Maintaining a good self-image in the face of body changes caused by cancer and chemotherapy is tough. However, exercise was able to boost one cancer patient’s morale and self-image.
January 29, 2020
I said I wouldn’t talk about it again. Diet, exercise, and weight gain. Yet, here I go. It’s that time of year when many people have made resolutions to exercise and lose weight. Cancer or no cancer, my self-image is tied up in a huge, gnarly knot with my sense of worth and well being. I suspect I’m not the only cancer patient (especially women) who can’t smother the sense of having lost control of my body, in addition to having a deadly disease. I look in the mirror and see a hunch shouldered, gray haired, overweight woman with more than her share of scars. And darn it, I’m not happy about it.
With a new year well underway, I’m pleased to report there is hope. Chemotherapy and mobility limitations aside, it has been possible for me to find ways to exercise and feel better about the way I look. Not joyful, but not so morose either.
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