From Pain to Purpose Seven years ago, I didn’t choose this path. Cancer showed up on my doorstep, uninvited and unwelcome. It wasn’t a teacher I asked for, and I won’t call it a gift. Today, after seven straight years of treatment, I face a hard truth: the very thing I tried to escape shaped…
Read moreConstipation during Chemo (and Zofran): A Step-by-Step Bowel Plan That’s Safe and Actually Works
Chemo has a way of changing the rules overnight. One week your body feels predictable, the next week it feels like it’s speaking a new language. Constipation during chemo is one of those “nobody warned me it could be this miserable” side effects of chemotherapy, especially when Zofran (ondansetron) for delayed nausea is part of…
Read moreAnemia During Chemo and Breathless Days: Handling Shortness of Breath, Dizziness, and “Can’t Catch My Breath” Moments
Have you ever tried to take a full breath and felt like your body just wouldn’t cooperate? During anemia during chemo, that feeling can show up out of nowhere, in the grocery store aisle, on the stairs, or even while you’re lying still in bed. It’s frightening, and it can also feel lonely. Cancer treatment…
Read moreThe Power of Presence: Truly Tasting Your Food Again
I slipped into a habit I didn’t notice at first. My phone became a dinner companion. I’d sit down with a meal I’d taken time to make, and within seconds I’d be scrolling through something, anything, while I ate. Yesterday, I went out to lunch and left my phone in the car. I sat down…
Read moreWhen Gratitude Feels Impossible: Finding Meaning in Suffering
No one tells you gratitude and rage can share the same breath. On better days, when pain eases just enough for you to notice light, you might feel both at once, thankful for a friend’s text, furious that you need it. Most days aren’t better. Most days, “look on the bright side” feels like a…
Read more