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WEDNESDAYS WITH WENDY
Hopeful news and views
on Healthy Survivorship
Since the passage of the 21st Century Cures Act (April 2021), most test results are posted on patient portals as soon as they are done. Great, eh? No more nail-biting days or weeks of waiting and worrying until a doctor visit.
Sadly, the change replaced one set of problems with another. The risks of seeing test results before talking with your physicians include…
Read moreI’m a terrible loser. My latest mission? Learning the art of losing. Here, I’ll share my efforts to deal with a relatively insignificant loss.
Read moreA computer glitch deleted this post. I will rewrite and respost in the next week or so. Thanks for your patience. With hope, Wendy
Rules of engagement are different for people in your inner circle. If you are unwell, here’s my personal take on answering, “How are you?” Your needs are the top priority but not the only priority. Maintaining healthy relationships with close family and friends is important and requires an ongoing investment of time and meaningful communication.
Read moreIn my prior post, I shared that the phrase, “unwell but good enough” helps me when people close to me ask, “How are you?” A reader’s comment about the downside of that answer in social situations prompted me to expand the discussion to help clarify which phrases help me and why.
Read moreAgreed-on words or phrases have been lifesavers for me and the people close to me. While dealing with my ongoing health challenges, I began answering the question, “How are you?” with a short phrase that helps us take care of each other’s needs.
Read moreAgreed-on words or phrases have been lifesavers for me and the people close to me. While dealing with my ongoing health challenges, here’s a phrase I began using to answer “How are you?” in a way that helps us take care of each other’s needs: Unwell, but good enough.
Read moreWhat do you do If feeling guilty because your illness is causing stress or problems for others?
Read moreGuilt and shame can complicate life during and after illness. Over the years of my cancer survivorship, I’ve strived to find healthy responses, efforts that began with exploring the similarities and differences between those two emotions.
Read moreHester Hill Schnipper’s columns present useful advice in a straightforward and comforting way. This gifted social worker (Chief of Oncology Social Work at Boston’s Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center) did it again
Read moreIf a challenge upsets you, it may help to distinguish whether you have a problem or a dilemma.
Read moreLooking for new ways to help your problem solving? Try using a magic wand.
Read moreA short video intended to make a point about parenting somehow made me see in a new way a message about Healthy Survivorship, one I’ve been sharing for decades:
Read moreDo you prefer patient-focused or patient-centered medical care? What’s the difference?
Read moret's stressful to wait for your doctor’s office to answer your calls or respond to your online messages. I wrote this handout to provide some clarification and to offer some tips on contacting your doctors between office visits. Hope it helps!
Read moreManaging loss is essential to healthy survivorship. The exercise of categorizing losses may help. Doing so may help you reflect on your response to a loss and see what more you can do—or what you can do differently.
Read moreHere’s a link to a 2-1/2-minute video in which I summarize my take on Healing Hope:
FocusOnOncology’s Dr. Wendy Harpham on Healing Hopes. Enjoy!
