Personal Essay: How Chemotherapy Changed My Life

A few years ago, my twenty-eight year old cousin was diagnosed with cancer. At the time, she was a single mother of a seven year old little boy and working two jobs to support them. After learning about the cancer, she decided to move in with me so she could fight the cancer. All she wanted was to be able to watch her son, James grow up. The cancer was very aggressive and seemed to be taken over her at a fast rate. Within a few weeks, she was undergoing chemotherapy and other treatments that her doctor felt that she needed to do to kick the cancer. However, not only was the chemotherapy not working on her, the cancer was spreading. In five months, the cancer spread to her lungs, bones, and brain. I was her main caregiver throughout this time. It was hard to watch someone you love slip away and there is nothing you can do to stop it. When the cancer started to spread throughout her body, she became very swollen and weak. She needed help doing everything and I was always afraid that she was going to pass away in the night. One night when I was sleeping, I heard a big bang. I jumped out of bed and ran to her. She tired getting out of bed by herself to use the restroom. She did not want to wake me up because she …show more content…
I had a group of ladies that held me up through the hard parts and listen to me cry when I needed it the most. My belief is that we all need support system that will be there for you when you need it the most. My family was there but not in the way that I needed. When I become a helper, I plan on talking to people about how important support systems are. Support systems should be used as a lifeline when you are happy or going through the worse part of your life. I am still healing emotionally from the death of my cousin and what I went through with her. However, I would not change any of it. I felt honored to be able to be there for her and to be there when she passed