.  I feel truly blessed to have such a great social network – thank you!

LIVING AS NORMALLY AS POSSIBLE.  Yes, there are times when you are tired and will have to cancel things.  You have to listen to your body.  But, for a lot of the time, just doing normal things and being treated as normal is the best way to get on with something as big and scary as this.

AVOIDING CANCER GOOGLING.  A little goes a long way. Trust me, googling symptoms and survival rates will NOT make you feel better.  Forums are good if you read good things; they are bad if you read bad things.

ACCEPTING AND ENJOYING COMPLIMENTS.  Nod, smile and feel good when people compliment you on your new ‘hairstyle’, your slim figure and new clothes.  Some compliments are quite unexpected – recent praise of my ‘excellent veins’ from a nurse made me feel good for the rest of the day.

MAKING AN EFFORT WITH YOUR APPEARANCE.  Aim to try with your appearance and clothes even when you’re feeling a bit rough.

INDULGING IN THE OCCASIONAL REWARD CEREMONY.  Celebrate each milestone, and yes, you can mix a little Prosecco with your chemo.  I had a rule not to do alcohol in the week after treatment, but after that a little was ok.

prosecco2So now the journey continues.  It’s a bit like doing a course at the big University of Cancer.  After a bit of post-chemo ‘scanxiety’ I was told that my response had been excellent, better than expected  – 9/10!  My cancer hated that stuff and went running. But there is a risk of recurrence.  Continued work is needed to keep it at bay, so I will be having a little infusion of Avastin every 3 weeks until next January.

It’s been a harder few weeks since my last chemo – I’ve taken longer to get over the tiredness this time.  My eyebrows, which held on through five treatments, now need more artwork to make them look realistic, and even though I’m grateful for the help of Miss Wiggy I can’t wait to ditch her before the hot days of summer.  The baldness thing gets you after a while, although it’s a small price to pay.  Oh, and a bit of rethinking is required as I devise my ‘new normal’ – cutting out some of the things I used to do, concentrating on what’s important and learning to pace myself, enjoying the moment, looking at diet and lifestyle, booking myself on to a ‘Living well with cancer’ course with Penny Brohn UK.  http://www.pennybrohn.org.uk/

The recovery jargon tells you to set some meaningful goals now, so I hope to play my harp in a concert in June, go to a wedding in Germany in August and … oh yes … I have 17 Wainwright tops in the Lake District still to climb.  Onwards and upwards.

Some of you have asked if I’m writing about the cancer experience.  And at this point I’d just like to thank everyone who has bought and read ‘Shifting Sands: Tales of Transience and Transformation’ and said good things about it.  There are some lovely reviews on Amazon!  Over the winter it’s been too difficult to write something new; my own story has been too big.  I have stuff in my notebook, and I may write about cancer sometime, but now doesn’t seem the time; in a way I want to put it behind me.  I’ve been working on some poetry prompts in a small online group run by Helena Sanderson who studied with me on the OU course, and this has kept my brain in gear through the months of treatment.  Thank you, Helena!  The prompts took me in lots of directions and have given me things to work on for the future.  Only two were about the cancer experience, and I finish off with one here – it’s a ‘shape’ poem written for fun during one of my chemotherapy sessions.

shape poem_cr

From now on, expect my blog posts to less about cancer and more about life.

Pages

  • About Christine Cochrane
  • Blogs
  • Home Page
  • Links
  • Publications
  • Reviews

Categories

  • Blogging on
  • Cancer challenge
  • Musical notes
  • NaPoWriMo 30 Poems for April 2015
  • NaPoWriMo 30 Poems in 30 Days April 2016
  • Writing News

Recent Posts

  • From Glasgow to Germany – Ships that Pass
  • 18 July 2019
  • This Place I Know – knitting a poem
  • The Poetry Cure
  • Ways of meeting

Archives

  • July 2019
  • November 2018
  • August 2017
  • February 2017
  • September 2016
  • June 2016
  • April 2016
  • March 2016
  • February 2016
  • December 2015
  • November 2015
  • October 2015
  • July 2015
  • May 2015
  • April 2015
  • March 2015
  • February 2015
  • January 2015
  • December 2014
  • November 2014
  • October 2014
  • September 2014
  • August 2014
  • July 2014
  • June 2014
  • May 2014
  • March 2014
  • February 2014
  • January 2014
  • December 2013
  • November 2013
  • October 2013
  • September 2013

Meta

  • Register
  • Log in
  • Entries feed
  • Comments feed
  • WordPress.com

Blog at WordPress.com.

Privacy & Cookies: This site uses cookies. By continuing to use this website, you agree to their use.
To find out more, including how to control cookies, see here: Cookie Policy
  • Follow Following
    • Harping On
    • Join 39 other followers
    • Already have a WordPress.com account? Log in now.
    • Harping On
    • Customize
    • Follow Following
    • Sign up
    • Log in
    • Report this content
    • View site in Reader
    • Manage subscriptions
    • Collapse this bar
 

Loading Comments...