Quality Life Forum
  • Home
  • Forum
    • Mind and Body
    • Feeling well
    • Feeling ill
  • Coaching
    • Coaching Programs >
      • Loneliness Breakthrough
      • Therapeutic Lifestyle Changes
      • Time-Restricted Feeding for Healthy Aging
      • Patient-centered Health Navigation Program
      • Customized program
      • A Special Health Coaching Package
    • Self-Care >
      • 2021 Aug The Milestone of Age 65
      • 2021 March Make a Self-Care Plan for Your Golden Years
      • 2018 Jan The Golden Keys for the Golden Years
      • 2018 July Golden Mindset
      • 2019 Jan Empty Nest
      • 2018 Feb loneliness Breakthrough
      • 2016 Feb Wellness Mindset
      • 2023 Jan Setting and Meeting Your Goals
      • 2019 Sept Time for change
      • 2020 Oct Process and Results
      • 2021 Sept Aging Brain
      • 2019 May Cognitive Health
      • 2021 Oct Muscle Memory and Cognition
      • 2020 July Listening to your body
      • 2019 March Body Image and Self-Care After Midlife
      • 2020 Nov Moderation
      • 2022 Aug Knowing When Doing More Is Harm Than Good
      • 2021 Nov Gratitude Power for Wellbeing
      • 2019 Dec Dealing with Difficult Emotions in Holiday Season
      • 2022 Dec Holiday Homecoming
    • Healthy Living >
      • 2022 Jan Health: the Cornerstone for Quality of Life
      • 2017 April Longevity and Quality of Life
      • Blog Are You Motivated for a Healthy Life Style?
      • 2018 June TLC Transformation
      • 2022 July Daily Routine for Healthy Aging
      • 2017 June Sleep Well
      • 2021 May Simplify Life for healthy aging
      • 2019 Aug Downsizing in the Golden Years
      • 2017 Sept Music Learning for older adults
    • Healthy Eating >
      • 2022 Sept Your Decision Power for Food Choices and Eating Behavior
      • 2022 Oct Hydration for Healthy Aging
      • 2018 Aug Nourish Your Body for Healthy Living
      • 2017 Oct Better to Eat Meat or Plant Food
      • 2020 Jan The Key Role of Protein in Healthy Aging
      • 2020 Feb Healthy Fat for Healthy Aging
      • 2020 March Healthy Aging Energy Source Carbohydrate
      • 2017 July Intermittent Fasting
      • 2020 Sept Time-Restricted Feeding Is A Healthy Lifestyle Choice
      • 2022 Nov Go green for health: A Green Tea Invitation
      • 2019 June Dietary Supplements Are Not Drugs
      • 2015 Nov Blog The Value of Vitamin and Dietary Supplements
    • Golden Age Fitness >
      • 2019 April Exercise is Medicine
      • 2017 March Exercise for Blood Sugar Regulation
      • 2017 Jan Willness Attitude and Winterizing Fitness
      • 2016 Apr Balance Training
      • 2016 Mar Get Active
      • 2018 Sept Keep Life in Motion
      • 2020 Aug Keep Fit for Your Age
      • 2023 Feb Benefits of Swimming for Healthy Aging
    • Age-related Health Challenges >
      • 2018 March Regulate Blood Pressure
      • 2018 May Blood Sugar Self-Management
      • 2018 April Lowering Cholesterol
      • 2017 Nov Immunity and Aging
      • 2016 June Vitamin D Deficiency
      • 2022 May Aging Skin and Sun Safety
      • 2022 Feb Aging Eye Facts
      • 2017 May How to Reduce Aging Eye Fatigue
      • 2022 Mar Age-Related Hearing Loss
      • 2022 April Aging and Oral Health
      • 2017 Feb Live with Thyroid Nodules
      • 2021 July Range of Motion Recovery from Frozen Shoulder
      • 2019 Nov Osteoporosis in Women
      • 2019 Feb Food Safety and H. pylori Infection
      • 2019 July GERD
      • 2016 Oct Significant Health Indicators
      • 2018 Oct Tough Fight for the Belly Fat
      • 2016 July Weight Management
      • 2018 Nov Dealing with chronic stress
      • 2021 June Managing Chronic Insomnia
      • 2017 Aug Facing a life-threatening illness
      • 2016 May Emotional Healing
    • Advocacy and Empowerment >
      • 2018 Dec The Most Valuable Gift
      • 2020 Dec Invest In yourself
      • 2016 Aug Health Literacy
      • 2016 Sept Prevention
      • 2022 June Making Transition From A Patient To An Educated Healthcare Customer
      • 2019 Oct Action is what counts
      • 2021 Nov Navigation for Healthcare Needs
      • 2016 Nov Gratitude for life
    • COVID 19 Pandemic >
      • 2020 May Hope endures
      • 2020 June Breathing and Blessing
      • 2020 April Transform Pandemic Fear to Self-Care
      • 2021 Jan Hew Year Brings New Hope
      • 2021 Feb Pandemic Winter Blues
      • 2021 April Are You Fully Vaccinated?
  • Health Product Guide
    • Choices for Healthy Living
    • Vitamins and minerals
    • Digestive Health
    • Heart Health
    • Eye Health
    • Joint Health
  • About
  • Contact
  • Blogs
    • Blog Travel album of Switzerland
    • Blog A Mourning Dove Story

Feeling ill

Survival and Coping Essentials

Just like the mother nature does not guarantee blue sky and sunshine every day, you will feel ill someday. Even worse, a storm may hit. One day, you Doctor may tell you that you have cancer (or a life threatening disease). Now everything has changed. I have true life stories to share.

Picture

The Diagnosis Nightmare

It was shocking when my sister was told that she has cancer. She first felt a lump on her neck without any discomfort and went to see her Doctor. The test results, however, revealed non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. How could this be? There were no family history or any other identifiable cause, and she had been in good health at age 47. With disbelieve and hope for a better luck, she was in and out Doctor’s offices, clinics, diagnostic labs, hospitals…… up on the sad diagnosis was finally confirmed by a lymph node biopsy. It was uneasy to accept the reality, but it’s time to face it and move on, with courage for life challenges.

“Cancer” is a very heavy label psychologically. Each individual struggle through the stages of disbelieve/denial and anger, before acceptance to be a cancer patient. The family is going through these at the same time. Life has changed thereafter.

Picture

Health Care and Therapeutic Decisions

What’s next? A lot of uncertainties – Who is the best Doctor? Where is the best hospital or medical facility? What are the treatment options and other alternatives? When to start or stop a treatment? and why (reasons for each question)?

Now, how to make these important health care decisions? As the condition changes or disease progresses, these questions will come up again and again. It is overwhelming and stressful. Making decisions under great uncertainties are very difficult. There are no easy answers. 
These decisions matters of life and quality of life.

My sister received chemotherapies and her lymphoma was kept well under control for 13 years. She had been working full time and was active socially. While remain in remission, she was persuaded to accept a bone marrow transplant (BMT) for “cure” before age 60 with "higher anticipated success potential”, as she was a good candidate. It was a very traumatic procedure that completely destroyed her body’s immune system. Afterwards, she became totally disabled and getting weaker each day. Consequently, complications and treatments became endless vicious cycles. The aggressive medical treatments finally killed her cancer and also took her life, at age 61.

My uncle was in late stage lung cancer and his Doctor suggested trying a very expensive “new drug (not covered by insurance)” to treat. With strong will to extend life and best hope, he agreed and spent a fortune for 2 units of injections. After received the first dose, he became unconscious and never woke up.
 
Patients are vulnerable - they may not be fully informed or mislead for the treatment effects and risks. They may be impulsive with eager for “cure”. They may trust too much on the statistics and optimistic expert opinions. They may be intimated and over powered by the Doctors. They may be incapacitated in decision making under disease and/or
medication or medication influences. They may not have time to read or understand the long and complex consent form in small print before the treatment.
As standard, the bottom line of the consent form is that there are no guarantees for any medical treatment; you may die and you are responsible for your own death. Now you must sign.
Picture

Coping with Life Threatening Diseases

It’s difficult, but life goes on. Now unpleasant medical appointments have largely occupied your calendar, taking place of your personal time or work time. You try to manage pain/discomfort and show your best outlook socially. Your roles are changing dynamically, from active to passive, or even withdraw. You often experience negative emotions and may need spiritual or other supports to keep mentally strong.

You may have difficulties navigating in the complicated health care system, dealing with health insurance, trying to understand and follow inconsistent orders from several therapeutic specialists. It’s not unusual that a specialist only focuses on his specialty area and neglect the person as a whole. You may feel lost as when you have multiple doctors, but no one is accountable.  Reach out for help; don't hesitate.  Voice your concerns; don’t be passive. Each individual is to be treated as a whole person, not a collection of body parts.  Personal dignity, value, and will are to be respected and protected as well. Most importantly, don’t neglect nurturing your body. Quality nutritional fuel and well rested body with energy power will keep you running strong against illness on your marathon life journey.

Keep up your hope; don’t give up. You can survive cancer. My mother was a cancer survivor. She was treated for colon cancer at age 66 and she passed away due to other causes at age 95. Cancer can be a chronic disease to live with, just like hypertension and diabetes, under proper medical management.

                                                                © All rights reserved
Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.
  • Home
  • Forum
    • Mind and Body
    • Feeling well
    • Feeling ill
  • Coaching
    • Coaching Programs >
      • Loneliness Breakthrough
      • Therapeutic Lifestyle Changes
      • Time-Restricted Feeding for Healthy Aging
      • Patient-centered Health Navigation Program
      • Customized program
      • A Special Health Coaching Package
    • Self-Care >
      • 2021 Aug The Milestone of Age 65
      • 2021 March Make a Self-Care Plan for Your Golden Years
      • 2018 Jan The Golden Keys for the Golden Years
      • 2018 July Golden Mindset
      • 2019 Jan Empty Nest
      • 2018 Feb loneliness Breakthrough
      • 2016 Feb Wellness Mindset
      • 2023 Jan Setting and Meeting Your Goals
      • 2019 Sept Time for change
      • 2020 Oct Process and Results
      • 2021 Sept Aging Brain
      • 2019 May Cognitive Health
      • 2021 Oct Muscle Memory and Cognition
      • 2020 July Listening to your body
      • 2019 March Body Image and Self-Care After Midlife
      • 2020 Nov Moderation
      • 2022 Aug Knowing When Doing More Is Harm Than Good
      • 2021 Nov Gratitude Power for Wellbeing
      • 2019 Dec Dealing with Difficult Emotions in Holiday Season
      • 2022 Dec Holiday Homecoming
    • Healthy Living >
      • 2022 Jan Health: the Cornerstone for Quality of Life
      • 2017 April Longevity and Quality of Life
      • Blog Are You Motivated for a Healthy Life Style?
      • 2018 June TLC Transformation
      • 2022 July Daily Routine for Healthy Aging
      • 2017 June Sleep Well
      • 2021 May Simplify Life for healthy aging
      • 2019 Aug Downsizing in the Golden Years
      • 2017 Sept Music Learning for older adults
    • Healthy Eating >
      • 2022 Sept Your Decision Power for Food Choices and Eating Behavior
      • 2022 Oct Hydration for Healthy Aging
      • 2018 Aug Nourish Your Body for Healthy Living
      • 2017 Oct Better to Eat Meat or Plant Food
      • 2020 Jan The Key Role of Protein in Healthy Aging
      • 2020 Feb Healthy Fat for Healthy Aging
      • 2020 March Healthy Aging Energy Source Carbohydrate
      • 2017 July Intermittent Fasting
      • 2020 Sept Time-Restricted Feeding Is A Healthy Lifestyle Choice
      • 2022 Nov Go green for health: A Green Tea Invitation
      • 2019 June Dietary Supplements Are Not Drugs
      • 2015 Nov Blog The Value of Vitamin and Dietary Supplements
    • Golden Age Fitness >
      • 2019 April Exercise is Medicine
      • 2017 March Exercise for Blood Sugar Regulation
      • 2017 Jan Willness Attitude and Winterizing Fitness
      • 2016 Apr Balance Training
      • 2016 Mar Get Active
      • 2018 Sept Keep Life in Motion
      • 2020 Aug Keep Fit for Your Age
      • 2023 Feb Benefits of Swimming for Healthy Aging
    • Age-related Health Challenges >
      • 2018 March Regulate Blood Pressure
      • 2018 May Blood Sugar Self-Management
      • 2018 April Lowering Cholesterol
      • 2017 Nov Immunity and Aging
      • 2016 June Vitamin D Deficiency
      • 2022 May Aging Skin and Sun Safety
      • 2022 Feb Aging Eye Facts
      • 2017 May How to Reduce Aging Eye Fatigue
      • 2022 Mar Age-Related Hearing Loss
      • 2022 April Aging and Oral Health
      • 2017 Feb Live with Thyroid Nodules
      • 2021 July Range of Motion Recovery from Frozen Shoulder
      • 2019 Nov Osteoporosis in Women
      • 2019 Feb Food Safety and H. pylori Infection
      • 2019 July GERD
      • 2016 Oct Significant Health Indicators
      • 2018 Oct Tough Fight for the Belly Fat
      • 2016 July Weight Management
      • 2018 Nov Dealing with chronic stress
      • 2021 June Managing Chronic Insomnia
      • 2017 Aug Facing a life-threatening illness
      • 2016 May Emotional Healing
    • Advocacy and Empowerment >
      • 2018 Dec The Most Valuable Gift
      • 2020 Dec Invest In yourself
      • 2016 Aug Health Literacy
      • 2016 Sept Prevention
      • 2022 June Making Transition From A Patient To An Educated Healthcare Customer
      • 2019 Oct Action is what counts
      • 2021 Nov Navigation for Healthcare Needs
      • 2016 Nov Gratitude for life
    • COVID 19 Pandemic >
      • 2020 May Hope endures
      • 2020 June Breathing and Blessing
      • 2020 April Transform Pandemic Fear to Self-Care
      • 2021 Jan Hew Year Brings New Hope
      • 2021 Feb Pandemic Winter Blues
      • 2021 April Are You Fully Vaccinated?
  • Health Product Guide
    • Choices for Healthy Living
    • Vitamins and minerals
    • Digestive Health
    • Heart Health
    • Eye Health
    • Joint Health
  • About
  • Contact
  • Blogs
    • Blog Travel album of Switzerland
    • Blog A Mourning Dove Story