stand4hope

The stars with the number of posts is a very nice edition, Rick. Also, I really like the layout of the home page. Very spiffy!!! Thanks, Peggy

Hi Kim, I don't have a solution either, but I just read your profile and would suggest that maybe you could shorten some of the narrative. Look at Wendy's above me and mine and you'll see what I mean. Actually, when the profiles briefly state the facts, they are a lot easier for us to read through, especially the doctors. I left a note for my husband's onc one day and the nurse said to make it short or he won't read it all. LOL! Love, Peggy

This is so sad. When will it ever end? I'm so sorry for the loss of your friends. God bless you, Peggy

I just talked to Angie. She's doing fine and her dad is doing pretty good. She is having computer problems and can't get online. Her ISP is sending her a disk to try to fix her problem, so she's hoping to be back online soon. She said her dad is doing pretty good, but tired after completing the WBR. She said he starts chemo tomorrow. Hopefully, Angie will be back posting very soon. Love to all, Peggy

Jane, What a comforting poem. I loved it. Thank you for sharing it. Love, Peggy

Erin, I've never had to deal with anything like this, but others have, so hopefully they will come online and give you some tips. Several years ago, my mother-in-law had to deal with this, though. My father-in-law was like this, only he didn't put on a happy face for anybody for any reason. We don't know for sure that he had lung cancer because he wouldn't go to the doctor, but we're pretty sure he did. He sat in a chair in the dining room watching TV nearly 24/7 and slept with his head on the table. He was a very angry and bitter man, and was horribly verbally abusive to my mother-in-law as he sat in that chair drinking, watching TV, complaining and dying. My sweet mother-in-law just let him lead the rest of his life exactly the way he wanted to. She just got him what he wanted and walked away when he got verbally nasty. I don't think there was much else she could do, and there probably isn't much else you can do, except seek counseling for yourself and find ways to cope if your mother is giving up. I'm sorry you have to deal with this at all. Love and prayers, Peggy

Hi Glenn and WELCOME to LCSC. It sounds like you have had one heckuva rough road. I'm glad you found us, though, and hopefully we will be able to assist you many times, and you us! We scratch each other's backs here, and there's nothing much better than a good back scratchin'. Once again, WELCOME, and God bless, Peggy

Lori, I hope that I am correctly hearing what you're saying here. It seems to me that you do have hope, but that you want your mom to have hope, and that you also want your mom to live the way the Don and Dean and others have described here. It sounds like your mom is not doing that, and that she is depressed and kind of thinking about the "end" rather than the present. Is that correct? If yes, then here are a couple of threads that were just posted during the past several days that discuss the same type issues (depression and how to encourage hope). There were many outstanding suggestions on these two threads. I hope they help give you some ideas on how you can maybe help your mom, or at least how to help you to better understand where she is coming from: http://lchelp.com/community/viewtopic.php?t=13179 http://www.lchelp.com/community/viewtopic.php?t=13147 Love, Peggy

Cheryl, I don't know what to say. I sat here for 5 mintues before I started to type. If I hadn't gotten a PM notification in my email, I probably wouldn't have even checked back here tonight, but I'm glad I did. I want to say something to you, but the words just won't come. A 5 cm. tumor would scare the beejeebees out of me, too. There's just no getting around that fear. I wish there was. I can't help but wonder if they aren't including the edema of that tumor in the measurement. On the film my husband's largest tumor looked like it consumed 1/2 his brain, but it was the edema we were seeing. The headache disappeared 24 hrs. after starting decadron, and the tumor was only 2.2 cm. You've been on here long enough to know that mets can be treated successfully, so I'm not going to go into all that. I just wish there was something I could say to calm your fears. I just don't have any words of my own. Jesus' words are the only ones that come into my head: Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid. Hang on tight, Cheryl. Love, Peggy

Oh, dear Shellie, Your great distress comes through cyberspace loud and clear, and I certainly understand why. Since this child is your best friend's daughter, I know you are suffering right along beside your friend. I will certainly pray for your friend and her daughter. Hang in there kiddo! Love, Peggy

Hi Jackie and WELCOME! Cindi offered some good tips about getting professional help. I also recently offered some suggestions on another thread to someone else who asked the same question: http://www.lchelp.com/community/viewtop ... highlight= If you followed that link and read my suggestions, the only thing I would again stress is to NOT overdo it because she is probably a pretty smart lady and will know you are just trying to cheer her up. LOL! First, you have to really believe in your own heart that she is going to get better, and then you will be able to offer hope. As you can see from my husband's profile below, there is always hope. There are going to be other people welcome you with even greater (and longer) success stories than my husband's. While it doesn't always work out so well for everyone, it does work out for a LOT of people, and I just bet your mom is going to be one of them. Once again - WELCOME! I hope you will find as much love and support here as I have. God bless you, Peggy

How sweet the sound . . . Love, Peggy

Wow! This gave me goose bumps. I'm so happy for your sister and that you all have something to look forward to. This, too, is SO exciting. You will really enjoy having a house to take care of. It will keep you busy and give you a lot of satisfaction. I hope you will take a lot of before pictures. 10 or 20 years from now you won't believe how different your house will look. Whoa! What did you find out? I sure pray that everything is ok with the results. Don't forget to let us know. Me, too, Shellie. Me, too! Thank you for this wonderful update about all that is going on in your life. May God bless you in 2005 with more blessings than you know what to do with. I pray that you will be posting one good news post after another. Love, Peggy

By being positive yourself! It's contagious! Talk about "future" events, but don't make it obvious. Just occasionally throw in some comment about the future. I can't accurately give you any words since I don't know your mom's interests and life activities, but some examples of things I've said to my husband: "When you retire next November . . . ." , "Next spring, can we talk about adding on a storage room?" My husband always responds positively, but if she is the type to come back and say, "Well, I probably won't be here this spring," or something like that. Just copy what a newcomer said on here recently. "Well, that won't work for me. You WILL be here this spring" or "next Christmas" or whatever applies. The most important, is that you BE positive. Love, Peggy

Hi Joni, I'm glad you made it through ok. You are an inspiration to us all. I thought about you and so many others over the past 48 hours. Give Alex a big hug, and Happy New Year! Love, Peggy

CONGRATULATIONS DEAN!! 15 months is a great victory. HAPPY NEW YEAR!! Love, Peggy

Joyce, I'll be saying prayers for successful laser surgery for Steve. I'm very glad he was feeling good for Christmas. Love, Peggy

Dear Margaret, What a blessing it is to see your post, and it's wonderful to see you and your wonderful Hollywood. I'm sorry to hear that you have been having a hard time, but was glad to hear that you are feeling stronger. Please stay in touch as much as you can. We miss you not being here. Love, Peggy

Hi Joanie, What a sweet post. Those were really nice words that you wrote. I wish you all the best in 2005, and hope that you and your husband will have a very Happy New Year! Love, Peggy

Wow Berisa! That was close. I'm so glad that you are safe, but I am sorry there was such a terrible tragedy. I hope you had a great vacation. Love, Peggy

Tina, I'm glad to hear that you think Charlie is doing a little better, but sorry that this special time of year has been so stressful for you. I sure hope that he continues to get better and that you have a great time visiting with his dad at Ft. Myers Beach, and also that you have nice warm weather down there. All my love and prayers, Peggy

Cyndy, You are an amazing woman, and it sure sounds like Tim left a legacy of love with so many friends coming to celebrate his life. God bless you, Peggy

Oh, Cathy, my heart is breaking for you. I am so sorry. I will pray for you and your family. Please accept my condolences. Love, Peggy

Dear Anais, What a sad time for you and your family. I am so sorry. May God hold you close, and please stay in touch with us. Love, Peggy

Dear Tina, First, you're not whining. I consider your post a cry for help, not whining at all. What's going on with Charlie? Did he start having a bad time after you got down there? I don't know what's going on, but we will help you get through it in any way we can. The first thing I'm going to do is pray. If you have time and need to talk, please tell us more. I'll be checking in here over the next couple of hours, so you are not alone. Love and prayers, Peggy