Everything in life is relative to that which we have experienced. If all I knew was that a wood sliver hurts when I get one in my finger, then having a wood sliver would be a pretty important issue. Just ask a three-year old with a wood sliver and limited pain experiences. No surprise there. What I have found incredible, however, is the 100 percent validity of the “everything being relative” statement when confronted with cancer on a personal level. Remember the day when the doctor told you you have cancer? Prior to my multiple myeloma diagnosis, I suspect that the most physically painful challenge I faced was a broken jaw. Emotionally painful, no doubt about it, was the death of my father. Mentally taxing, I suppose, is running my own business. … Read the full story » |
Articles by leading multiple myeloma specialists written exclusively for The Beacon.
Progress toward fundraising goal
for all of 2020:
For more information, see the Beacon's
"2020 Fundraising: Goals And Updates" page
Late last month, a sudden cold snap swept down from the Arctic and caused temperatures here to plunge to almost 30 degrees Fahrenheit (15 degrees Celsius) lower than normal. From a nice warm autumn, with lovely golden leaves and even some flowers still in bloom, a heavy snowfall blanketed the land and caused a sparkly landscape. The problem was that it was really cold. We scrambled to find our parkas, mitts, hats, and boots.
We had winter tires put on one of our vehicles, and my husband Dilip got out …
There is no denying that each of us with multiple myeloma has an idea about survival and what it means. According to the online dictionary that I use, survival is “the state of continuing to live or exist in spite of a difficult circumstance.”
So in our case, the difficult circumstance is cancer; if we see another sunrise, we are surviving.
I like survival. Survival is good. It is something that I really, really desire. Without being political, I unabashedly vote for survival!
However, just using or accepting that definition of …
Seven months ago, after having smoldering myeloma for 10 years, I crossed over into the ‘active’ disease category. Thankfully, there was no dramatic myeloma defining event, just a painful bone marrow biopsy that showed 60 percent plasma cells. How long I have been at 60 percent, I have no idea, which makes the decision to proceed with treatment a difficult one for me.
Back in March, when Covid-19 was starting to grip my region, my doctor agreed that it would be prudent to hold off on treatment, as Seattle was …
Elaine was a fiery red head who loved her family, open water sailing, and Schlotszky’s sandwiches. She was mother to my best friend and grandmother to our godchildren. She was caregiver to her husband, whose cancer took him several years ago, and she was my friend.
She was also a patient.
In one of life’s ironic tragedies, Elaine transitioned from cancer caregiver to cancer warrior when she was diagnosed with advanced stage mantle cell lymphoma in 2012. Elaine became a patient at the cancer center where we live …
I cannot help but at least consider the idea that some part of my having cancer was my fault. No, I am not beating myself up. To do so would be terribly cruel and unfair. Life provides us with that in adequate doses as is. I certainly do not need to add on to that. However, in spite of all evidence to the contrary, it has been considered at times in the dark recesses of my small mind.
Before being diagnosed, I did not smoke. I was a moderate drinker, …
Last fall, as my husband and I were getting ready to leave the house, we saw a bobcat walking on our deck. At the same time, we also noticed a large porcupine sitting in a crabapple tree that overhung the deck.
We had never seen a bobcat or a porcupine on or near our deck, and seeing them was unnerving to me, even though we've not encountered these two animals in our garden since then.
Along the same lines, a scary incident occurred along an estuary when we …
Since the pandemic began, I’ve been spending my days at home on my half-acre property, which I long ago nicknamed ‘SoFUH,’ which stands for Sokol Family Urban Homestead.
When I’m not out working the land, and by that I mean dead-heading rhododendrons, fuchsias, and geraniums, pulling weeds, or picking green beans and chard, I can be found inside either messing up or cleaning up the kitchen, perched on the sofa videoconferencing with loved ones, corresponding, reading, researching, or mending.
When that got old, I found myself looking around …
I wrote my first column for The Beacon last summer not really knowing what to expect. At the time, I had two major concerns.
The first concern was that I had never really written much for public consumption, so I was uncertain about my ability to connect with an audience or provide a reasonably interesting take on living with multiple myeloma.
The other concern has been the always present uncertainty as to whether or not I would still be around to write about my experience.
Well, here I am, 11 …