Should paying for treatment cause unnecessary pain?
I’m sitting here at the IU Simon Cancer Center to get a second opinion – well actually my third – from Dr. George Sledge, one of the premier breast cancer oncologists in the country. He is the keynote speaker at next month’s Living Beyond Breast Cancer conference in Philadelphia and [...]
In my book, I center my survivor stories around some common themes: Faith, Perseverance, Attitude, Support and Purpose. Yesterday my new partner-in-healing Nevine and I went out for a huge Lebanese lunch. I came away with a full tummy, a little indigestion (garlic and chemo – not a good combination), and a lot of inspiration.
As [...]
I’m excited to announce my first guest blog post! I have been incorporating green tea into my diet to fight cancer. So I asked Dr. Gary Huber, president of the LaValle Metabolic Institute in Cincinnati, Ohio, to share his expertise on the topic:
Wow, talk about your unfair trade practices! Asia brought us green tea, and [...]
I’m a fan of the show, Brothers and Sisters on ABC, but was less than thrilled when one of its characters, Kitty (AKA Calista Flockhart), found out she had cancer. “OK,” I thought, “Here comes the head-in-the-toilet vomiting scenes and other stereotypical and dated cancer images you see all the time.”
The story line did start that way, [...]
Venting about the Environment and Cancer: Growing Up Female, Breast Cancer Fund, parabens, estrogen, organic, toxins
Spoiler alert: deep stuff ahead! I share my blog posts on Facebook and often get some interesting comments from them. My friend Terry, who goes to my church, sent me this yesterday:
I have really been enjoying reading your blog, even though I don’t have cancer issues. I am wondering about something and would like your [...]
I have been blessed by many serendipitous events in my life, especially since my cancer diagnosis. Meeting Nevine yesterday was one of them.
Wednesdays I go to the Wellness Community to a class called Healthy Steps. I think I’ve talked about the instructor Sally, who shares my belief in positive, healing energy and the law of attraction. [...]
Last night my husband, daughter and I watched the documentary, Crazy, Sexy Cancer by fabulous survivor Kris Carr. I read her book last year and was inspired by her wit, perseverance and spirit. In 2003, Kris was diagnosed with a very rare cancer, which manifested about 23 spots on her liver. Today her cancer is [...]
If I believed in statistics, I wouldn’t be working so hard on this blog and book to prove them wrong. Statistics are great when you’re told they are in your favor, but they stink if you’re on the wrong side of them.
It felt good to have a chat with my oncologist Monday and learn he [...]
Wow, what a weekend! On Saturday I attended a fantastic event called Books by the Banks, which featured more than 80 national and regional authors. For once, I attended something early and had a chance to chat it up with some wonderful authors. I walked out with more than $100 worth of autographed books and [...]
So what makes a “miracle survivor?” When I started the journey of interviewing individuals who’ve beat the odds of a terminal and/or incurable diagnosis, I’ve found many attributes they share:
They don’t buy into statistics and the death sentences many of them were given.
They never gave up no matter what. They may have had down times, but [...]
It was really cute: My daughter’s school had Cancer Awareness Day today, and she was all dressed in pink. As I dropped her off, I saw her proudly pointing out her pink ribbon to the principal. Wow, even kids are being exposed to cancer these days. I’m not sure I knew much about it when [...]
The Police have a song called Too Much Information that sums up the way I’ve been feeling these days. Ah, the Police! It reminds me of simpler times in the 80s when my biggest worry was meeting a cute guy and trying to spike my hair with gel.
I digress. One of the hazards of Breast [...]
Yesterday I heard a breast cancer survivor on NPR talking about her book, Bright-sided: When Happiness Doesn’t Help.
Let’s be blunt: the woman annoyed me – a lot. I kind of get her point. You can’t always be positive when faced with a cancer diagnosis. But she was actually saying there is no connection to healing [...]
My brother Doug, my biggest fan, suggested I give a link to the on-demand version of the podcast recorded on Friday. If you missed it and can spare a half hour or less to listen, click on this link:
http://www.girlfriendology.com/podcasts/8/Girlfriendology-interviews-TAMI-BOEHMER-breast-cancer-survivor-author-wife-mom-girlfriend–not-necessarily-in-that-order/
I want to clarify some things from yesterday’s post about the Type C personality. I try to keep my posts short – hey you’re all busy – so sometimes I don’t get to explore things as thoroughly as I’d like. Dr. Hall, who led the seminar I spoke about, emphasized healthy individuals have aspects of [...]
On Friday, I attended a fascinating seminar called The Immune System: The Body-Mind Connection - Who Gets Sick and Who Gets Well. The presenter, Nick Hall, Ph.D. is a neurobiologist who is internationally recognized for his pioneering contributions to the study of stress, emotions and the immune system.
I have pages of notes and I’ll share more [...]
As I’ve mentioned, today I’m being interviewed by www.Girlfriendology.com for their 2 p.m. podcast on BlogTalk Radio. I’m going to talk a bit about survivors I’ve interviewed who have been helped by their girlfriends.
I’m definitely going to focus on Suzanne Kaszar, who I think has the most remarkable story of how her “Ya Ya Sisterhood,” [...]
One of the tools I’ve picked up from my cancer experience is the phrase, “Hey, it’s not cancer.” I can’t remember who I heard it from, but it’s helped me when I’m anxious about things that really aren’t that important in the scheme of life.
A problem at work? An argument with my mom? My daughter [...]
Okay, what are the odds? My husband Mike and I took a wide departure from our usual routine, going out last night to a play. I can’t remember the last time we saw a play, and we were remarking what a nice escape it was for us to just immerse ourselves in the story.
But I kept [...]
