As I enter my third year of main­te­nance ther­apy after experiencing very little change in my health the past couple years, I sometimes feel as though I’m just “treading water.”

While it's often con­sidered derogatory to say that someone is treading water, being able to swim in that way is actually a very im­por­tant safety skill. A swimmer isn’t going to make any forward progress treading water, but they’re going to keep their head above water (i.e., not drown) long enough to catch their breath so they can con­tinue a longer …

“How did it get so late so soon? It's night before it's afternoon. December is here before it's June. My goodness how the time has flewn. How did it get so late so soon?” - Dr. Seuss

Two years. Where has the time gone?

I just celebrated the second anniversary of my au­tol­o­gous stem cell trans­plant. At times, it seems like only yesterday. At other times, I can hardly remember it and have to wonder if it happened at all.

It is human nature to mark the anniversary of events, big and …

As I lie here in a clinic bed, watching the nurse put on her gown and gloves to prepare my infusion of Kyprolis (car­filz­o­mib), I wonder how this all became "normal."

I remember the first time I felt like a medical patient on this journey. It was in March 2016 when I went in for the first of what would be three (so far) bone marrow biopsies. I distinctly remember how strange it felt to be shown into a treat­ment room, given an immodest medical gown, and be poked and prodded in …

“You look great,” isn’t nor­mally a compli­­ment or greet­ing that causes the re­ceiver pause. For me, how­ever, it creates mixed feelings, and those mixed feelings can change depending on the person and the situation when the greet­ing is offered.

I realize how I react to what is said to me is my issue, not the speaker's. Often, they really mean to say that I look "normal" and un­harmed by my cancer and treat­ments. They are wit­nessing no outwardly changes in my appear­ance or behavior, which they take to mean the threat of …

Recently I spent a lot of time fighting a new enemy in my myeloma battle: a treat­ment denial by my insurance company.

This hasn’t been an issue for me up to this point. The treat­ments I had received were obviously very expensive, but they were all covered and, thanks to my employer’s generosity, I have very low premiums and a very low out-of-pocket cap.

I am very aware of the stress that my family and I could experience if I didn't have such good insurance. Fortunately, we've been able to avoid any …

When I was first diag­nosed with multiple myeloma in the spring of 2015, my doctor said I didn't need to begin initial treat­ment until at least the end of the year. Instead of hearing the doctor say, "You are basically symptom-free, be careful of strain­ing your back, drink lots of fluids, and enjoy the summer," I spent the bulk of my time think­ing about how sick I would become when treat­ment began.

My family spends substantial time each summer in eastern Washington enjoying nature and time to­gether. During the summer of …

The alarm yanks me from my dreams and I rub my eyes to help them focus. It’s 5:15 a.m. and I need to get moving. I hate getting up this early, but the cancer center is an hour's drive away, even early on a Saturday, and my blood draw is at 7:00 a.m. I rationalize the early start knowing I want to get my treatment done and out of the way.

Even though I’m not awake enough to feel hungry, I grab a quick bowl of cereal so I can take my …