Cancer develops in many ways, for different reasons, and at different stages of one’s life. For me, I was in my early 50s and was enjoying a happy and healthy life. I had a PhD in Disability Studies, and I ran a successful rehabilitation consulting business, working mainly with people with traumatic brain injuries. I was married, with three adult children, including a son who has Down syndrome and autism. I gravitated towards high impact sports, including long-distance running, triathlons, snowboarding, cycling, mountain climbing; you name it—I went for it.
But then, I started to notice something was not quite right. I didn’t seem to have the energy I used to. Perhaps it was menopause. Perhaps I was depressed. I consulted with several doctors across many disciplines. Some ordered tests of which all were normal. Some simply dismissed me, while others laughed when I told them my problem was that I couldn’t run my usual 20 to 30 kilometres.
One day, during a spin cycle class, as I pressed hard against the pedals of my bike, I felt a searing pain in my right foot. Days later, I was still unable to bear weight. The doctor sent me for a bone scan. All was normal. Weeks later, in a weight-training session, I felt another surge of pain along the right side of my body. I had fractured a few ribs.
Under the doctor’s advice, I took a break from training and curtailed many of my activities. Lo and behold, my energy began to improve—or so I thought! Each time I would start to train for a marathon, my symptoms would return.
By this time, I had developed a persistent backache, which set me on an intensive search to uncover its cause. To my dismay, the pain only got worse, and eventually, I became bedridden due to intense muscle spasms. I started to investigate cancer as a cause, but was dismissed—yet again—by doctors. So, I turned to the private healthcare sector for some answers.
I paid a Registered Nurse Practitioner, who conducted yet more tests. By this time, I was severely anemic. I paid for an ambulance ride and an MRI. A few thousand dollars later, I received the diagnosis: multiple myeloma, a blood cancer. In the two years it took to get a diagnosis, it was in its final stage. I had developed tumours in every bone in my body. The doctors described it as severe osteoporosis, and I was as frail as a 90-year-old woman. I was told I would likely never walk again. The chance of survival was slim. The good news was that I was responding well to the initial phases of chemotherapy. I just needed to get healthier to undergo a blood stem cell transplant, which at that time, was the gold standard for this kind of cancer.
I won’t go into the grim details of what transpired over the next few years, suffice to say I went to hell and back—more than once. What I will say is that I had a stem cell transplant, I had a short courtship with remission, I was given just months to live, and then, miraculously, I was admitted to a clinical trial with a groundbreaking immunotherapy treatment. I have now been in complete remission for over three years.
While I am grateful that the immunotherapy saved my life, the drug has its drawbacks. It has left me with a severe depletion of antibodies necessary to fight off infections, even minor ones.
Since then, other complications have nearly ended my life. At one point, I went into a coma due to bacterial sepsis and an exceedingly high level of ammonia. I was intubated and on life support. Miraculously, I survived, but I was in so much pain I wanted to die. I joked with my husband, “I can’t die for the life of me!” Funny but true. I believe I am still alive for one simple reason—to tell the rest of my story, one which includes Wellspring and its donors like you!
Wellspring Saves the Day…and Me
By the late 2020s, my cancer was in complete remission. I could no longer work or drive because I was having seizures—an allergic reaction to the drug used to kill my cells for the stem cell transplant.
I could no longer participate in high-intensity sports, like snowboarding or long-distance running, but I was determined to walk again. With a Type A personality, I had a strong drive to survive, and Wellspring was there for me!
By this time, Wellspring was delivering its programs online, which was perfect, given how severely immune-compromised I was.
I joined online yoga, meditation, singing, art, and every session offered in the Speaker Series—from techniques to improve memory and brain health, to strategies for decreasing stress, to information on improving nutrition—these sessions were life-saving. Thus began my journey of getting stronger, one Wellspring program at a time.
I marvelled at all the programs Wellspring has to offer! I wanted to take up guitar, to build strength in my fingers—Wellspring had a program for me. I started drawing to hold a pencil in my hand—Wellspring had an art program I could join. I wanted to do yoga, but I couldn’t stand or get down on the floor—Wellspring introduced me to chair yoga.
Even when I was sidelined once again with a coma and near-death death, Wellspring was there for me. I received such encouragement from the volunteers and instructors. I would sign into my yoga classes from my bed. There was no way I could be on a mat, or even in a chair, but I wanted to be there, with these people who were my people. I signed into my art classes from my bed also. I was in so much pain I could barely move. My fingers were so swollen with septic arthritis; I couldn’t hold a pencil. But I was there listening, and my Wellspring peers were there for me.
As each day passed, I began moving my fingers, moving my knees, moving my body. Ever so slowly, I began returning to myself, thinking all the while, I couldn’t do this without Wellspring.
I went from being fully bedridden to using a wheelchair, then a walker, then walking canes, and finally, I was walking fully on my own. Recently, I did a hike in the Rocky Mountains. Don’t get me wrong, I still live with pain, but with the help of Wellspring, I have learned how to manage it.
Wellspring is a Godsend—not just because it supports people with cancer and their caregivers, but because it also informs and educates people, while still offering a strong spiritual component. This is crucial to surviving cancer. In my many years of working with people who have sustained traumatic brain injuries and spinal cord injuries, and in my home life, having a son with Down syndrome and autism, I know how important it is to have a strong support system—a network of people who know your story. People who know because they have walked the walk and talked the talk. And Wellspring is one of the best support systems I’ve seen in my life.
Last year I got sick again—not cancer—but from three different infections, one being pneumonia. I was back in the hospital, back in bed. But this time was different. I brought my laptop with me to the hospital, and I logged into all my Wellspring programs. My nurses put a “Do Not Disturb” sign on my door to ensure I was able to participate free from intrusion. It took me another few months to recover, but I’m back. I’m joyful. I’m here, and I have Wellspring to thank for the programs they offer.
As I said, I’m here for a reason, mostly to help others. If given a choice, I would never have raised my hand to be chosen to have a son with Down syndrome. I would never have raised my hand to say, “Sure, I’ll take cancer.” But having both cancer and a son with Downs, I wouldn’t change any of it for the world. I’ve learned that I can paint, and I now call myself an artist. That would certainly not have happened but for my cancer diagnosis. My son has brought me so much joy. He has taught me that you can do anything you put your mind to. Wellspring is here to bring programs to us so that we cannot only survive, but thrive!