A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to Beating Cancer

Actually a lot of funny things happened...which was awesome because my oncologist told me that attitude was everything when it comes to battling cancer.

I think it helped that as a rule, I don't take myself too seriously.

My chemo made me lose my hair...ALL of my hair.

  At the beginning of chemo, I would look in the mirror every night while I was washing off my makeup.  First the hair turned really drab and limp.  Then it started falling out in clumps or there would be a cascade when I would sneeze.

One day I am on a conference call with work and in deep thought, I rub my chin.  There, on my chin is a thick coarse hair about an inch long that WASN'T there the night before.  Really?


And of course, when I finished chemo, was cured and my hair started growing back...did it start on my bald head??  Nope.  It was a three way tie, legs, pits and CHIN!

I spent an afternoon in the ER and a night in the hospital getting my diagnosis.  I literally had 10 different doctors come into my triage room and tell me how high my blood pressure was.  Really???  To each and every one of them, I want to say with love..."Sit in a paper gown on a gurney, hooked up to a BP monitor, drinking disgusting chalky liquid that will give you the worst diarrhea  of your life with doctor after doctor telling you that you have cancer and see what comes out of your BP monitor!!!"  I think of them every morning that I take a blood pressure pill.

There was the night in Feb during chemo when I was up watching the Westminster dog show.  I love watching dog shows.  Chris had dozed off...he would sometimes nap while I was awake because I swear he watched me sleep for the first couple of months.  Anyway, at the end of the second night, they announce Best in Show.  I was rooting for the beagle (of course).  She won!!!  I let out a shriek.  Chris lost 2 years off the end of his life.  The thought still makes me giggle.

The divine Miss P.

Cannot add Miss P without including the Best in Show at the Wick household.

Clearly NOT the working dog segment.

One Saturday, while finishing up the prednisone that was part of my chemo regimen, with music blaring, I cleaned my kitchen top to bottom much to my husband's dismay.  The nervous energy that prednisone gives me is off the charts.  I am almost vibrating when taking the large doses of prednisone that was part of my fancy chemo cocktail.

The American Cancer Society offers a make up class...the theory is if you look good, you feel good.  So, every day I got up and even though I was working in my dining room, I showered, got dressed and put makeup on.  Some days, I didn't put in contacts.  My 4 year old niece took great offense one day when I came over sporting my glasses..."Auntie, where are your eyes??" will go down in history as one of the funniest questions I have ever been asked.

My husband is a big guy.  My oncologist is NOT a big guy.  When we gathered to read my mid
chemo scan, we got great news, I was cancer free!!  Chris grabbed Dr. K in a bear hug and swung him around a bit like a rag doll.  I don't think Dr. K thought it was as funny as I did.


I have said it more than once in this blog...laughter is the best medicine.  It heals the soul and sweeps
away your troubles.  This 😂 is one of my favorite emojis.  When I am old and gray I am going to brag about the laugh lines on my face.


I am not going to lie, there isn't much that is fun about a cancer battle but laughter made a not so great situation bearable.


XOXO