redux wrote:
Glad you're still at it.
Personal aside, I found out Sunday that my dad has cancer in some lymph nodes in his chest and neck and in his esophagus/bronchial tubes.
He's starting radiation and chemo for 7-8 weeks soon.
He and my mom seem to be dealing with the news ok, but do you have any advice for an adult child?
Sorry to hear about your dad. No one ever wants to hear that for anyone they know! Unfortunately, dealing with it is always an individual process. Everyone handles stress differently. Some people freak out and want to make it all their life is about. Others want to have nothing to do with it and pretend like it's a non-issue. Most people fall somewhere in between.
Do you know what kind of cancer it is? Don't bring a bunch of stuff to him about every off-the-wall cure you may run into. Depending on where he lives I would recommend he check out the Block Institute (near Chicago). If he wants to get into alternative/integrative stuff I'd be glad to share what I know about things I've done, gone through, and, the results. Granted, I haven't tried it all, but, I have read a lot of the "alternative" stuff. While I don't go so far as to claim dietary changes alone can cure cancer (though I believe that's happened to some folks) there are a lot of basic things to look at with regards to diet, stress, etc.
One book I find helpful is What to Eat if You Have Cancer. I am a voracious reader and highly motivated to learn about what I can do so I can turn over all the stones and see what I can do so this may not be something he would be interested in getting into. It's a big change. I just that some of the changes that come about from changing diet can make radiation much more tolerable. Also, look into chronotherapy. Most oncologists will just start treatment whenever, but, there are cyclical patterns when treatment is most effective and when it is harder on the body.