Uplift: Secrets from the Sisterhood of Breast Cancer Survivors - Softcover

Delinsky, Barbara

 
9781451654677: Uplift: Secrets from the Sisterhood of Breast Cancer Survivors
Softcover
ISBN 10: 1451654677 ISBN 13: 9781451654677
Verlag: Atria, 2011

Inhaltsangabe

From the New York Times bestselling author comes this newly revised compilation of practical advice and upbeat anecdotes from more than 300 breast cancer survivors—as well as their families and friends.

Barbara Delinsky's 1998 bestseller, COAST ROAD, featured a heroine who was a breast cancer survivor. To this day, it is the book that generates more mail than any of her others. That fact, combined with Barbara's ongoing commitment to breast cancer research, led her to her first book of nonfiction. Not a medical book -- there is no discussion of the pros and cons of a particular treatment or hospital or doctor -- UPLIFT is rather a collection of hundreds of pieces of practical and inspiring tidbits collected from survivors and their on everything from what kind of deodorant to use during radiation treatment to the best kinds of exercise aftloved ones. Think of it as "The Girlfriends' Guide" to breast cancer, with hints on everything from what kind of deodorant to use during radiation treatment to the best kinds of exercise after a mastectomy to how to tell the person you're most afraid to tell that you have cancer.

And as timeless as ever, this newly revised edition of UPLIFT contains the latest and most up-to-the-minute medical information, as well as new stories from inspiring cancer survivors.

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Über die Autorin bzw. den Autor

Barbara Delinsky has written more than twenty New York Times bestselling novels, with over thirty million copies in print. Her books are highly emotional, character-driven studies of marriage, parenthood, sibling rivalry, and friendship. She is also the author of a breast cancer handbook. A breast cancer survivor herself, Barbara donates her author proceeds from the handbook to fund a research fellowship at Massachusetts General Hospital. Visit her at BarbaraDelinsky.com.

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1• On Diagnosis

First Things First

Where was I when I learned that I had breast cancer? You may as well ask where I was when I learned that JFK had been shot. I will never forget either answer.

In the case of JFK, I was in college, returning to my dormitory after class to find the television on in the dorm living room and my friends gathered around it. I remember feeling total disbelief—that what had happened couldn’t be so. It had nothing to do with political affiliation and everything to do with youth, vigor, and Camelot.

In the case of breast cancer, I felt no disbelief. I was working out in the basement of our home when my surgeon called to say that the results of my biopsy were in and that the tiny little granules she had removed from my breast were malignant. She told you that on the phone? Indeed, she did. It was just the right thing for me, and she knew it. She and I had been through biopsies together before. She knew that my mother had had breast cancer and that I’d been expecting it. She knew that the best approach to take with me would be the understated one. What she actually said was, “You’ve spent a lifetime waiting for the other shoe to fall, and now that it has, it’s a very small shoe. The cure rate for this is ninety-nine-point-five percent. Here is what I recommend . . .”

I listened. Then I hung up the phone and called my husband. Then I finished working out. In doing that, I was showing myself that I was healthy and strong, cancer and all. I needed to minimize the impact of what I’d learned . . . because just as a certain idealism had been lost when JFK was shot, so I knew that with a diagnosis of breast cancer, a part of my life was forever changed.

I was shaky as I climbed back up the stairs—and what had me most frightened wasn’t the prospect of having a re-excision and radiation. It was phoning our three sons, who were in three different states, in college and law school at the time. I went about making dinner, a crucial same-old same-old, as I put through those calls, and as I talked with each son I had the first of many cancer experiences that weren’t nearly as bad as I’d imagined. “Curable” was the word I stressed. My confidence was contagious.

MAKING DECISIONS

“When I was first diagnosed, I knew pretty much nothing about breast cancer—except that I didn’t want it! By learning everything I could, I started to calm down, sort things out, and actively make decisions. Knowledge is power. It definitely makes you feel a little bit more in control of your life.”

Deborah Lambert; diagnosed in 2000 at age 47;
medical secretary; Massachusetts

“The first thing I did when the doctor told me I had breast cancer was to sit down, since I was weak in the knees, then to get a pen and paper. As an educator I needed to get it all in print, to get it right. That served to calm me immediately.”

Christine Foutris; diagnosed in 1999 at age 49;
teacher; Illinois

“When I woke up after a lumpectomy and learned that I had breast cancer, I was in shock. To show how little I knew, when my husband was visiting and offered me a sip from his drink, I declined, saying that we didn’t know if he could catch cancer from my germs. After he left, I picked up a book that a friend had left. Opening it at random, my eyes caught the words, ‘A cancerous cell is, in fact, a weak and confused cell.’ That made both of us, I thought, and laughed heartily.”

Carol Pasternak; diagnosed in 1986 at age 47;
artist; Ontario, Canada

“I was devastated when I got the diagnosis of cancer. I’d had my mammogram faithfully every year. I went home to prepare dinner in a sort of shock. As I stood at the stove I worried about what was going to happen and how I could handle it. Then, suddenly, a feeling of calm and peace came over me, and an inner voice said, ‘You will be all right.’ From that moment on, I knew I would survive.”

Wendy Golab; diagnosed in 2000 at age 63;
nurse; Connecticut

“Realize that a diagnosis of cancer does not mean instant doom. You have time to investigate, reflect, get several opinions, and make careful decisions. Tell yourself this every morning, and tell everyone around you to keep telling it back to you.”

Susan Stamberg; diagnosed in 1986 at age 48;
broadcast journalist; Washington, D.C.

“I didn’t make any decisions about treatment until my children and significant other had been told. We all went to the surgeon’s office together the next day. My children were all in their twenties. The home care nurse and I gave one daughter a crash course in Nursing 101 so that she could change my dressings, and they all took turns driving me to my doctor appointments and treatment. This was a reassurance for them that nothing was being kept from them.”

Becky Honeycutt; diagnosed in 1995 at age 53;
licensed practical nurse; Indiana

“One of the very first things I did, after the words ‘cancer’ and ‘radiation’ were mentioned, was to get down to the local library to see what radiation entailed.”

Deb Haney; diagnosed in 1996 at age 48;
administrative assistant, artist; Massachusetts

“When I was first diagnosed, I wanted information immediately. I wanted to know which treatment plan was right for me. I rushed out and purchased the largest book on breast cancer I could find and read it twice. I sought the advice of trusted family, friends, doctors, and breast cancer survivors. I made sure I was equipped with the best possible information, so that I could be my own best advocate.”

Corinne Wood; diagnosed in 1997 at age 42;
Lieutenant Governor; Illinois

“Treat your diagnosis as a business problem. Do research. Use the Internet, and go through literature at the hospital resource room. Feeling in control is pretty important, so begin with a notebook. The inside cover should have the name and telephone numbers of each of your caretakers (doctor, nurse, etc.) as they come on the scene. The notebook can be sectioned to keep track of doctors’ appointments, definitions, outside advice, and so on.”

Anne Jacobs; diagnosed in 1999 at age 62;
managing partner, real estate; Massachusetts

“Try to attend lectures on breast cancer. All major hospitals have these programs. Just call the community relations director. Attend lectures on the side effects of treatment and the importance of good nutrition.”

Ellen Beth Simon; diagnosed in 1998 at age 41;
lawyer; New Jersey

“When I went to appointments after the diagnosis, I always had two or three of the children with me and sometimes all of them. They had so many questions to ask and also wanted to make sure I understood all the doctor was saying. After a while, I went alone with just my husband. When the doctor came in and saw only the two of us, he started hunting in all the closets and cupboards and finally said, ‘Okay, where are they hiding?’ We got a big chuckle out of that.”

Sally Martel; diagnosed in 1996 at age 60;
wife, mother, retired accountant; New Hampshire, Florida

“The hardest part of the whole mess was deciding what I wanted to do. I struggled with the decision-making process. Finally a dear, sweet lady said, ‘Do your homework, make a decision, and don’t look back. You can deal with whatever is up ahead when you get to it.’ She was right.”

Mitzi Scarborough; diagnosed in 1999 at age 37;
childcare provider; Arkansas

“How much do you really want to know? Be...

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Verlag
Atria
Erscheinungsdatum
2011
Sprache
Englisch
ISBN 10 
1451654677
ISBN 13 
9781451654677
Einband
Taschenbuch
Anzahl der Seiten
416
Kontakt zum Hersteller
Nicht verfügbar
Verantwortliche Person
preigu
mail@preigu.de

Lengericher Landstr. 19
Osnabrück
49078
Deutschland

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