Sometimes I Just Need to Laugh About the Weird Realities of My 'New Normal'

Okay. After chemo, everything changes. Maybe not for all of us, but for A LOT of us. Let's say we call that a given. So, what do we do about it?

For me, at 2 years post-chemo, there are changes that still crush me from time to time. But one way I'm able to pull myself out of it is to embrace it, and well, to laugh and make jokes about some of the weird realities of my ‘new normal’, for example…

Boogers: Somehow during all the lung cancer tests I had, my sinus cavities (nose tubes?) changed shape or something, 'cause every few days or so when I blow my nose a rectangular shaped booger pops out of one side!!! Big as a grain or two of rice!! Never happened before those pesky tests! When I realized it was going to continue I figured I may as well add it to my arsenal full of 'holy crap!', 'LMAO', 'that is SO weird!', etc…

Uneven Hair Growth: I'm 57 and have been plucking my eyebrows for more than 40 years. Roughly the same number of hairs per side. After chemo? One side grows tons more hair!!! Oh, my arm gets tired doing that side!!! Some of my girly hairs never came back at all! And, I have to shave my legs differently as one leg grows hair faster than the other! I've caught myself checking the least hairy one to see how long it was taking to catch up to the werewolf leg!!! (may as well make the shaving effort worth it!)

Weird Sounds: Ever since the lung removal, my burps sound like a loud rabid wild animal!! I mean cats scattering, dogs barking, husband startling, loud rabid wild animal sounds (sometimes with enough warning I can subdue the noise, but not often enough!) All of my innards have shifted around so, especially when lying down, I hear these soft bubbly, crackly noises coming from my torso! It's stomach noises echoing through my blank side (a few sips of water or milk usually take care of it.There's a 90 degree angle somewhere in my intestines now, due to the shift, so every so often there's an 'L' shaped poo!!! What the!?!?!?!

Oh, there's plenty more, and please feel free to laugh with me, and please, let me know what you’ve been able to laugh at during cancer’s daily struggles . Your humor may help me, too. What's going on with everyone else? What smaller changes crack you up???.

Olfactory hallucinations? (yep! got those too...) Or changes in taste? Any experiments that didn't work out? Mine was black jellybeans. (why I thought since good stuff tastes bad the bad would taste good is beyond me!)

We willingly, lovingly, and bravely share our pain, sorrow, struggles. Can we share our laughter? Is that brave, too? I think so.

Xoxox,

Bette (aka: 1badlung)