The questions you don’t ask your doctor

by Carolyn Thomas   @HeartSisters  

Let’s say you’re a woman recently diagnosed with heart disease who wants to know if it’s “normal” to feel crushing fatigue every time you take a shower.  Or you’re a woman living with rheumatoid disease who needs advice on which shoes are best for people who suffer severe foot pain like yours. Or you’re a woman diagnosed with breast cancer who is trying to make sense of the new emotional extremes you’re struggling with.

Who you gonna call? Continue reading “The questions you don’t ask your doctor”

The 2018 Summer Blogging Challenge

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by Carolyn Thomas  ♥  @HeartSisters    August 12, 2018

My blogging friend Nancy Stordahl, author of several books about breast cancer, including (best title ever!) “Cancer is Not a Gift and it Didn’t Make Me a Better Person”, as well as the excellent breast cancer blog Nancy’s Point, sent me a little nudge this week. Perfect timing for an invitation to participate in her 4th Annual Summer Blogging ChallengeIt’s hot outside, I’m cranky, I’ve attempted writing half a dozen blog posts this week  yet abandoned all of them – maybe Nancy’s challenge will help me feel unstuck.

Her invitation: just answer the following 12 questions about being a blogger (or about the blogs you enjoy reading). Feel free to accept her challenge yourself. Continue reading “The 2018 Summer Blogging Challenge”

Post-Traumatic Growth: how a crisis makes life better – or NOT

Full disclosure: I’ve always felt a bit squirmy when patients facing a life-altering medical crisis cheerfully declare that this diagnosis isn’t only NOT dreadful, but it’s actually quite fabulous! But before I dig into that theory, let’s look at this positivity phenomenon.
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Psychologists sometimes refer to it as “Post-Traumatic Growth”.
Continue reading “Post-Traumatic Growth: how a crisis makes life better – or NOT”