PHARKOUGH!

Well…today marks an anniversary of sorts.  One year since confirmation of cancer in my prostate.  Easy date to remember…shared with Remembrance Day.

Can’t believe it has gone so quick!  You have cancer, get some scans, schedule surgery, recover from surgery, sweat on the first post surgery PSA test, look forward to the next one and suddenly here I am a year on from urologist Darren Foreman giving me my Gleason score of 7.

I had a good run with this.  However I’m sure it has messed with my head.  Nothing obvious..I didn’t suffer panic or anxiety attacks (fully expected to though!)  but when I look back…I can see evidence of whole periods of low performance at home and at work.

So how did I get through all this?

I suspect people around me reflected how I was reacting.  As I didn’t go off the deep end…neither did they…thank Christ!  For me I think this was the crutch.  People around me…family, friends and work colleagues kept their cool.  They were always there…supportive and cool.  I can’t imagine how someone alone battles these sorts of challenges…there must be many long and lonely nights with no-one to lean on.

Previously I have thanked the experts who took charge of my care.  It’s time to thank my personal support network.

It’s easy to forget those closer to you because they are there all the time.  And I am guilty…taking the love without acknowledging it.

Lyn…pillar of strength…I am very fortunate to have you near.

My kids…supportive and concerned without freaking out…well done!

My mother and brother and cousin…again calm while near me.

Work colleagues…giving me all the time I wanted to recover and get it together with no pressure.

My friends…never bored with my story and very supportive.

When you go through shit like this and come out the other end in pretty well one piece…like it or not you get a different perspective about what really matters…supportive people around you are very important.  I need to work harder on  acknowledging this…to myself and to them.

Next milestone will be a PSA test in February.  Following that the 12 month anniversary of excision of the cancer…I think that will be the more meaningful anniversary…collecting years of staying free of the cancer after it’s removal.

March 11 will be here real soon!

This entry was posted on Thursday, November 11th, 2010 at 22:59 and is filed under Prostate Cancer. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.