You can download our book (published in 2011) "Bad Times Good Times" to read more about our members and their experiences.
Contents
Introduction 5
Everything happens for a reason 7
Dealing with Cancer 15
Cancer, Smanscher 18
Positive thinking 24
Me, Myself and Cancer 30
If you are going through hell, keep going 34
My Time with the Big C 40
Fighting Cancer 47
Life gets Better 50
“Sure that’s the Way!” 55
Life has plenty of Surprises!! 61
My Roundabout Journey 64
My First Hat 72
For All My Life 76
I’ve gained from my Pain 81
Life is a Battle Field 85
Purpose through the Pain 91
The day I met Olfactory Neuroblastoma 95
Sporting a new chance ... 99
Positive Outcomes ... 106
Twice in one Family 110
Lucky Man 119
No Regrets 125
Hope, Faith, Strength and Courage 131
A long boat ride to Crumlin 135
My Cancer Diagnosis – a relief!?! 139
My trip to Oak Ward 145
Snippet
Everything happens for a reason
I can still remember the moment I discovered the lump on my neck. It was a Thursday afternoon after school in Tesco. I was there with my family and my friend, Aisling, because my parents were heading away for their first holiday alone in years and I was going to be staying with her for a week. I was waiting at the checkout for mum to pay and rubbing my neck when I realised there was something under the skin that filled my cupped hand.
I immediately panicked as I’d never been sick in my life and the thought of it scared me. I remember thinking it must be mumps. That was the 7th October 2004. But I wasn’t diagnosed until the 14th December 2004, even though we got it checked out within a week of me finding it. I had nearly every test possible in Cork University Hospital (CUH). This coming from a girl who had, up until this point, never had a blood test in her life and had slept in the same bed as her sisters when they had chicken pox in the hope of catching them, but never did. Before this, even having my blood pressure checked was stressful for me. If only I knew what was to follow! I had x-rays, blood tests, ultra sounds, fine needle aspirations. I was tested for TB, and eventually my Mum pushed for a lymph node biopsy, as it was now December with no results. It was my first time having a general anaesthetic and I was terrified...
Download "Bad Times Good Times" to read more.
