Tag Archives: cancer

How to talk with your children about your cancer

Posted on May 7, 2013 by Alegent Creighton Health Cancer Team

By Peg Shepherd, licensed mental health practitioner It’s tough enough to deal with your own emotions when you’ve been diagnosed with cancer, but what about your children? Expect a variety of reactions from them: from silence, denial, regression and acting out to anxiety or depression. You know your child better than anyone else. Trust your instincts when deciding how to talk with them about your cancer. What they need most right now is honesty. Honesty promotes closeness. If you’re not honest, kids will imagine all kinds of scenarios—and what they … Continue reading →

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No One Lives Forever

Posted on November 28, 2011 by Eric Van De Graaff, M.D.

A physician friend of mine recently posed a question: What would happen, he asked, if all our efforts to stamp out heart disease and cancer were finally successful?  Following our current trajectory (or, at least, the direction in which we hope we’re heading), what would happen if we were able to finally do away with the two most common maladies that we face and from which most of us ultimately die? I gather from the tone of his question that he implies that eliminating cancer and heart disease, while noble … Continue reading →

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The “Ta-ta Sisterhood”

Posted on October 20, 2011 by Alegent Creighton Health

Our “Ta-Ta Sisterhood” is a group of 10 wonderful women who made the trek in October together, to have their annual mammograms at Mercy Hospital’s Mammogram Suite. Our group “leader” Jannine thought of the idea 2 years ago when she invited 4 of us to join her. She gathered our information and made the appointments so that we would could be seen one after the other. We all know that going to get your mammogram isn’t something you necessarily look forward to, so her idea of making it a fun “girls’ day out” made it … Continue reading →

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Angels in the Wings

Posted on February 11, 2011 by Alegent Creighton Health

  In August 2010, my husband was diagnosed with hodgkins lymphoma. Up until the moment we were in the doctor’s office and heard those words (“you have cancer”), we were a thriving, normal family of two.  We were hard working and planning for our retirement.  We had plans of moving to the country and enjoying what was left of our lives. But then our lives took a different turn. I know there are angels who walk among us.  In fact, we met quite a few when our two grandchildren had … Continue reading →

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Make Your Plan to Quit Today

Posted on November 18, 2010 by Jen Homann

There aren’t a whole lot of habits you can take up that will harm nearly EVERY organ in the body – but smoking is certainly one of them. As we’ve all heard for years and years, it can cause countless diseases and flat-out reduces your overall health. Plus, it’s a habit that’s tough to quit. The good news? No matter how old you are or how long you’ve been smoking, studies show that when a smoker quits, they see a dramatic drop in their health risks. So, with today being … Continue reading →

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