My Dad has terminal stomach cancer which has now also spread to his oesophagus. He had a small amount of radiotherapy this week to help him with swallowing his food. I’ve been living alone with him this week while his partner is on a break till tomorrow afternoon. His side effects from radiotherapy have been insomnia, drop in energy, and breathlessness, a couple of times rather severe breathlessness. He’s lost several stone in weight, told a friend today that he’s not well at all (unlike him to say so), and for the first time admitted that he’s finding stairs increasingly difficult to manage. He was told the other week by his oncologist that this symptom management treatment would be the only treatment he’d receive from here on in as his body can’t cope with chemotherapy. I’ve struggled to watch him struggle this week and feel he’s not very far now from having nothing at all left in the tank despite 14 months of giving it a good fight. I’d like the chance to chat with people who know what I’m experiencing, in a chat context, but haven’t found one so far. I feel that my own reserves are running low now.
Hi Torsten
IT is always hard to see a loved one suffering and feeling helpless to do anything about it. If we look at your feelings when someone has cancer I know I recognize lots of what I went through and of course sometimes still do.
I know I find sharing on here can be really helpful and when I need it I know the helpline is there too. We also have a useful little tool in your area that can find face-to-face support near to us, it can be helpful to use the hospital postcode too.
I know before my family meeting cancer I never really felt comfortable with the subject - the great plus on here is we have a shared life experience and just understand how hard things can be. I find sometimes just recognizing that things are hard can help them to feel less overwhelming.
<<hugs>>
Steve
