Surviving the C-word

First off, we got lucky. My sister went in for a routine annual check-up. Since she’d had pre-cancer two year ago, her doctor ordered a C-scan just as routine. The scan came back with a blob near a lymph node and two dark spots on her lung. He was going to be on call and couldn’t see her for a week after that, so she chose to go in for a PET scan and then waited to see him until early this morning. She asked me to go with her, worried she’d fall apart if she heard bad news, so that I could ask questions and drive her home.

It’s been a miserable time while we waited. But when we went in this morning, good news! The blob is a benign cyst and the spots are nodules of some kind. We were elated, but by the time my sister left this morning, I was exhausted. My husband and I talked for a while, then I plopped my fanny in my writing chair to get some word count for the day. And I actually made some progress, but by late afternoon, I crashed.

The worry has worn me out. I haven’t slept very well. Neither has she. I’ve tried to do more with her….just in case. At two-thirty, I grabbed my blankie and took a nap. Tomorrow, I go to writers’ club, and I’ll probably be tired again. I thought I was coping well, and I was. But the effort took a toll.

I know it could have been a lot worse. We went through the whole chemo and radiation routine with my cousin who has cerebral palsy. My sister’s C-scan showed up in the exact same spots. I’m so glad the outcome is different! Cancer survivors are so brave. The people who support them are so wonderful. The people who treat them deserve praise.

HH’s best friend is in Indy right now, fighting blood cancer. My dad died of that. They took out his healthy white blood cells, then killed all of the ones that were left, and soon, they’ll inject his healthy white cells back in him. In the meantime, he has NO immune system. None. He’ll have to get all of his baby shots again for mumps, measles, whooping cough….you name it. He’s facing the whole ordeal with the most positive attitude I’ve ever seen. And hopefully, it will buy him another ten years of health.

My sister, HH’s friend, and I have stayed as positive as we can. But once their ordeals were over for the moment, I took a nap. Being positive made me tired. If I had a magic wand, I’d wish you all health, happiness, and writing success. But I only write about witches, and even with magic, they have struggles of their own. I write about murderers, but not about diseases. Those are almost scarier. But for the moment, my sister has a reprieve. Once I catch up on sleep, I’m going to enjoy that.