Resources
You can find hundreds of books, blogs, websites, articles, films, and other resources that will help you and your loved one live with or beyond cancer. The following include some that were especially helpful to Lori.
Also, several retreat locations that provided great peace of mind for Lori are listed at the bottom of this page.
Books
Anderson, Gregory, Cancer: 50 Essential Things to Do, Plume, 2009 (Third edition; originallyp ublished in 1993)
Berberich, F. Ralph, MD, Hit Below the Belt: Facing Up to Prostate Cancer, Berkeley: Celestial Arts, an imprint of Ten Speed Press, 2001.
Ekman, Paul, Emotions Revealed: Recognizing Faces and Feelings to Improve Communication and Emotional Life. New York: Times Books, Henry Hold and Company, 2003.
Ellis, Judith, and Susan Nessim, Cancervive: The Challenge of Life after Cancer. New York: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1991.
Engleberg, Miriam, Cancer Made Me a Shallower Person: A memoir in comics. New York, Harper Paperbacks, 2006.
Girard, Vickie, There’s No Place Like Hope: A Guide to Beating Cancer in Mind-Sized Bites. Lynnewood, WA: Vickie Girard, 2001.
Groopman, Jerome, MD., The Anatomy of Hope: How People Prevail in the Face of Illness. New York: Random House, 2004.
Halpern, Susan P., The Etiquette of Illness: What to Say When You Can’t Find the Words. New York: Bloomsbury, 2004.
Harpham, Wendy, MD, Happiness in a Storm; Diagnosis Cancer; After Cancer: a guide to your new life; When a Parent Has Cancer; and more.
Healy, Bernadine, MD, Living Time: Faith and Facts to Transform Your Cancer Journey. New York: Bantam, 2007.
Healey, Terry, At Face Value: My Triumph Over a Disfiguring Cancer. Caveat Press, 2006.
Holland, Jimmie C., MD, and Sheldon Lewis, The Human Side of Cancer: Living with Hope, Coping with Uncertainty. New York: HarperCollins, 2000.
Hutton, Deborah, What Can I Do to Help? 75 practical ideas for family and friends from cancer’s frontline. London: Short Books, 2005.
Kane, Jeff, MD, How to Heal: A Guide for Caregivers. New York: Helios Press, 2001, 2003.
LeShan, Lawrence, PhD, Cancer as a Turning Point: A Handbook for People with Cancer, Their Families, and Health Professionals. New York: Penguin Books, 1989.
McFarland, John Robert, Now That I Have Cancer I am Whole. Kansas City: Andrews McMeel Publishing, 2007.
National Institutes of Health, National Cancer Institute, Taking Time: Support for People with Cancer and the People Who Care about Them. NIH Publication No. 98-2059, April 1999. Stories and Reflections on Service, New York: Alfred A. Knopf, Inc., 1985.
Rosenbaum, Ernest H., MD, and Isadora Rosenbaum, MA, Supportive Cancer Care: The Complete Guide for Patients and Their Families. Naperville, IL: Sourcebooks, Inc., 2001.
Rosenthal, Kairol, Everything Changes: The insider’s guide to cancer in your 20s and 30s, San Francisco, Wiley, 2009. See
Rossman, Martin L., MD. Fighting Cancer from Within: How to Use the Power of Your Mind for Healing. New York: Henny Holt and Company, 2003.
Schimmel, Selma R., with Barry Fox, PhD, Cancer Talk: Voices of Hope and Endurance from The Group Room, the World’s Largest Cancer Support Group. New York: Broadway Books, 1999. Based on the nation’s only talk-radio cancer support show; features Selma Schimmel, diagnosed with breast cancer at twenty-eight, and therapist Halina Irving, MA.
Sontag, Susan, Illness as Metaphor. New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1977.
Sourkes, Barbara M., PhD, Armfuls of Time: The Psychosocial Experience of the Child with a Life-Threatening Illness. Pittsburgh: University of Pittsburgh Press, 1995.
Wilber, Ken. Grace and Grit: Spirituality and Healing in the Life and Death of Treya Killam Wilber. New York: Shambala, 2000.
Websites and Cancer Support, Advocacy, and Information Organizations
http://www.cancer.org. The American Cancer Society website.
http://www.carepages.com CarePages are free, personal, private Web pages that help family and friends communicate when someone is facing illness. See What Helps, What Hurts, What Heals for advice about supporting someone with cancer or anyone who is suffering, and for information about lung cancer issues, visit the Lung Cancer Emotional Resource Center.
http://www.caringbridge.org. CaringBridge offers free webpages for the ill and suffering.
http://www.chemochicks.com. Chemochicks is a fun and comforting place to connect with other women undergoing chemo.
http://www.circusofcancer.org. Circus of Cancer is a very useful website for women diagnosed with breast cancer.
http://www.healingjourneys.org. Healing Journeys is a nonprofit that sponsors free and fulfilling conferences for cancer survivors and caregivers.
http://www.livestrong.org. Livestrong is Lance Armstrong’s foundation, and offers information and support to cancer survivors and caregivers.
http://www.lotsahelpinghands.com. Lotsa Helping Hands is a simple, immediate way for friends, family, colleagues, and neighbors to assist loved ones in need. It’s an easy-to-use, private group calendar, specifically designed for organizing helpers, where everyone can pitch in with meals delivery, rides, and other tasks necessary for life to run smoothly during a crisis.
http://www.lungcanceralliance.org. The Lung Cancer Alliance is the only national nonprofit organization devoted solely to patient support and advocacy for people living with lung cancer and those at risk for the disease.
http://www.thelungcancerfoundation.org. As the nation’s largest philanthropy devoted exclusively to eradicating lung cancer, the Bonnie J. Addario Lung Cancer Foundationworks with a diverse group of physicians, organizations and individuals to identify solutions and make timely and meaningful change through research, education, screening and treatment.
http://www.nationallungcancerpartnership.org The National Lung Cancer Partnership(formerly Women Against Lung Cancer) is the only national lung cancer organization founded by physicians and researchers. Its mission is to decrease deaths due to lung cancer and help patients live longer and better, through research, awareness, and advocacy.
http://www.susanlovemd.org. The website of breast cancer surgeon and acclaimed author and speaker Dr. Susan Love is full of information and is user-friendly.
http://www.talkingaboutcancer.com Talking About Cancer is said to be the only site on the Internet dealing exclusively with the emotional impact of cancer.
http://www.vitaloptions.org. VitalOptions produces a weekly nationally syndicated radio show for people with cancer described as a live broadcast support group.
Magazines and Booklets
Mamm: Women, Cancer, and Community
Cancer & You magazine. Call 800-746-0355.
The Caregivers Handbook by Jim and Joan Boulden. Call 800-238-8433 or send an e-mail to: jboulden@bouldenpublishing.com.
Cure Magazine: Cancer Updates, Research and Education
CR Magazine: Collaboration Results, a magazine about people and progress in cancer
Give Me Your Hand: Traditional and Practical Guidance on Visiting the Sick. by Jane Handler and Kim Hertherington with Rabbi Stuart L. Kelman.
InTouch 877-INTOUCH
Taking TIme: Support for People with Cancer and the People Who Care about Them. NIH Publication No. 98-2059, April 1999. Call the Cancer Information Service at 800-4CANCER.
What’s Happening to the Woman We Love? Families Coping with Breast Cancer, The Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Fund in collaberation with Saint Louis University. Call 800-462-9273 or visit http://www.breastcancerinfo.com
When Someone In Your Family Has Cancer. National Cancer Institute Pamphlet No. 96-2685. Call the Cancer Information Service at 800-4CANCER.
Blogs
On Healthy Survivorship by physician and cancer survivor Wendy Harpham, MD
What Helps. What Hurts. What Heals. Lori’s CarePages blog about what we need as cancer survivors and how to best help us.
Other Resources
Ashleight Brilliant (that is his real name!) creates lively, witty and colorful postcards called “Pot Shots” that Lori absolutely loved. They are very affordable, but if you want to spend more, he has several books from which to choose. To see his work, visithttp://www.ashleighbrilliant.com
Comedy Cures. This national nonprofit offers supports for kids and adults with cancer and other diseases, and provides a free 24-hour joke line, live appearances, and other resources. Visit http://www.comedycures.org or call 888-HA-HA-HA-HA.
Wilber, Ken. “On Being a Support Person.” Journal of Transpersonal Psychology. Contact atpweb@mindspring.com or call 650-424-8764.
Lori’s Favorite Retreats (or “Refreshes,” as she liked to call them)
Sky Farm Hermitage, Sonoma, CA
This place, set in the stunning hills of the wine country, is not only gorgeous, but is rendered even more peaceful and compassionate by Sister Micheala, who manages the retreat center. A variety of hermitages, include beautiful huge wine barrels (no kidding) makes you want to visit again and again.
New Camaldoli, Big Sur, CA
Breathtaking views, simple and delicious vegetarian fare, exceptionally soulful singing by the monks, deer, and even foxes make this place Heaven on Earth.
Villa Maria del Mar, Santa Cruz , CA
Lovely and right on the beach, another heavenly place; good food’ served buffet style 3x/day.
The Quaker Retreat Center, Ben Lomond, CA
Lori stayed in a tiny cabin here, which was very cozy and dark, but there are other rooms available; great hiking in the redwoods; no food provided; beautiful meditation path.
Santa Sabina Center, San Rafael, CA
Dorm-style with shared baths; if a group retreat is going on, food is provided; otherwise, you have a kitchen at your disposal, and Dominican University’s cafeteria is right across the street. There is also a private hermitage on premises.
Mary & Joseph Retreat Center, Rancho Palos Verdes, CA
This center offers a huge garden and spectacular view overlooking near Los Angeles.
St. Placid Retreat Center, Lacey, Washington
In the woods with comfortable safe hiking nearby, this center offers rooms named for various saints and great food.
For more information, and centers throughout the nation, please seehttp://www.retreatsonline.com or http://www.osb.org/retreats.