Gifts and Losses

It was a slow process, believe me, but as a result of a lot of work and the help of Sara Duphiney, my incredible oncology social worker, I began to regain my emotional equilibrium.  That doesn’t mean I didn’t still have bad days, because I most certainly did (and sometimes still do.)   Something amazing happened, however, that changed the entire structure of my cancer survivorship.  Approximately nine months after I had my mastectomy, I became aware that I was actually keeping a mental tally of the many changes cancer was bringing me – and although the losses were very evident, I was slowly becoming aware that there were real gifts. So, I decided to write them down side by side.  That’s when I was really amazed to find that the gifts list was longer than the losses list.    

My Gifts and Losses list continually grows with each new phase of my life.  You will also notice the progression as time passed and I worked through issues such as body image.  When you take a look, think about what gifts and losses cancer has brought into your life. We've created a Community List for members.  I'd love it if you shared your own experiences with the Where We Go Now community:

Tell us about your own Gifts and Losses experiences...

Survival > existence,

Debbie