Meredith's Monday Musings: Cancer

Hi All!

Happy Monday! How are y’all doing today? We’re officially in October. I can’t believe it! Time is moving by way too fast! 

Today’s Meredith Monday Musings post is all about: Cancer. 

Can I say right now, I hate cancer. There is nothing good about it. It sure as heck doesn’t help the person who has it. It isn’t fun for the loved ones of the person who has cancer. I’m sure that the nurses and doctors who work in the oncology department don’t look forward to having to go to work and tell patients the sad news about their disease. (But thank gosh they do this job, because they’re one of the many things that help make this unbearable illness, bearable.) But does everyone get my point? Cancer sucks. 

A couple weeks ago, a very close family friend of mine was diagnosed with Stage 3 inflammatory HER2 breast cancer. When I found out about this, my heart broke. This woman has always eaten healthy. I’ve never seen her take a sip of pop, she doesn’t eat meat, or hardly any sweets. She basically ate all organic fruits, vegetables, fish, healthy fats, and grains. On top of that, she exercised at lest four times a week. She truly was the picture of health and one of the sweetest most caring people I know. Yet, she still got cancer. And it really makes me wonder why. Why does it seem that the best people are the ones to come down with this deadly disease? 

When I heard the news about my friend, it made me want to drop everything and go see her. The only problem is, she lives five hours away, so I’d have to take off work, book a hotel, make arrangements for my pets, pack, etc. Unfortunately, right now I’m just not able to visit. This is so hard for me. I want to be by my friend in her time of need and help her in anyway I can, but I can’t right now. It’s an awful feeling, feeling like you’re completely helpless to go help out someone else. 

I know that I’m not the only one who has ever experienced this situation. It’s awful to think about, but I’m sure if I asked any adult, every one of them would have known someone who had cancer. This is so sad to me because I know how hard it is to watch a loved one or friend go through this awful disease. I wish there was a way for me to snap my fingers, so no one had to get cancer and thus, no one would have to walk the journey of watching someone they care about fight this awful disease. 

I know doctors are doing everything they can to try and find a cure for cancer, but I wish they would discover it like tomorrow. Chemo drugs are crazy expensive. Besides that, the drugs seem to do just as much damage to one’s body as the cancer does. I know these meds are doing their jobs when they make a person sick, but it doesn’t make it any easier for the person getting sick or the one holding their hair back. 

So do y’all get my point? Cancer sucks. There are absolutely no redeeming qualities with it. I wouldn’t even wish it on my worst enemy. 

With all of the above being said, it really is easy to focus on the negatives of cancer, there are so many of them. However, it is also very important for both you and the person who has cancer that you try and stay positive through this battle. If you only focus on the negatives, then it’s going to make the situation a heck of a lot worse. Try staying positive, tell yourself that the person/you will get through this. As hard as this is, each time that you see your loved one/you dealing with one of the awful side effects of the chemo or radiation, remind yourself that these side effects are permanent and it’s actually a sign that the meds are working and getting rid of the cancer. That’s good. And most importantly, don’t ever give up hope that your loved one/you can beat this disease, because you can! You just have to believe! 

I’m sorry for today’s depressing post. 

I hope y’all have a good day!