Poem of life forever changed by the big C, I can't take anymore!
The website shrunk the picture below, too small to read, so here it is typed out....
I am forever alone... lost in a world of pain
Physical pain, More than I can take, What's happened to my life, It must be a mistake
Barely a day goes by, When it doesn't make me cry, And then there are the days, I pray I will die
Always in a drugged stupor, From so damn many pills, They help some with the pain, But cause many more ills
So on top of the pain, I feel dizzy and weak, And nauseous and tired, Making life very bleak
The fatigue is unyielding, I've never been so tired, Yet at five in the morning, I'm totally wired
I usually don't sleep, Until the sun has risen, Then spend half the day in bed, My home is my prison
The rest of the time I live in my chair, With TV and iPad in tow, Excitement is now something, My life doesn't know
Again I ask, What's happened to my life, I can't remember what it's like, To live without strife
Emotional Pain, Goes hand in hand, With the Physical Pain, Together they've banned
Anxiety and Depression, And sadness so strong, Completely overwhelming, For so very long
Tears in the morning, And afternoon and night, More days than none, Quite a pitiful sight
Tears from the Pain, Of a body so broken, Tears from the heart, Of what goes unspoken
How many times I lie, And say I'm okay, Hearing the truth, Ruins everyone's day
No one wants to hear, That your pain is so bad, They'd rather pretend, So they don't have to be sad
No one wants to hear, What you're really feeling, If they knew your true thoughts, They indeed would be reeling
It doesn't matter, Whether Family or Friend, They all fail you, With the silence they send
And words mean nothing, When your actions contradict, Alone is alone, Thru thin and thru thick
They feel sorry for you, And say it's not fair, Yet they never come, They don't seem to care
Everything's now a struggle, Even the smallest of things, You really need help, But the phone never rings
Always being there for others, With support and a smile, But when it's your turn, No one goes that extra mile
Everyone is too busy, With work, family and friends, But for you all of that, Has come to an end
What you really need, Is to spend time with others, But you must do the asking, Or else no one bothers
That gets really tiring, And makes you feel lacking, And after a while, You just stop the asking
The world has changed so, With such quick technology, It's all about tweets, posts and pics, With no apology
Everyone seems too busy, For real connections today, I so often feel, I'm just in the way
I've become such a burden, Though people will say no, But with their actions, Their true feelings show
They spend day after day, With everyone but you, You're lucky if you get, An hour or two
So alone I shall stay, In this hell I am living, Hurting and crying, And tired of giving
What happened to my life, I ask again, yes, It used to be so full, So much more than this
And I can say, With the utmost conviction, I fucking hate cancer, It's at fault for my condition
Many people fight it, And get their life back where they started, But for myself, The evil has never departed
Surgeries and Chemo, Took such a huge toll, And left me so broken, Body and Soul
No more parties with friends, Or having drinks on the town, No more shopping or movies, Or just walking around
It's now all about, Wheelchairs, walkers and canes, Can't go too far, As my energy wanes
I've aged from fifty to eighty, In these past three years, It's no wonder I have a supply, Of never-ending tears
People say that I'm strong, That I've handled it with grace, But no one really knows, I've finished in last place
It's so hard to keep fighting, With the future so grim, With each and every day, My light gets more dim
So alone I shall stay, In this hell I am living, Hurting and crying, And tired of giving
I am forever alone... lost in a world of pain
And now the damn cancer, that started it all, has decided to spread, can you imagine the gall
In the back of my mind, a recurrence was dreaded, now I don't know, where my life is headed
Metastatic they call it, Advanced and Stage IV, give me a break, I can't take anymore
They say it is chronic, and there is no cure, how much time do I have, no one is quite sure
The one thing I do know, that I will always be, doing some kind of treatment, from here to eternity
Hormones and chemos, and maybe radiation, hoping the cancer, will take a vacation
Even if it does go away, from time to time, it can always come back, at the drop of a dime
It will always be with me, the damn cancer disease, killing me slowly, with much too much ease
Then there's the side effects, they are very real, too many to name, with which I must deal
It's all about balance now, with the treatments they're giving, trying not to be too harsh, otherwise it's not worth living
It's such a fine line, of what I can take, my life was already, no piece of cake
With all of the pain, and many unwell days, so many meds, and being in a haze
I have no idea, of how I can cope, cancer on top of everything else, and living with no hope
I suffered depression before, and am fighting it still, it is just so hard, when the battle is all uphill
And the last of the friends, have hit the road, they didn't want to deal, with such a sad load
My sons and grandkids, are my only light left, and the thought of leaving them, makes me just too bereft
Knowing I won't see them grow up, hurts so much inside, it just breaks my heart, they're my joy and pride
I'm very afraid, the little ones will forget me, we're so very close, please don't let that be
The end will come, much sooner than expected, it's just not the life, that I had expected
Being disabled, living on food stamps and Medicaid, these are definitely not, the life plans I made
Losing so much, including my house, fuck you cancer, and fuck my ex-spouse
Why do awful things happen, to people that are good, while the bad ones have no troubles, it's not to be understood
I'll just never get it, I'm kind and caring to all, always helping others, why must I take the fall
Whatever is out there, God or angels or universe, what did I do, to receive such a curse
I'm done living for others, have to put myself first now, and get thru whatever is left of my life, somehow
Comments
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Cancer sucks. I'm so sorry. I have no words ...
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It isn't fair. I want my pre-cancer life back.
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Mimi, that's a sad and poignant poem which describes your terrible situation in very plain language. I'm very sorry about your financial situation, because this would be making the situation so much worse for you.
Your obvious poor physical and mental health, your debilitated existence, and your pain and suffering puts this line in context: Losing so much, including my house, fuck you cancer, and fuck my ex-spouse.
However, this poem also indicates to me that you are a strong person with some very important people to live for. So, yes, put yourself first, make the most of your good days and keep us posted when you feel like it.
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Mimi, thank you for sharing. There are parts there that we can all relate to. Hugs.
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Thank you ladies, for your kind replies. It is so very hard, to have no control over most everything in your life. Cancer is such a thief, as well is pain. The only joy left is my two sons, and four grandkids, that is all I live for. The little time I have with them is so precious. And even that time is so different, no outings or going to fun places, no being the active, young, fun grandma I used to be. I became a grandma at 43, and now I'm like an eighty year old. I hate it!
So many wonderful people here, have been so strong for so long, beating the beast back for years. They amaze me! I don't know how they do it.
FUCK CANCER for all of us! Healing wishes to you all.
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mimi, my heart goes out to you. I have 6 GK's and they are the light of my life. I'm so sorry you are in this place. We never know how much strength we have until that's all we have. You are strong! ((HUGS))
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Thank you for the hugs. And the GK's are what I am still around for.
But I'm so tired of being strong!
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Mimi, has your bc metastasized, or is it a recurrence in the other breast?
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Travel, I had both breasts removed. It has metastasized to my Axillary Lymph Nodes, Mediastinal Lymph Nodes (near heart), Pre-Tracheal Lymph Nodes (throat), Scapula (shoulder blade area), and Spleen.
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Mimi, thank you for sharing. I feel for you
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Thanks Dafne and HapB. It is extra hard doing this all alone, with no spouse.
Prayers for you all
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Mimi. So sad that you've been given so much to load up on your shoulders. I pray you can find strength and peace for all the struggles you endure and that you are able to enjoy your grandchildren for a long time to come.
Traveltext. So very difficult for you too. I always assume the men I see at my onc appointments in the waiting room are there with their wives or partners. You have opened my eyes that this is not always so.
I pray for you too, that you may find that courage needed to navigate a system, perhaps made even more difficult because you are a man.
God bless all of us on a Forum we never thought we would need but where we have found friendships, encouragement and the freedom to express what we are going through.
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"God bless all of us on a Forum we never thought we would need but where we have found friendships, encouragement and the freedom to express what we are going through."
Well said Goodprognosis.
And yes, Traveltext I'm glad you joined this site, must be very hard. I'm wondering how many more men are here, and if there are men's groups
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thanks Mimi
God bless. Hope you are feeling reasonably well today.
Re-red your amazing poem. Something new each time I read it.
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Yes, goodprognosis, Mimi's poem reveals more each time I read it too. It's a stark reminder that late-stage breast cancer is not all pretty pink ribbons and charity walks.
Mimi, it appears I'm the only guy with bc posting regularly on BCO. But men come and go here, including young men wanting to know about breast lumps. There's a good section on BCO with men's topics, but I believe many men are embarrassed to have this disease and so keep things to themselves. Also, you don't have to search far to find a woman to ask questions about bc. People say, well men don't talk about medical matters generally, but I'm in a prostate cancer Facebook group where the men don't stop talking about their diagnosis and treatment. And the guys are as supportive and helpful there as the women are here on BCO.
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Travel glad to hear you have support! I see from your stats that you've fought prostate cancer as well. My brother had PC too, and fortunately had an easy time with it, but he still goes to a support group. Like here, it's just so invaluable to be able to talk to people who have gone thru the same thing.
I don't know why, but I didn't join any websites or FB groups when I first had BC. I wish I knew about this site back then! I just blindly followed whatever the doctors told me, which we now know can be very little. SO many things, side effects, after effects, chronic issues, they don't tell you about. I learned them the hard way, after. The first group I joined was my PMPS FB group. One evening, I sat there in the middle of the night, in agony, desperately searching the web for help, and came across it. That group was a lifesaver. Women from all over the world, finding it the same way. It is easy to find help and info on BC, but not the life changing PMPS it causes. I was number 61 in that group, and I believe it's now over 400. I am so thankful every day, for the wonderful woman who started it. It still boggles my mind, and I kick myself, for not searching out for help with the BC!
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Mimi, your brother with PC and you with BC rings the BRCA gene bell. Have you been tested genetically?
Do you still have the PMPS issue? I admit I don't know anything about post mastectomy pain syndrome, but I'd bet there was a group here talking about it.
I'm hoping things are picking up for you.
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No, it's never been mentioned to me about the testing, I guess I should ask my MO about it? And yes, to the PMPS, it doesn't go away, we have women in our group with it 20 years out. And I have Post Laminecty Pain Syndrome too, from Sx to remove a benign tumor from spine, that was crushing my spinal cord, a year after my first BC Sx.So I have the chronic pain on both the front and back. I originally wrote the poem about two years ago. And just added the second part after my new mets Dx.
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Thank you for sharing such an amazing poem!
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