Tomorrow we ring the bell

Billie67 said:

Oh you are so right
Others just don't understand. One of my favorites is when I'm telling someone that I have no sense of taste and they reply with "oh yes, one time I had this really bad cold and I couldn't taste anything...it was the worst! Don't worry, it'll come back"
I must admit also that as positive as I try to be, I feel too that this will never truly be over. NED is amazing and such a relief to hear but as time passes between scans the "what ifs" creep back in to my mind.
You are right too when you say that our CSN family are the ones who really get us and know what we are dealing with.
By the way, the bell rang beautifully when I rang it in your honor.
Take care,
Billie

What a great new tradition!
I remember being driven home by my wife from the hospital after my last rads dose and thinking to myself that it would be nice to mark that event in some way. Of course, I couldn't eat real food (toasting with a Boost before it went down my PEG wasn't all that appealing) and could not drink anything but a few sips of water at a time. So, I went home and took a long nap and relished the thought of not having to go for another treatment the next day. Ringing a bell for myself, and all others who had made it that far would have been a nice thing to do. So, I'm going to get a small bell and ring it whenever someone posts that they've finished rads and/or chemo.

Billie, even if I stay NED the rest of my life, what I am learning is that HNC will always be a part of my life--forever. On the negative side of that are the scars and side effects of the rads and chemo that show no sign of going away for good. On the positive side of that experience is being the recipient of so much love and support, meeting new friends on this site, and knowing that I was strong enough to fight off the beast--for now. HNC never goes out of your life--even after NED. The key is knowing how to deal with the new-normal it has brought to your life.

Mike