On the evening of October 14th, I found out that my aunt has stage 4 cancer. Because my aunt never went to see a doctor, her cancer was discovered extremely late in the game and the prognosis was not good. (Here’s another gross understatement: China is a large country.)
When I found out, I wanted knowledge on what to expect. Not just for my aunt, but for me as a family member and part of her support team. I immediately started looking for books on how to help family members deal with something like this. And while I found lots of books documenting personal accounts of cancer survivors’ journeys, I didn’t find much when it comes to those of us on the sidelines.
So that’s why I’m sharing my personal sketchbook journal here with you: to let you know that you aren’t crazy, you aren’t selfish, and you aren’t alone. If there’s anything in here that you relate to in here, I’ll be happy. (And if you’d like to chat, please tweet me at @jeannelking.)
Hoping this finds you happy and well,
Jeannel
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Wow.
Just, wow.
I am so sorry for what you are going through
and so grateful that you took the time to share this
with the rest of the universe!!
LOVE YOU!
Love you too, Eris! Thank you…
Jeannel – This is amazing…I had never seen your work. I lost my sister to pancreatic cancer almost three months ago and have another sister diagnosed with breast cancer (she is done with her treatment). Your story reads exactly like I felt. I love it. Nice work!!
Hi Nancy,
I am so sorry to hear about your sisters…and at the same time I’m so grateful to hear that this is something that resonates with your own experience. Sending much peace, joy, and health to you and yours,
Jeannel
Oh honey…this brought back so many memories of my sister and her lung cancer. We had 6 monthswith her fighting that horrific cancer and she lost in the end. Her husband, Frank, just couldn’t help her so Joe and I stepped in and took over. The only thing I regret is that we kept that positive outlook and never talked about “what if this doesn’t work” so in the end when we lost her I had no clue what she wanted me to do for the funeral and all her jewelry and her books and he personal things etc etc. She had no children and it was just her and Frank. Frank just couldn’t handle it. My prayers go out to you and Janine honey and please know that I love you and I’m on your side. God will guide you though this Jeannel….xoxo
Thank you, Bonnie. I feel like we’re walking a zig-zag line between staying positive and planning for the end. Hoping for the best and preparing for the worst, I guess. I really relate to your experience with Frank, and will make my next cup of tea a Constant Comment one so I can pretend that you and I are chatting at the kitchen table…xoxo
Sorry for this difficult journey, Jean, but what a wonderful way to work through it. HUG!!!