Nobody Has Ovarian Cancer: The Soft Whispers of a Fierce Blow

I go by #Servivorgirl. Celebrating almost 14 years since diagnosis of stage IIIC ovarian cancer, recently restaged to IVB. My blog is called Nobody Has Ovarian Cancer because I felt like a nobody upon the eventual correct diagnosis. Being told multiple times that I was too young to have ovarian cancer, I did not receive the proper testing. I am so grateful to Him for all those who allow me to share my love, to those who love me and those who treat my illness. I praise Him always.

Monday, July 13, 2015

Relief From Your Suffering

Forgiveness. Freedom from pain. Freedom from fear. Love. Happiness. Joy. Being a living contribution to our family and community. Making a real difference. Reconciliation. These are the big picture items that become important when we live with an illness like cancer, something that knowingly can shorten our lives. We cannot run away. God is here to show us the way to find these things, if we allow it.

Becoming whole; physically, socially, mentally, emotionally and spiritually healthy requires effort on our part. After the initial diagnoses of cancer we get an army of support, via adrenaline, from family, neighbors, even people we don't know. It is amazing. Thanks be to God we live through that initial battle but continue on in a different life. Our loved ones may need breaks too from the never ending fear of death. So how do we live with cancer, or life after cancer, in a healthful way that keeps us strong and also helps other people not to be afraid?

Our retreat is just a few months away and my heart says that you will experience some relief from the burden of your suffering if you join myself and other women in Corpus Christi this September. Our retreat is designed to address the essentials necessary for obtaining calm during this stormy phase of your life.

www.deepprayer.org

Please go to www.deepprayer.org and complete the easy registration form for the "Women With Cancer" retreat September 17-20 of 2015.

You get to unplug, focus on you and experience another kind of family.

The form is located n the "drop down" menu, under Women with Cancer retreats. Please share this information. I hope to see you there.

Peace and Blessings,

Denise Archuleta

servivorgirl@gmail.com

Friday, July 03, 2015

"The New Cancer Survivors" by Psychology Today author Wendy Paris

At the end of the month I will officially be 6 years post my diagnosis of high grade serous stage IIIC ovarian cancer. WOWEE! I am living with cancer, on Avastin still, and negotiating life in the hopes to share something that will help another sister or sister's loved one through this kind of life.

Thank goodness for social media. I just had my 51st birthday and in the process of thanking people I came across an ovarian sister's "like" on Facebook. I have no idea if that sentence is grammatically correct....ha. Anywhoooo....there was a shared page of one of the best articles I have ever read describing this new era of cancer survivors. We are the ones who are not in remission or N.E.D (no evidence of disease) and we are not in all out battle mode either. We are living with a cancer that can get out of control at any moment yet appear to be mainly stable.

I compare this to be like a passenger in a high speed race car, no control, an excellent driver, but one glitch and it could all spin out of control. I have blinders on so I don't know where the next turn will begin. This creates an interesting kind of life that on one hand quickly rearranges our priorities and on the other creates challenges as to how to actually execute this new plan.

It's one thing to have an epiphany and decide to live a charitable life giving everything to help humanity and it is another thing to do that but constantly endure pain, need treatment and worry about resources. How wonderful it would be to abandon it all and go live my life!

I am tethered to my treatment, but I thank God for that every day. So my way of reaching out abroad is not by travel but via the internet.

This article is important for everyone in this position to read, especially their loved ones. Individuals respond to this situation differently. Our culture is not prepared for the thousands of people living in this "state" when it comes to supportive resources. I just wrote a letter to my congressman about how SSDI and it's antiquated operations have hurt people living with advanced cancer. (I will save you the details now but SSDI has no way to effectively assist people living with advanced cancers who are not yet terminal. To understand this fully I will do a separate post at some point to educate you on the realities of working part time with cancer while receiving SSDI).

Please take a moment to read this beautifully written article. It is inspiring, truly!

THE NEW CANCER SURVIVORS Psychology Today

"This range of emotions—the simultaneous gratitude and dread, the intense awareness of both the exquisiteness and capriciousness of life—may of course be felt by anyone with cancer, from those with the most promising prognosis to those with the least. But for people whose cancer can be explained only as a chronic condition, the inner stew is often far more pronounced because of the sheer length of time they have to deal with it and the utter uncertainty about how it will unfold."

The New Cancer Survivors

Extraordinary advances have turned cancer from an apparent death sentence into a manageable chronic illness for many. But what does it mean to live with a terminal disease...interminably?

By Wendy Paris, published on March 9, 2015 - last reviewed on March 24, 2015

Peace and Blessings
God Bless America as we celebrate our Nations's Independence

Denise
aka Servivorgirl

Thursday, May 28, 2015

The Eva Cassidy Story: ABC Nightline

A star that gets brighter with each day, the Eva Cassidy Story. Eva was music. Beautiful music. She was a unique talent that left the world too soon from cancer.

Please listen and watch to be inspired by her sweetness.

Peace, love and blessings to you.

Denise

aka Servivorgirl

Wednesday, May 20, 2015

On A Lighter Note But First The American College Of Physicians

I like to round up my blog posts with good news. This piece speaks about my beef with the American College of Physicians and wraps up with a sweet moment in my life: meeting Martin Short!

It seems that when it comes to ovarian cancer, TV physicians are quick to shy away from spelling out the details of the symptom diary that helps women, and doctors, understand some of the potentially lifesaving symptoms of ovarian cancer. The American College of Physicians has once again published a report about cancer "screenings", and it is controversial, at a minimum.

We in this community know the holy grail of screening tests has not yet been discovered but there was no reason whatsoever to end the interview "there is nothing we can do". Dr. Azar did not leave much room for hope during the interview, and this saddens me because there IS hope. I pray she finds a way to clarify this in more detail and show the millions of viewers that progress has been made.

Dr. Azar is more than likely an excellent personal physician, but the media message needs to include some sunlight when it comes to ovarian cancer, as with all cancers. The problem is that this was such a short TV segment. There was not enough time to talk about the complexities of ovarian cancer detection. I do not agree with the ACP, at all, and I do not like how Dr. Azar answered the question as to what can be done. There is absolutely no reason to avoid screening with a CA125 blood test if combined with the symptoms already proven in Dr. Goff's research on the ovarian cancer symptom card.

http://www.ocrf.org/news/ocrf-talks/dr-barbara-goff-on-the-ovarian-cancer-symptoms-study

http://www.seattlecca.org/doctor/barbara-a-goff.cfm

I have a few goals: for as long as I am alive I am going to help women learn that there is a symptom checklist available for gynecological cancers, including ovarian cancer. Another goal is to do everything I can to get that information out to doctors. Let them know that there is a symptom card available from the CDC's Inside Knowledge Campaign that can be distributed within their office.

One day we WILL have a screening tool. Please visit the Be Brave icon link at the top of my page or click here CDC Inside Knowledge Campaign to get the materials for your PCP.

ON A LIGHTER NOTE:

On a much lighter note, I got my dream date with Martin Short a few weeks ago while attending the Gilda's Club "Surviving With Style Fashion Show". The room was filled, packed. He has not spoken much of the loss of his sweet wife Nancy from ovarian cancer. This bittersweet moment combined with a fabulous fashion show greatly lifted my spirits. I adore Martin Short, who doesn't? Oh thank you God for I was able to see him. Meeting Martin Short is on my bucket list and now I can say I did. Love him! Thank you Martin Short for talking about your life, your sweet Nancy and helping us live a better life with ovarian cancer.