Things Get Better with Love, Support and Time
by Kathryn Phillip
I have been healthy my entire life. Cancer was never something I ever worried about. So you can imagine how overwhelmed I was, at age 62, to be diagnosed with uterine cancer.
But a few years ago, I began experiencing some abdominal cramping. The initial blood work showed no indication of anything abnormal, yet an ultrasound showed something wasn’t quite right with my ovaries.
Next I knew, I was having a biopsy. Waiting for the results felt like the longest two weeks of my life.
My world changed when I finally got the results: stage 3 uterine cancer that had already spread to my ovaries. After that, I felt like I was walking through a cloud, not knowing where I was going or what would happen next.
I had a complete hysterectomy, followed by six months of aggressive chemotherapy – the kind that makes you lose your hair! I then had intense reactions to the chemo and required extended hospitalization. To make a bad situation even worse, all this happened during the COVID-19 pandemic, meaning I also had to stay isolated from everyone I cared about and who cared about me.
I felt my world was coming apart, and all I could do was cry. I was a dead man walking.
Then I learned about Wellspring. Suddenly, I had someone to talk to who listened to my fears and understood my crippling anxiety. They heard me and opened their hearts to me. Finally, I found myself in a place of comfort, where everyone around me understood what I was going through. Each person touched me emotionally with peace and calmness. It didn’t take long before I found myself better able to keep going forward, despite the uncertainty I still faced.
My online program time became ‘my time.’ I would close myself off in a room and find myself sinking into the profound help and care provided for me through a computer screen. In the meditation program, I found peace. The chair yoga soothed my soul.
Today, I’m feeling physically and mentally better, and I proudly say that I will always be a Wellspring ambassador. I tell anyone and everyone I meet about this wonderful organization. And I tell them things get better with love, support and time.
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