Living with Multiple Myeloma

On September 20 I celebrated passing the 100-day-post-transplant mark.  Now I can eat sushi, drink wine and use Rogaine with impunity.   I feel stronger.   Walking helps me physically, mentally, emotionally, psychologically.   I'm lucky enough to have my eldest daughter doing her last year of law school from my apartment and she is a really loving, caring, fun, nurturing, kind and (clean) roommate.   Books have helped fill in the gaps in my life left by the absence of other human contact.  I can't be close to others due to my weakened immune system.   I see my other children as well and talk to them a lot.  I have wonderful friends who take such good care of me, but I can't really see them other than taking a walk from time to time outside.  Cancer seems to be under control thanks to the chemo and transplant.  Immune system is paying the price. My white blood cell ("WBC") and red blood cell ("RBC") counts are low as are my IgG and IgM le...

Stress hurts our health, no surprise there.  Maybe you had stress in your life when diagnosed.  You worked hard to rid your life of noise, pressure, pollution, poor eating habits.  Don't let them back ;).  Research shows that stress accelerates metastasis.  " The major cause of death from cancer is metastasis that is resistant to conventional therapy... Clinical and epidemiological studies over the last 30 years have identified psychosocial factors including stress, chronic depression and lack of social support as risk factors for cancer progression [ 3 - 6 ]. Whereas evidence for the role of psychosocial factors in cancer initiation is limited and some-what contradictory [ 7 - 10 ], support is stronger for links between psychological factors such as stress, depression and social isolation and disease progression [ 11 , 12 ]. Chronicity of negative affect, as manifested by depressed mood or hopelessness, appears to have stronger relationships with outcomes than...