Monday 16 April 2012

Monday - Cautious Optimism for Mum

To keep the blog real, I need to write about some bad news our family and friends had over the past week or so, as it will be impossible to continue without mentioning it. I am on the Wirral with Mum at the moment and I have discussed it with her; she is comfortable for us to be upfront and open with her situation and for the journey to be documented along with other stuff that we talk about here.

On Thursday 5th April Mum got diagnosed with cancer which was a huge shock to us all. Today we went to Arrow Park Hospital to get a clearer picture of what we are dealing with along with a plan of action. This is not the time to go into all the details but she has ovarian cancer and a treatment plan of chemotherapy over coming months.

Mum is a fit and strong lady with a natural optimism that has helped her through some very challenging situations in the past. I have absolutely no doubt that she will draw on her own strength and the strength of all the family and friends in fighting the cancer. We will be there every step of the way Mum....love xx

Me and Mum today



Mum did make me dinner yesterday (with the help of Auntie Karen) - good effort considering!!!xx

1 comment:

Chef Chipmunk said...

It sounds like your mum has a really strong family around her with an excellent attituide, which I believe is essential in beating this illness.

My Mum found out she had breast cancer in July 2009, and I think it actually did us a lot of good as it brought us a lot closer together as a family. We're really strong now and looked after each other really well. It's important to try and stay positive, for both yourself and her. Even to the point of making jokes about it, when you are both ready.

Another really important thing that can help is make sure her diet is really healthy during the chemo to keep her strong. She'll probably find her tastes will change and she wont fancy stuff that she did before. For example, my Mum couldnt stand the thought of meat, and we worried she wasn't getting enough iron and protein. We made a chart in the end with boxes for each day such as an egg, a dark green veg, pieces of fruit etc, to tick off. And tell her not to worry her tastes will go back to normal.

Sorry I've rambled on and I don't know you (i always enjoy reading yours and Jo's blog posts though!) but I thought I'd give you a bit of an insight into someone who's been through it and to let you know there's a light at the end of the tunnel!

It's good to hear stories of those who have beaten cancer, and after a mascectomy, lots of chemo and radiotherapy, and a bit more surgery, my mum finally did after about a year.

Good luck, keep your chin up, and try and remember that one day this will just be a horrible memory that you can look back on as something that you got through together and made you all stronger.

Nikki (Chef Chipmunk)
http://chefchipmunk.blogspot.co.uk/