I recently learned that a dear friend has an aggressive form of cancer. She is starting treatment soon. I don’t know much about what dealing with cancer is like, so I thought I’d ask for people’s experience here.
I recently learned that a dear friend has an aggressive form of cancer. She is starting treatment soon. I don’t know much about what dealing with cancer is like, so I thought I’d ask for people’s experience here.
I had no cancer, but know people that did and one thing that came up often is that people tend to distance themselves from them. Not in a mean way, but dealing with special needs is tedious and that is often just a cause to not do certain things. Spending time together (no matter what you end up doing) gives a sense of normalcy and can really push someone to keep fighting. Cancer is a marathon with additional sprints (chemo) on top. Not being alone through all of this is a huge help
This one is very real. Unfortunately having cancer doesn’t mean other people’s lives slow down or stop having their own problems, and (especially in the USA) it genuinely is a big strain on friendships. It goes both ways, too, I feel like I’m a burden so I reach out less.
John Green had a quote about this that he was saying even before his brother had cancer.
I liked Hank Green’s stand-up about his experience with cancer.