Sunday, November 20, 2016

My First support group meeting

  Living in a small town has many benefits but also some drawbacks. For instance, there is no such thing as date night without a trip to the supermarket. Sometimes I relate to the mountman. "Heading into town for supplies!" It's not that extreme but each trip to town has to be a multi function event. Another drawback is the lack of human support when dealing with a cancer diagnosis. There is no such thing as a prostate cancer support group in Toutle. I believe the closest support group to me is in Olympia sum 75 miles away.
  Tuesday last, I made the 100 mile trek to Tacoma to attend an "Us Too Prostate Cancer Support Group". I was invited to the meeting to share my experience with Provenge. I arrived half an hour early and was able to listen in on the conversations. I am envious of all who are able to attend support group meetings. What a blessing it must be. I was only able to attend 20 minutes of the open discussion time but that's all it took to see the value of support group attendance. People who live in the city are lucky. Well, they are lucky except for the crowds, the traffic, the noise, and all the other stuff that comes with urban life.
  After the open discussion I shared my cancer story as well as my experience with Provenge. I ended by singing "I won't back down" by Tom Petty. I got home at close to 11:00 pm. Although I will not be making the 2 hour drive to attend another meeting, I would encourage every man with this disease to attend a support group if they can.

 
 

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