Lessons learned from beating cancer
Tenzing N.
Posts: 466
Hello all, earlier this year I was diagnosed with a rare but treatable form of lymphoma. I went through six rounds of chemo and have been declared in remission and most likely cured. To the point that my mediport will be removed in two weeks. I don't want to be preachy (not that I would have a very good sermon) but I wanted to pass along a few bits of advice in case anyone faces a life threatening event soon. First, get healthy now. Although my previous health state did not prevent the cancer, it was key to my survival. Especially during the first two to three weeks. Had it not been for my very strong heart I would have certainly died. My overall health also made it easy to recover from every round. I am still in better shape than most even after all of this. Second, buy as much life insurance as you possibly can for as long as you can. Nothing was as comforting as knowing that had things taken a different turn at least my family would have been ok financially. Third, I now realize that I was so wrapped up in surviving the first few weeks that I neglected to spend time with my kids during that time. If you are ever in that same position I would recommend making a special effort to stay connected to your loved ones and not focus so much on trying to stay alive. That seems like weird advice but it's pretty easy to get distracted with yourself in that situation. You could certainly apply that same advice to everyday living but everyone's heard that before. Either you follow it or you try to follow it as best you can I suppose. That's it. I'm back to regular life again. Oh, and one more thing... Relax. Cancer, like most life threatening life events is scary, sure... But there's no sense in worrying. The best advice I had through all of this is that cancer is just a thing. It's not an identity, it's not a lifestyle or a guarantee. It's just something. And like most something's, it's not as powerful as you might imagine.
Tl;dr?
1. Be healthy
2. Buy life insurance
3. Spend time with those around you
4. Don't worry, it'll be alright.
Tl;dr?
1. Be healthy
2. Buy life insurance
3. Spend time with those around you
4. Don't worry, it'll be alright.
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Comments
What a wonderful and wise perspective you have. Thank you for sharing it (I assure you it won't fall on deaf ears).
I hope you continue to be well, in all ways.