A way to start 2010

jaimeeleigh
jaimeeleigh Member Posts: 12
edited March 2014 in Lymphoma (Hodgkin and Non-Hodgkin) #1
well im 18 years old and ive been diagonised with hodgkin lymphoma. i was diagonesd in nov 2009 and now undergoing chemotherapy since then. it has been a rough few months for me. as only being 18 and just recently leftd school i was happy to be leaving college thinking *yes im leaving college and heading to the navy* what i didnt expect was to be told that i have cancer. it been a hard time for both me and my family, recently a close uncle of mine pastd away and then finding out your daughter,niece,granddaughrer,cousin has cancer! not something you would want to experince.
ild say it didnt hit me till my first chemo session. i didnt know what to expect and it was just all so new to me. but i went in there knowing i was getting the best care.
i think the thing that threw me off abit was the people knowing about it. cause when i told my friends they seemed like they cared and stuff, but as soon as they headed of to uni or course they just seem to loose contact in me and i felt lost and confused. i just didnt or still dont understand ? were they really my friends ?
but the most important thing me to concentrate on was to get better.
i have so much more to write, but ill think ill leave it there for now.
jaimee

Comments

  • m-star
    m-star Member Posts: 441
    #2
    Hey there.I saee you already
    Hey there.I saee you already found the discussion board! lol

    Ok,i would imagine your friends really were your friends,but i think they may find it hard to deal with.They may not know what to say to you. I was a similar age to you when i was diagnosed and me and my friends lost touch.Sadly its an age when you all go your seperate ways and move on with your lives in different directions. This may well still have happened even if you hadn't got the cancer.

    Focus on yourself and your family,but don't write your friends off.

    So you were gonna join the navy huh? well see that as your focus and your goal.Maybe 1 day you'll still be able to join.How much chemo do you have left to go? You could maybe plan something for when you finish.A party?A vacation?A special dinner out with your family (and they ALL have to wear fancy dress!!!). This will give you something to look forward to and a 'countdown' of days.It makes the time pass quicker.

    I never knew anyone who'd had HL when i was diagnosed and i wish i'd had someone to talk to that had been through it and knew what i was feeling.I hope myself and others like me can help you while you're going thru thid tough time.

    (((hugs)))
    Kay
  • JoanieP
    JoanieP Member Posts: 573
    #3
    You will be o.k
    HL is considered curable. You are young and strong. I know an 18 year od and a 30 year old that had it last year and they both are considered cured. Thake care and God bless you
  • jaimeeleigh
    jaimeeleigh Member Posts: 12
    #4
    m-star said:

    Hey there.I saee you already
    Hey there.I saee you already found the discussion board! lol

    Ok,i would imagine your friends really were your friends,but i think they may find it hard to deal with.They may not know what to say to you. I was a similar age to you when i was diagnosed and me and my friends lost touch.Sadly its an age when you all go your seperate ways and move on with your lives in different directions. This may well still have happened even if you hadn't got the cancer.

    Focus on yourself and your family,but don't write your friends off.

    So you were gonna join the navy huh? well see that as your focus and your goal.Maybe 1 day you'll still be able to join.How much chemo do you have left to go? You could maybe plan something for when you finish.A party?A vacation?A special dinner out with your family (and they ALL have to wear fancy dress!!!). This will give you something to look forward to and a 'countdown' of days.It makes the time pass quicker.

    I never knew anyone who'd had HL when i was diagnosed and i wish i'd had someone to talk to that had been through it and knew what i was feeling.I hope myself and others like me can help you while you're going thru thid tough time.

    (((hugs)))
    Kay

    hey
    hey yeah the discussion board was the first thing i found hehe.

    yeah thats what i keep thinking to myself, that they dont know how to handle it and stuff. i just wish i did have someone there that did care abit to contact me. But thats ok i had my bf and mum and stuff.

    but yeah im still consdiering in going to the navy, ive been wanting to go since i was 13. but ive got one more month to go! yay!
    My mum said we are going to celebrate after my last one which i am excited about!
    What did you do ? where you still living at home?

    yeah i never knew anyone that had HL aswell till i saw this site.

    thanks for your comment
    (((Hugz)))
  • m-star
    m-star Member Posts: 441
    #5
    jaimeeleigh said:

    hey
    hey yeah the discussion board was the first thing i found hehe.

    yeah thats what i keep thinking to myself, that they dont know how to handle it and stuff. i just wish i did have someone there that did care abit to contact me. But thats ok i had my bf and mum and stuff.

    but yeah im still consdiering in going to the navy, ive been wanting to go since i was 13. but ive got one more month to go! yay!
    My mum said we are going to celebrate after my last one which i am excited about!
    What did you do ? where you still living at home?

    yeah i never knew anyone that had HL aswell till i saw this site.

    thanks for your comment
    (((Hugz)))

    Well thats great you still
    Well thats great you still wanna join the navy!Gives you a real goal.

    Yeah i was still living at home with my parents when i was ill but we didnt do anything to celebrate =( It wouldn't even have been thought about in my house.Thats why i suggested it to you.I know it would have given ME something to look fwd to and i would have liked it! =)

    I think i should maybe organise a celebration for 2011 when i will be 20years clear of the disease! Mind you.....that feels a little like tempting fate.

    Tell you what,you celebrate on my behalf when you have your celebration! =D

    ((hugs))

    Kay
  • jaimeeleigh
    jaimeeleigh Member Posts: 12
    #6
    m-star said:

    Well thats great you still
    Well thats great you still wanna join the navy!Gives you a real goal.

    Yeah i was still living at home with my parents when i was ill but we didnt do anything to celebrate =( It wouldn't even have been thought about in my house.Thats why i suggested it to you.I know it would have given ME something to look fwd to and i would have liked it! =)

    I think i should maybe organise a celebration for 2011 when i will be 20years clear of the disease! Mind you.....that feels a little like tempting fate.

    Tell you what,you celebrate on my behalf when you have your celebration! =D

    ((hugs))

    Kay

    Hey i was looking at your
    Hey i was looking at your profile and came across that you did TKD!
    my dad is an *unstructor (if thats how you spell it) here in New Zealand.

    But yeah i will defiantly celebrate on your behalf.
  • UcanDOit
    UcanDOit Member Posts: 3
    #7
    Don't worry.
    Just want to say 'hi' and offer you some honest encouragement from someone who has 'been there, done that'. First, the young lady said it exactly right; your 18 year old friends haven't abandoned you, at 18 everyone is moving in different directions as they begin their lives. Look at yourself, you were doing the same by joining the navy. They are not making a choice to 'avoid' you, their lives simply have all of their attention.

    You, like all of us (when first diagnosed with cancer) are: scared, confused, uninformed, helpless, panicked. It's OK. Those are all perfectly normal reactions. Heck, how would anyone know how to react to a doctor telling them "you have cancer"? It's not something we prepare for in school.

    The doctors will do their part and YOU need to do your part. They have the tools like chemo and radiation but YOU have the best tool to fight cancer...your attitude. Stay positive, rely on your personal strength, lean on your family and friends when you need to, and do everything you can to keep yourself healthy.

    My apologies for writing such a 'book' but I have some experience with this. I had Hodgkins, stage IV, 25 years ago. I was every bit as confused and scared as everyone else but I learned one valuable lesson while in hospital. While walking around the ward, I saw several people suffering terribly; one lady in particular. The nurse told me that she likely wouldn't make it because she was so sick she couldn't take the chemo treatments (which were really harsh back then). The lesson learned: "If I think I've got it tough, just look around; there are others suffering far more than me."

    I wish you well and know that you'll live to be 90 years old with lots of grandkids!
  • jaimeeleigh
    jaimeeleigh Member Posts: 12
    #8
    UcanDOit said:

    Don't worry.
    Just want to say 'hi' and offer you some honest encouragement from someone who has 'been there, done that'. First, the young lady said it exactly right; your 18 year old friends haven't abandoned you, at 18 everyone is moving in different directions as they begin their lives. Look at yourself, you were doing the same by joining the navy. They are not making a choice to 'avoid' you, their lives simply have all of their attention.

    You, like all of us (when first diagnosed with cancer) are: scared, confused, uninformed, helpless, panicked. It's OK. Those are all perfectly normal reactions. Heck, how would anyone know how to react to a doctor telling them "you have cancer"? It's not something we prepare for in school.

    The doctors will do their part and YOU need to do your part. They have the tools like chemo and radiation but YOU have the best tool to fight cancer...your attitude. Stay positive, rely on your personal strength, lean on your family and friends when you need to, and do everything you can to keep yourself healthy.

    My apologies for writing such a 'book' but I have some experience with this. I had Hodgkins, stage IV, 25 years ago. I was every bit as confused and scared as everyone else but I learned one valuable lesson while in hospital. While walking around the ward, I saw several people suffering terribly; one lady in particular. The nurse told me that she likely wouldn't make it because she was so sick she couldn't take the chemo treatments (which were really harsh back then). The lesson learned: "If I think I've got it tough, just look around; there are others suffering far more than me."

    I wish you well and know that you'll live to be 90 years old with lots of grandkids!

    hi
    hi thank you very much for your encourgaement and advice.
    i have nearly finished and cannot wait to start my life on track.
  • m-star
    m-star Member Posts: 441
    #9
    jaimeeleigh said:

    hi
    hi thank you very much for your encourgaement and advice.
    i have nearly finished and cannot wait to start my life on track.

    hey hun!
    i only just checked
    hey hun!

    i only just checked thid thread and noticed you said your dad is a TKD instructor?! Cool!!
    I also passed my instuctor exam 3 years ago and am qualified to teach but i just let my insurance run out on January as i didnt want to pay for it this year as i wont be training hardly at all til next year.Seemes a waste of £100. I will renew it hopefully next year if there is another course.
    So does he teach ITF style TKD? Thats what i do (not WTF which is the Olympic style).

    I 'll email ya soon.just had a busy last few days.Hope your feeling good.You're nearly done now so you can hopefully put all this behind you!

    (((hugs)))

    Kay
  • mollylarge
    mollylarge Member Posts: 5
    #10
    Little bits of advice
    Jaimee,

    I just found out about this site, so I'm pretty new to it myself. I finished my treatment for Hodgkins almost exactly 5 years ago. I had 8 months of chemo, every 2 weeks. The type of chemo was ABVD.

    Having a goal is a great idea. Especially at your age, there is no reason Hodgkins or your treatment should stop you from reaching your goals. You may need to wait a few months while you get treatment, but now is the right time to focus on you. Your friends (and I'm sure they are your friends) don't know how to support you because they are also young and have no experience with it either - if you are ever comfortable telling them what you want from them, I bet they will come through for you.

    If you are having ABVD chemo, there are some choices you may want to make. ABVD is very hard on the veins, and if you have an IV each time, you may start to develop some pain. If you do, don't be afraid to get pain medicine. That's what it's there for. You have other choices than an IV - they can put a port in under your skin that has a line directly into your large veins. Because it goes into the large vein, there is less scarring. Ask lots of questions about your choices, because there is no reason to have this be any more uncomfortable than it already is.

    Speaking of uncomfortable (and I apologize for being gross) you might want to get a laxative that you start taking 2 days before chemo and keep taking 2 days afterwards. Be sure to get a "stool softener" and not a "motility enhancer". I'm guessing you already know if this is something you need!

    Hang in there. Talk with people on this board. Ask lots of questions, and don't be afraid of how your questions might sound. Most of us on here want to share our experiences so that the next person has a better one.

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