Fallout From a Failed Chemo InstillationThe ride home from Mom's first chemo instillation was heavy. We had done everything within our power to prepare her for this...reactionscomments
Being BraveYou're so brave. I'm so inspired by you. You're doing so great. You are so strong - blah, blah, blah. I have...reactions13comments
Starting an In-Person Bladder Cancer Support GroupI was shocked when I was first diagnosed with bladder cancer in 2014, as are many others. Online sites were my salvation...reactionscomments
Radical IndeedAfter most of 2020 dealing with nuisance symptoms like urgency and producing small foreign objects when I, then a major symptom; About...reactions1comment
My Dog Knew I Was SepticWe can all agree that our pets are very intuitive. They just seem to "know" when something is wrong and, in their...reactions4comments
Helping to Shape the Future for OstomatesI have to say. I often feel so privileged for the rewarding opportunities having been through a bladder cancer journey and becoming...reactionscomments
A Letter to Newly Diagnosed MeLet me start there. You are so beautiful and have an inner strength that will change lives, even if you don't know...reactions5comments
Walking Back Into the WardAlmost 5 years after I left the ward where I was post-surgery, I walked back in here tonight. Tonight, as the workday...reactionscomments
Who Is Nurse Anita?Nurse Anita, aka Anita Nurse, aka the Stoma Whisperer or the Stoma Doula. I'm all of those things, but mostly I consider...reactions2comments
Not Another Coloring BookLet's get in the time machine and go back to September 2019. I was freshly healed from my radical cystectomy, starting to...reactions2comments
26 Year Old with Bladder CancerStarting in early October of 2022 I had a bout of hematuria which mostly presented itself as blood clots in my urine...reactions34comments
Happy to Still Be Alive!In Jan 2017, I turned 68. In 68 years, I was pretty healthy, with 4 operations in all those years (3 after...reactions6comments
5 Years Clear!The 1st of November 2017. This is a date I will never forget. A date that will always have great significance in...reactionscomments
Cold Weather Ostomy HacksThere I stood at my bathroom counter, a third failed bag in the trash, and staring daggers at my stoma. Nothing I...reactions3comments
High Grade Urothelial CarcinomaI slipped on the ice (Christmas Eve) and fell hard. Within the hour, I noticed blood in my urine. The blood was...reactions13comments
Living With a Retracted StomaToday I am looking at the impact of living with a retracted stoma. If your bladder cancer treatment plan includes surgery to...reactions1comment
Cancer: A Hereditary HangoverA cancer diagnosis in the family, I've come to learn, has long-term effects for more than just the patient. In the beginning...reactions4comments
Reclaiming My NormalI have declared 2023 as the year I will reclaim my normal. In 2019 I was diagnosed with what should have been...reactions1comment
Truly Loving My Birthday Once AgainTo anyone who knows me well, I have always loved birthdays. I am writing this a few days before my 46th birthday...reactions3comments
My New BirthdayI am calling today my new birth date because on this day last year (2022) I was “snatched from the jaws of...reactions3comments