Hey Cats Crickeys you are being put through the wringer at the moment! I really hope it improves for you soon. I understand some of what you are saying re the brain and pain. If you go to a pain management thingy i think they teach you techniques to deal with pain rather than upping medications. Thats for chronic long term as far as i know. Just goes to show how powerful our brains are in relation to our bodies. It is always dodgy buying take away food and over my years of working i have worked in a couple of places and yup you really do need to be careful. I think the health dept that perform the checks need to do much more regular checks! When do you get your results back? I hate waiting for results it is exhausting i find. I find myself slipping into that see saw emotion and then its so tiring to try and stay impartial without burying one's head. You will be pleased to know that "it" is ruling the house. lol Ahlee or witchy as i call her bit me the other night. This was after me doing the obligatory scratch around the jaw and then the tail pull that she likes so much and then to finish off we had the tummy rub and then "bite". I am sure you can insert a name here that she got called when she drew blood. 😄 I have put out her tunnel today so tonight i am sure she is going to have a ball when we are all sleeping. Mind you i have put it in the passage and i will move it because its right outside my bedroom door. She hides under my bed till my son goes out and then pops out for me to stroke her. I am well trained, can you tell? Oh the witch is on cue she is at the back door looking out at my long grass that needs mowing. Shame i cant harness the cat to the lawnmower and let her chase me round the backyard. hehe omg she is such a princess! She is pretty funny really and tries to pretend she doesnt like me but she really does. Ok cats i better get some things happening here and i think a nana nap is on the cards this arvo. Hope you are ok despite all your ailments at the mo. hugsss Julie xo ... View more

Hey Larn I can imagine that T is panicking that it is something more than an infected lymph gland. Perhaps when the antibiotics kick in and he starts to feel better physically his mental state will pick up. Julie xo ... View more

Do limbo dancers wear grass skirts? If they don't perhaps you can start a new trend. 😄 Grats! ... View more

Hey cats I dont have any remedies or strategies for laughing at fear. I am so sorry to read you are having such a hard time of things at the moment and goodness any sane person would be thinking the same as you are, if they were in your boat! IT is natural to think it is cancer that is causing us problems. Crickeys, the first time i had cancer i would go to the doctors with a sore elbow. Very lol now but at the time it was a valid fear in my mind. I think family and sometimes friends just cannot comprehend what we go through as cancer patients and thank goodness we arent island's in our feelings and thoughts. I hope your gastro problems pass quickly for you. hugsss Julie xoxo ps the cat is in charge and finally turned up. It got lost in the house for a while but is settling in quite well and eating, drinking and coming out for a quick cuddle and pat before it disappears again. Pretty much what it does in its own home. I call it "witchy" because it likes to bite me. 😄 It's real name is Ahlee i think. Some high falluting name for a high falluting cat - "apparently"!! ... View more

Hi wapwap It must be very difficult watching your mum suffering. I cannot urge you enough to keep talking to the doctors re any side effects from treatment and pain. There is so much that they can do to ease suffering these days. There is no point in putting up with it because it just drags you down emotionally aswell as in other ways too. Yw re the support and i hope your mum is travelling a little easier now. Julie xo ... View more

Hi wapwap I am sure i would be feeling defeated if i had to go through what you have gone through. I am so sorry to hear of your loss and now also your mum's diagnosis. How is she coping with her chemo and diagnosis? Everyone does react differently to treatment's etc... and i only hope that one day they will find that elusive "key" that unlocks the mystery surrounding cancer. Julie ... View more

Hi philrad I am sorry to read of your wife's passing, my condolences to you. It is such a tough journey with cancer for all concerned and it is heartening to think of those that work in the cancer field. There are certainly some amazing people involved. I am currently doing volunteer work at my local hospital for the pastoral care dept and it is such a rewarding experience for me and I am told for them also. I hope you keep reading the site and gain some comfort from it. Julie ... View more

Hiya Willow I can only share my experience with you and that goes back to just over 21 years ago that my life was first touched by cancer. That time i was given a month to live or "x" amount of years and certainly it took some years to feel comfortable and it took a lot of years before i ceased to think much about cancer at all. This time i do things differently, in that i try very hard not to cross the bridges till i have to. Of course this attitude does not come easily nor naturally and it is something that i work incredibly hard on. I have so far (6 months out of treatment now) managed to keep a handle on things, although there is still a great sense of relief when i get the thumbs up. Cancer just sucks with all that it does to us even if we survive it - it leaves its scars from impact and changes us forever. I think that is one thing i am having problems coming to terms with this time. This time i was at a stage in my life where i was happy and things were getting easier and i had plans to travel etc... then wham ... forget the previous scenario and now i am just in limbo from the treatment and struggling with side effects. Of course i am grateful for the treatment and to survive this long "but"!! I hope you are feeling a bit better now that you have shared your feelings. It is difficult and even though we have mostly had different cancers ... there is still that sense of knowing. hugsss Julie ... View more

Hey Cats So sorry to hear of your news, that sucks big time! I hope you are feeling a bit less numb by now and giving your cat plenty of cuddles. I have a very non cuddly cat coming to stay for 10 days. I told her last night she was coming to mine "for a little holiday" and i was gonna be boss - not her. lol I can live and dream! IT must be bloody hard not knowing if you are going to make the milestones you have set yourself. My pancreatic cancer friend is making a scrapbook with her daughter. It is just beautiful and contains memories they have of one another and i felt very special when she showed it to me. Thinking of you and sending hugs. Julie xo ... View more

Hi Jill Thanks for letting us know how you and the boys are going. I think we all feel a bit "iffy" about typing things at times, just in case someone else isnt doing as well or coping - I know i do! It was fantastic to read that the boys have gone back to school which gives them some sort of normality back. ALso great to see that you have a balance going with the tears and laughter. 🙂 I am doing volunteer work one day a week at the local hospital for the pastoral care dept. It is rather nice to be able to forget about my situation for just a short period of time. Burying one's head occasionally can be a good thing! Ok, time for me to get this day on the road - I have to vacuum because I am having "witchy" (as i call her - my sil's cat) come to stay for 10 days and don't want to freak her out with the noise. This cat has a love hate relationship with me, she loves to bite me. lol Take care Jill and talk soon. Julie xo ... View more