Survivorship

My Cancer Rider

My Cancer Rider. And no I’m not referring to an insurance policy add-on. I’m talking about the type of thing celebrities have. You know, only green M&Ms in the candy dish or black toilet paper ready and waiting in the bathroom. Okay, maybe not that extreme, but you get my point.

Things I’d Want You to Know

Dear Younger Self,

Things I’d want to know: you will have a son then a daughter. Both will have your luscious, loose brown curls and wide eyes wrapped in blankets of long, black lashes. Sometimes you will look at them and think “I would, literally, withstand anything for you.” And you will.

Surveillance is Not Enough

I wouldn’t be able to tell you the last time I cried, but I remember doing so on June 12, 2013. Tears of relief, awe, and slight trepidation. After six months of chemotherapy and five years of six-month surveillance check-ins, I left my treating oncologist’s office for the last time.

Love and a Higher Power

Content/Trigger Warning: Sexual Harassment. Does a higher power exist? I believe so and always have. Although, throughout my life, I have had a hard time connecting with it.

A Second Chance

Never in my life did I think I would be here today writing about being a two-time cancer survivor at 28 years old. My name is Gena Bradshaw, and I was diagnosed with leukemia at age three and a half and thyroid cancer at age twenty.

Night Vision

Some years are a dark tunnel / claustrophobic with exhaust / Some, an open field / the biggest sky and the slightest breeze / And I suspect some years / fall somewhere in between / But my memory lately / is of the extremes

The Who’s Who of Sexual Health in Survivorship

Building a Sexual Wellness Recovery Team. Changes in sex, intimacy, and relationships are common after cancer.  But if you are experiencing an issue, it can feel pretty lonely, and you may not know who to ask for help. Your primary care or oncology care teams are always a good place to start.

Stop Calling Me a Warrior

I remember the day I was diagnosed with cancer, but it is all a bit of a blur. You know how sometimes videos are made of snap shots of split-second moments—they just flash up on the screen. Maybe a picture for each minute.

The “G” Word

If I said, “The ‘C’ word”, you would know exactly what I’m referring to. Cancer has earned many names and initials over the years. Yet there’s one word that we still can’t seem to find ways to discuss, we struggle to accept it, and we simply fear it.

Supported and Surrounded

I sat on the crisp white sheets of my friend’s bed, scrolling through my phone. Suddenly, my face felt wet and my hand pulled away from my nose, covered in blood. I sprung from the bed so as not to sully the new sheets, dashed to the sink and stuffed paper towel after paper towel in my nose.