How even "Indiana Jones" can remind a survivor of medical procedures from years ago.
BY Ryan Hamner
PUBLISHED May 29, 2018
Ryan Hamner is a four-time survivor of Hodgkin lymphoma, a musician and a writer. In 2011, he wrote and recorded, "Where Hope Lives" for the American Cancer Society and the song for survivors, "Survivors Survive" used in 2015 for #WorldCancerDay. Currently, he operates his website for those affected by cancer, 2surviveonline.com and drinks a ridiculous amount of coffee per day.
I can't even count how many times I sat there as a kid, in that cold leather recliner in the dimly lit chemo room. That chair never seemed to really ever get warm, or comfortable, even with me wrapped solid in warmed up blankets. I don't know, maybe it was the incessantly lingering smell of alcohol that made the place feel less than homey - or maybe it was the anxiety of what was to come shortly after leaving the chair: intense sickness. To this day, leather recliners remind me of chemotherapy. I know, a bit strange.
With chemotherapy, or any bad experience for that matter, can come reminders. Reminders brought on by a song, person, chair or even a refrigerator, as I once wrote about. The reminders aren't exactly intentional, much the opposite. They are things that inadvertently work their way back into some corner of your mind, only to abruptly resurface later without warning
With chemotherapy, or any bad experience for that matter, can come reminders. Reminders brought on by a song, person, chair or even a refrigerator, as I once wrote about. The reminders aren't exactly intentional, much the opposite. They are things that inadvertently work their way back into some corner of your mind, only to abruptly resurface later without warning
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