Even though I mentioned them briefly in my family post, today’s post is dedicated to my siblings. I think siblings are some of the most overlooked and underappreciated people during cancer treatment. The new normal I mentioned last week doesn’t just apply to the patient but also the whole family.
My sister was my bone marrow donor, which was an absolutely amazing thing for a 10 year old to do. This is a very intense procedure, especially since I’m so much bigger than her, and she looked so green after I felt terrible for what I had put her through. I know my brother would’ve donated in a heartbeat if he had been a match, so we can’t forget about him either. Both of my siblings had to watch their older sister fight a terrible disease. They were both here when I went into septic shock and got rushed to the hospital in an ambulance. There were times I was too tired to do my chores or get myself a drink, and they’d help me out. They had no idea whether my treatments would be successful, and I didn’t either, but as the patient, I was wrapped up in the middle of it and it wasn’t too hard to keep fighting because I didn’t see any other choice. I think it’s harder to watch someone you love suffer and know there’s nothing you can do about it. One of my parents was almost always with me at the hospital, usually my mom, and my dad still had to go to work. This meant that my parents were hardly ever home, especially not at the same time. For a family that is used to having dinner together every night, this was a big adjustment for all of us. Normally both of my parents would go to as many of my siblings’ games as possible, but there were a few games that neither parent could attend. When I was in the hospital or apartment for extended periods of time, my siblings came to visit, even if there were other places they’d rather be. They spent Christmas and New Years in the hospital with me and we didn’t go on some of our normal family trips. My brother sometimes left his after school activities early to make sure he was home when my sister got off the bus. They dealt with this new normal without much complaint. Having a sick sibling isn’t easy, and when the patient gets everyone’s attention it can be even harder. One of my favorite things about making care packages at Cool Kids Campaign last summer was picking stuff out for the siblings and writing cards for them because I remember how surprised my siblings were, especially my brother, when they got anything in a care package. I can’t imagine my life without such great siblings. No matter what, they’ve kept me laughing. They would send me messages when I was away and find creative ways to get me to eat more when I needed calories but I wasn’t hungry. When my taste buds were messed up, we all ate hot peppers together because they wanted to see if I’d be able to taste them and I said I wasn’t going to try them by myself (though they may have regretted that decision). Thanks for everything<3
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AuthorI’m Karen. I was originally diagnosed with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (ALL) in August 2004 when I was 10 years old. When I was working on my college and scholarship application essays two years ago, I wrote about my journey. Although it was a rough few years, it became such an influential part of my life that I can’t, and wouldn’t want to, imagine my life without having had cancer. I called it the worst best thing that ever happened to me. Archives
April 2022
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