I know how you feel, she said, Like your bodys been invaded.
I tilted my head to put distance between us.
Some doctors consider DCIS the earliest stage of cancer, but others believe it a precursor.
Based on this information, I opted for active surveillance (also known as watch and wait).
I am not at war with my body, and I reject that battleground language.
I love my body and am working with it lovingly.
…
I understand why: being cut open, infused with toxic chemicals, and burned feels like war.
Its a journey filled with struggle and the perpetual question, will I make it through?
Battle terms convey the gut-wrenching arduousness of our experience.
I support whatever helps empower people during treatment.
Anything that makes us feel stronger is the right choice.
Do what you better get yourself through it.
Its Amazing How Its All Connected.
A 2015 study published inCurrent Oncology Reportsexamined the role of stress in patients with cancer.
Additionally, language structures the way we think and talk about ourselves and the world around us.
…
Saying, I was crying impacted their mood more negatively than saying I cried.
A package labeled Survivorship marked the end of my treatmentupon receiving it, I recoiled.
The packet contained a summary of my diagnosis and nine months of treatment.
The survivor designation categorizes us as the not-dead.
Being forever defined by a disease diminishes my complexity and humanity.
In medicine, things need to be concise since communication needs to happen quickly and efficiently.
But cancer upends our lives, and these neat terms and designations can be upsetting.
Cancer is inconvenient, and the language should be anything but tidy.
Shortly after my surgerybefore I received my faithful packetId stopped looking at my body altogether.
I turned my back to the bathroom mirror while bathing and getting dressed.
Id look and tell my body: I love you.
I could put down the armor that everyone told me treatment required and embrace the softness that healing needs.
After a few weeks of gazing and crying, I began to feel tenderness toward my new body.
Tender language was vital to my healing process.
We cant keep fighting forever.
Ultimately, the words we use help structure our experience.
How do we wish to get through cancer treatment?
How do we want to live our lives after cancer?
And I think its time we spoke to our bodies with more love.
…
Got it, you’ve been added to our email list.
