Hi, I am a 21 year old female who is currently waiting for a blood cancer diagnosis and I don't want to sound like an ungrateful person for my amazing support system but I feel so isolated and alone. Everyone is being so positive but I feel devastatingly sad and angry, and I can't help but be angry at them because everytime I try to talk about it I get shut down with "Don't worry about it". I am looking at Non-chronic myeloid leukemia. I feel ill all of the time and I feel like because my results haven't come back people do not feel that how unwell I feel is valid. I am so so so exhausted, I go to work 5 days a week, 9-5 and I try to stay fit and involved in my partners life and my families but I can't cope anymore. I try to call the hospital to see if they know anything yet but I have to wait another 40 days for my results and they can't do anything about how I feel yet until they know 100% that it is cancer. Does anyone have any tips for the watch and wait / worry and wait period ?
Hi BlanketCosy and a very warm welcome to the Macmillan Community but sorry to hear about your ongoing diagnosis.
I am Mike and I help out around our various blood cancer groups.
For some context I was diagnosed way back in 1999 at 43 with a rare (8 in a million) incurable but treatable type of Cutaneous T-Cell NHL (a type of slow growing Low-grade non-Hodgkin lymphoma) ……. eventually reaching Stage 4a in late 2013 when a second, also rare (4 in a million) type of aggressive Peripheral T-Cell NHL (a type of fast growing High-grade non-Hodgkin lymphoma) was then presenting so I most definitely appreciate the challenges of this journey rather well.
Back in 1999 it took a full year and 6 biopsies before I was properly diagnosed ….. then I was basically on active monitoring for 14 years before I needed any full on treatment…… this is blood cancer for you.
The bottom line is…… you can throw all the stress in the wold at this and it won’t make any difference to outcomes….. but it will make you ill.
Navigating a cancer journey can be such a stressful and challenging time but getting support from people who have walked or are walking the ‘exact same' journey can help a lot.
This New to Community area is like our reception desk where we look to try and direct you to the best part of the Community for you to get support.
The Community is actually divided into dedicated Support Groups (Discussion Rooms) so can I recommend that you look to join and put up your own post in our dedicated…..
…… Support Group. This group is a safe place to talk to others with a similar diagnosis, treatment experience, to ask questions and get support. To connect in with the group please click on the link above and once the group page opens you will see a [Black - Click to Join - Banner] at the bottom of the page, click in this box and this will then confirm that you have joined the group.
You can then introduce yourself to the group by putting up your very own post by clicking [+ Create new post] or [+] in the top right of the group page.
You can copy and paste the text from this post into your new post.
