June 23, 2012

Weekly acupuncture appointment with Susan yesterday.  Feeling good, continuing (for the most part) with the healthy eating - nothing to complain about!  Ordered a new piece of healing juju to add to the growing collection:

I love me some Etsy.com!

Bummer of the week:  I finally took myself off of the bone marrow registry of the National Marrow Donor Program.  I joined several years ago when a local teacher needed a bone marrow transplant and was looking for a match.  Ever since Amanda’s dad Glenn endured a stem cell transplant when he was fighting multiple myeloma (likewise a blood cancer), I had wanted to do something to honor his life and hopefully help someone else in the process. 

Park Ranger Glenn and his little future Park Ranger Amanda
Grand Canyon National Park - April 1987

So I joined hundreds of other San Diegans at a donor drive held at the teacher’s school, filling out paperwork and having our cheeks swabbed, and was placed on the national registry not only for this particular patient but for anyone, anywhere, for whom I’d be a potential match.

National Marrow Donor Program
donor identification cards

When testing recently confirmed that the cancer was in my bone marrow, I knew I’d have to remove myself from the registry, but I had been avoiding it.  Why?  Because I was pissed that this cancer thing was making a decision for me.  Because this cancer thing was getting in the way of possibly helping someone.  And because this cancer thing was telling me I couldn’t do something.  I know it’s a childish reaction, I know it’s illogical – but whoever said I was a rational adult?!?!  I’ve never liked being told “NO!” by anyone – parents, boyfriends, nuns, husbands – but being told “NO!” by some stinking little cowardly cancer cells that don’t even have the balls to be symptomatic is just a bit hard to take.  

So, reluctantly, I logged on yesterday to www.marrow.org and updated my record.

Why am I blogging about this?  Because I’m hopeful that someone - or, better yet, numerous someones - reading this will take my place (so to speak) on the registry and make themselves available as a potential marrow donor.  Go to www.marrow.org and click on “Join the Registry” to learn more.

Hey lymphoma:  NO MORE OF THIS “MAKING DECISIONS FOR ME” SHIT!  Got it?

There.  I’m better.

We now return to