Girlfriends

Peggy and Banita, two of my girlfriends from my support group, Pink Ribbon Girls

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,” (as she calls them) helped her through her most challenging times. Back in 2008, Suzanne was diagnosed with a rare type of Stage IV lymphoma. She was single and her family lived far away, but she was not alone.

Girlfriends to the rescue! She didn’t even have to ask for what she needed. They cleaned her house, went out to get a handicapped sticker for her car, helped her keep a calendar of all her appointments, and even went out to buy her a new computer that was going on the fritz (they did ask for reimbursement, though!).

Another thing I will want to mention, though, is that those of us with husbands and family need our girlfriends too. I know for me, I can’t expect my husband to do everything and it’s hard being a caretaker sometimes. I’ve been blessed to have my girlfriend Dawn, who is an oncology nurse, help me  with questions to ask my doctor. Then there’s my friend Pat, who is always encouraging me and telling me I can achieve my dreams.

You women out there, how have your girlfriends helped you when you needed it most? Or if you have a friend with cancer, how have you supported her?