There might be times where you’ll have questions for your child’s doctor but won’t remember them when you have the opportunity to speak with her. Start a journal and write them down as you think of them. This way, when you do have time with your doctor, you’ll have them ready to go. Here’s a list of question to get you started.
Blog: Empowerment
These articles are written by our staff and parents of children with cancer. From them, you’ll find information to direct and encourage you.
Questions to Ask Your Doctor While In Treatment
- Posted On:
- November 18, 2010 by Rhéma
- Posted Under:
- Empowerment, In Treatment
Tips and Tricks for Giving Your Child Medicine
Medication is only a part of your child’s treatment, but it is an important one. You’ll repeatedly explain why they need it to get better, but sometimes giving them their dosage or trying to get them to eat will still be challenge. Here are a few tips and trips on what you need to know before giving your child medication. Read More…
- Posted On:
- November 18, 2010 by Rhéma
- Posted Under:
- Empowerment, In Treatment
10 Things Parents Need to Know After Diagnosis
My child, Jake, was diagnosed with a rare, very aggressive brain cancer in November of 2007. After three years of chemotherapy, radiation, stem cell rescue, three new tumors, and Hospice, he was declared cancer free. He is an inspiration to us all, and I am proud to call myself his mother. I hope what I learned from my experience will benefit you and your child.
- Posted On:
- November 15, 2010 by Katie Dambrauskas
- Posted Under:
- Empowerment, Newly Diagnosed
5 Tips for Starting Treatment
When your child is diagnosed with cancer, you feel like your world has come to an end. There is nothing that will make the situation any less painful, but there are things you can keep in mind to make it a little bit more manageable. These are five things that helped my husband and I the most.
- Posted On:
- November 15, 2010 by Kymberly Latham
- Posted Under:
- Empowerment, Newly Diagnosed
Keeping the Faith
Let me start off by saying today is a good day. Today is a good day because today my son is doing well. Today my son will go to preschool like every other healthy child his age. Today my son will laugh and play. Today my son can focus on just being a kid. This is how I live my days now, one day at a time. I make sure that I enjoy every moment that I am with my family, because they are what’s important. One thing I have learned this year is that life is unpredictable, and that you should never take anything for granted. Today I will smile and hold my children tight, but today, I will also think about cancer.
- Posted On:
- November 14, 2010 by Tomika Gamble
- Posted Under:
- Empowerment, In Treatment
Teenagers and Cancer
A cancer diagnosis is difficult at any age. Teenagers and their families face unique challenges with diagnosis, treatment, and beyond. Our son, Bucky, was diagnosed when he was 17 – just at the end of his junior year of high school. He was the high school’s pitcher for the baseball team and they were headed to the playoffs. His pitching arm became strangely sore, so we took him to the doctor. Ten days later we had his diagnosis: Ewing’s Sarcoma. Bucky started chemo immediately, checking into the hospital every other Monday for 3-6 days at a time. He had three surgeries to remove his cancer-filled right radius and reconstruct his arm. This was not the senior year he had planned.
- Posted On:
- November 14, 2010 by Jill Ribbeck
- Posted Under:
- Empowerment, Newly Diagnosed
Surviving the Hospital
When my child, Bryson, was diagnosed with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia on March 14, 2009, sanity went out the window. The first important thing that helped me was to cry. That day, while Bryson was with his daddy and family, I just let it all out. After the shock of the news finally wore off, I walked around the floor and met other parents. I found it was the best way to ease a lot of the anxiety because it helped me realize that I was not so alone. Having to be in the hospital for any amount of time is not easy for anyone but here are some of the ways that I was able to make the hospital a home away from home.
- Posted On:
- November 14, 2010 by Stephanie Watkins
- Posted Under:
- Empowerment, In Treatment
Positivity Despite Relapse
My junior year of high school brought a whole new meaning to the saying when it rains it pours. Like any other seventeen-year-old girl, I thought I was invincible. I was an honor student. I danced on my school’s dance team. I had all the friends I wanted, including the “perfect” boyfriend. On February 18th, 2010, all of that changed.
- Posted On:
- November 14, 2010 by Devin Duncan
- Posted Under:
- Empowerment, In Treatment
Enjoy the Present
My son, Ryan, was diagnosed with Anaplastic Ependymoma, a malignant brain tumor, just over a year ago. Thinking about it still makes me want to go insane. Over and over, I kept questioning, “How could my son have cancer?” But looking at him now, you would never know that a tumor the size of an orange was removed from his brain in August of last year. Somehow, I managed to maintain my sanity through it all—or at least appeared to.
- Posted On:
- November 14, 2010 by Jennifer Bailey
- Posted Under:
- Empowerment, Newly Diagnosed
The Power of Laughter and Friendship
I have endured more disappointment, fear, and pain then I would wish on anyone. August 24, 1998, when I was a 15-year-old freshman, I was diagnosed with Osteosarcoma. But, during those 3 years of being in the hospital, I also experienced love, joy, and healing. Some of my hospital memories are downright shattering. I have watched five of my friends pass from cancer, but I take comfort in their memories. I treasure all the times I shared with them because it was like living in the eye of the storm, so to speak. There was a calm it created, an environment to actually be able to feel again, to forget everything that was going on and just laugh. So that’s what I did.
- Posted On:
- November 5, 2010 by Tiffany Taylor
- Posted Under:
- Empowerment, In Treatment