Max's Story
Hi, I’m Max, 25 years old, and I was diagnosed with Stage 3 Hodgkin Lymphoma and underwent ABVD chemotherapy for 6 months. I recently received the great news that I am all clear.
I hope my story and tips will help anyone going through their own journey to beat cancer.
Poison or treatment?
Pain comes to my mind first when someone asks how it all went. Whether that’s physical or emotional, safe to say most will experience rather a lot. I received my chemotherapy through a drip every two weeks and all types of drugs, or rather ‘poison’ went into my body. The first session was not nice at all, but you get used to it! Although the after-effects will soon kick in.
The first few weeks were very challenging as I had awful mouth and jaw pain and could barely eat, it literally felt on fire, and I had to rely on lots of cold liquids, mouthwashes, and so many ice creams!
No one really told me how bad the mouth pain could be, but I don’t blame anyone as everyone has many different symptoms of chemo, it was just a huge shock for me as I thought I was ready for it all.
I also had awful back and chest pain which really felt like someone kicking me with all their force. Although when my doctor hypothetically asked me “Perhaps this is a sign of the cancer being kicked in the arse?”, I felt reassured and my mindset changed immediately.
Don’t get me wrong, the pain stayed and sent me on a rollercoaster throughout, but I kept on holding on to the fact that my treatment is doing its best to kick the cancer. Two months in I had the dreaded PetScan (insert a dose of “scanxiety”) which is often undertaken for those with my cancer and chemo, which thankfully revealed my treatment was working very well.
You name it, I had it
Here’s a small list: mucositis, acid reflux, brain fog, headaches, hot flushes, tingling feet and hands, itchy veins, sleepless nights, skin infections, infected toes…
I learnt to tell my nurses everything I was going through as they could then recommend stronger painkillers and treatments. They always had an answer and I had them on speed-dial on WhatsApp, literally 24/7. I don’t know how they do it, but I always felt they’re there for me, but I guess they are the experts and have seen it all before.
Here’s a top tip… to always keep on top of pain, and to not always try and battle on without painkillers – especially when all treatment is free on the NHS.
Perhaps the best thing I did was keeping a symptom and medicine tracker. For me, I used the ‘notes’ app on my iPhone and shared this with my family and girlfriend which everybody found very useful to keep tabs on me.
Oh, and make sure you upgrade your bedside table so that everything you need is in easy reach!
Small goals are HUGE
Many cancer patients that I met told me that having a routine was key for them. But this wasn’t really something I could often achieve, so I just learnt to listen to my body, and its needs.
This was why setting small goals such as having a shower before 10am, cooking a meal for myself, re-doing the spare room… were huge goals. On days when I could achieve some of my goals, it really did give me strength and faith that my body was recovering from my last chemo session.
Positive mentality
Something I’ve never really gave much thought of before my diagnosis is that of how amazing our bodies and mind are to keep going and to heal itself. A positive mental attitude also means allowing yourself to get overwhelmed and to cry at times to let it all out - trust me you’ll feel better for it. I also used some basic meditation apps and listened to various podcasts which definitely helped me to relax and not feel guilty for doing nothing all day – especially when there were many times I could not even concentrate on watching TV.
I found that time itself was a very odd construct when going through chemotherapy, so I would recommend setting yourself rewards along the way and things to look forward to. Overall, I had 12 chemo sessions and I ticked every single one of these off on my calendar. This was placed font and center on my wall so I could see every day the progress I was making.
Expect the unexpected
This is the world us cancer patients are now forced to live in.
When I felt ready, I spoke to other patients on the ward and heard of their own stories which felt like I was part of community that was so strong and relatable.
Anyone will tell you that I am a very optimistic person, however when it comes to my health, I think the worst, just so I can prepare for the worst. It’s how I have learnt to cope with my health knockbacks up to now and to be grateful for the health that I do have. This thinking unfortunately came to be useful when I suffered from a blood clot on the brain that was 50/50 chance of me dying. Perhaps this was more than an unexpected health knockback, granted, but after my five-week stay I resumed chemo two days after I got home.
I learnt to trust the doctors who clearly know the best methods to help us cancer patients.
Dropping the ‘C’ word and Isolation
As soon as I was told my diagnosis, I made the decision to isolate from my family in the house due to the constant threat of Covid-19 and even the common cold. My doctor and nurses gave permission to do so, as long as I would try and get out the house at least once a day. Although I lost my independence and had to move back in with my parents due to my ill health, I was fortunate enough to be able to have a bedroom, spare room as well as a bathroom just to myself.
Everyone going through treatment is isolated from their previous ‘normal healthy self’ and lifestyle.
This has had a knock-on effect to my family and friends, and I began to realise that those who love me were actually finding it all a lot more emotionally challenging than myself. It’s a funny old thing that once you drop the ‘C’ word, the floodgates open to kind messages and thoughtful actions – however, your loved ones don’t often receive that same love and outpouring of support. That is something I personally never thought of, as I thought it was all about me.
I’d really recommend talking to a mental health professional at some point, as it really helped me just rant away to someone who knows nothing about me, and they offered great advice. I just wish I started this earlier!
With the great news of beating cancer after 12 rounds of chemo, I held a ‘F*** Cancer’ party to say thank you to my closest friends and family, not just solely celebrating dropping the ‘C’ word from my life.
P.s. the dog in this picture was found by my girlfriend through the Borrow My Doggy app, who wanted to cheer me up when it was all getting too much. She is even called Doctor Bailey and has really felt like a therapy dog for my girlfriend and I, so I highly recommend you checking it out!
Thanks for reading.
