My mum was diagnosed with ovarian cancer a year ago and has since had two rounds of chemo and a hysterectomy. All of which went well and she’s now being treated with medication (zejula).
I thought this would be a good stage to get to and focused on her getting to this point. However she seems to be encountering a lot of issues that seem small in comparison to cancer, constipation (which could be side effect), hearing loss (which I think is just bad timing) and it’s these things that seem to be making her feel more depressed than the cancer did! I struggle to say anything that helps much. I know there isn’t really anything to say.
maybe I have been slightly naive about how life is when you are living with cancer. I thought the medication stage would mean a relatively normal life for a few years at least…but I feel like my mum will never be the same person again. I worry it’s essentially the start of a slow decline. Which I know isnt a good way to think. But it’s the way my mind works. And it just makes me so sad.
just putting this out there to get it written down and out my system.
Hi LDW83 and welcome to the community,
I can certainly relate to issues with constipation as that on it's own can be enough to drag someone down but wonder if that is something that might be helped in talking to the oncology team.
On the slow decline front - well we are all pretty much in that position and of course add to the delights of covid recently then the new normal is something pretty much everyone had to live with - and some still do.
One thing many of us with a family member with cancer need to recognize is the effects on us if we are to be the best support for the one we love - if we look at Supporting a family member with cancer there are various suggestions that might be useful.
<<hugs>>
Steve
