The Ginkgo Leaf - Issue3, FW2024-25
Hello, Friends of CPSP2023! Hope this note and newsletter find you well—living each day feeling better and getting better! It’s been a year since the charter newsletter was published, with this being our third issue of the Ginkgo Leaf!
Much has happened over the course of a year. I’ve had a couple of surgeries in the spring, followed by several months of recuperation that included bed rest, reclaiming mobility, plus, wrestling with low-grade infections and fevers. In the midst of this, over the summer, I’ve had to switch to a daily-drug therapy to treat the cancer that had spread to the lungs. The side effects from this drug have been challenging, particularly during the first 90 days. One of the more pronounced side effects was a pressure that wrapped around my head, making it feel like it was about to explode. Some patients call this a ‘whopping headache’!
Another side effect is (‘induced’) arthritis—bones, joints and muscular pains on a daily basis. For sure, I now have a deep understanding of what rheumatoid-arthritis patients face and deal with everyday. At times, even at night or very early in the morning, severe pain, inflammation and immobility strike down completely my sense of overall wellness. This kind of an experience makes one think long and hard about ‘quality of life’ and its meaning. After six to seven seemingly very long months of life in slow motion, I have returned to up-and-down days with receded head pressures and increased mobility. Without question, some days are better than others in terms of side-effects management; but I continue to work on maximizing and multiplying them—one day at a time!
During this recuperation-recovery period, I walked the MGH 5K as I had planned, and taking a sufficient amount of painkillers helped. From start to finish, it took me about an hour and ten minutes, with a great sigh of relief at the finish line! I actually had some trepidations about the walk; because the day before I was fighting a low-grade fever. My biggest worry was: what if I end up in the ER—again??? Also, I heard loudly and clearly in my head the questions my oncologist would ask me (if I did end up in the ER); one of them was: what were you thinking? Luckily, by the morning of the walk I was fever free! My biggest hope for YOU is that if you didn’t get the chance to ‘do the walk’ in September, there’s always next year!
During recuperation and recovery, I’ve not been able to post ‘healing methods’ videos as I had hoped. However, I’ve worked with Kathryn Ruff at White Oak Pastures and there is now a standing 15% discount on all first orders. Plus, there are many discounted bundles available on
White Oak Pastures’ website www.whiteoakpastures.com
So stock up for the holidays and winter months! Please use this discount code for your first order:
cpsp2023
Additionally, I’ve launched the (iShared) My Lunch Money campaign to support CPSP2023’s Micro Grants Program (MGP). Its aim and goal are to help cancer patients who are:
elderly (70+)
disabled by cancer in some way (and-or are)
on public assistance
Please see page 10 for more details and use it as a factsheet to share with others. To help cancer patients with the most needs—please help spread the word and share your lunch money!
This newsletter is dedicated to my Cancer Buddy, Sally Gallo, and those who have fought valiant fights against cancer! They remain lovingly in our hearts and minds! Equally important to note to everyone who is doing their best to recover and survive cancer—stay strong, positive and well! Happy holidays to YOU and YOURS! May you have many blessings, lots of joy and tremendous peace throughout the holidays and into a prosperous new year!
—-Vivien
