In sickness and in health, library resources are there for you. We all use the library for different reasons, some of which may include information, inspiration, education, entertainment, job seeking and for help with trying to accomplish many other tasks that are often required in daily life. Sometimes when one is in crisis, the library is a good place to turn for direction and guidance.

Dealing with the Shock

When you find an egg-sized lump in the shower and are diagnosed with breast cancer shortly after, time freezes in the worst way. The last fragile vestiges of hope are blown to bits. Thoughts like “Maybe it really will turn out to benign. Breast cancer doesn’t run in my family. It’s probably nothing” fall away in an instant. Thoughts like “What do I want for dinner tonight?” are quickly replaced with “How did I not notice it before? I’m too young for this! What stage is it? Am I going to die? How long do I have? How do I tell my family?"

Even while you are still trying to deal with the initial shock, life doesn’t stop. You must organize your affairs at work regarding upcoming treatments. Even if you're lucky enough to be working for a humane organization and have good medical insurance, forms still must be filled out, submitted and faxed over to the appropriate offices.

Life becomes an exhausting series of medical appointments and waiting for test results.That is in addition to continuing to juggle the various daily problems and situations that inevitably continue to arise (like: the Internet service that is still spotty, the phone that breaks or gets lost). All of the sudden, there is a lot of new information flying at you. Important information that you must learn to understand—fast. If you don’t have a prior medical knowledge, this can be tricky.

Time to Get Organized

There will be lot of paperwork, appointments and other information to keep track of. If you don’t have the luxury of always having another person around to act as a sounding board or to accompany to the various medical appointments, keeping your head cool and keeping track of it all becomes paramount to maintaining your daily survival as well as sanity. There are many ways to do that. Through trial and error, you will find methods that works for you.

Using Technology

It may help to become friends with technology and learn to use Google Docs to keep track of what doctors and other medical professionals are saying. If you want to make sure to catch every word that is said to you during your doctor visits, a good way to do that is to record them on your smart phone—with the doctor’s permission of course—and later transcribe it all onto a Google Doc. It may also help to create a Google Calendar to record appointment days and times and linking it to your phone.

Using Paper-Based Methods

If you don’t yet have time to become too chummy with technology, using a paper daily planner, a notebook to take notes, a tape recorder to record information and sticky notes to give yourself reminders in various places can do the job. You may find that you need to save paperwork and insurance invoices for future reference. Insurance claims do sometimes get denied and there also may be billing and coding errors to sort out. Having easy access to the documents can be very handy when making phone calls to medical offices and insurance companies. Investing in a big binder, a hole puncher and a package of dividers may do the trick.

If you change your mind, there are always free computer classes and open labs available at various branches throughout The New York Public Library system. If you want to learn at your own pace, there are always free online self-teaching resources such as Lynda.com, one of the free databases available on our website. Or you may use other free online self-teaching resources.

Library and Online Resources to Help You Cope

Here is a list of books and websites below that may be helpful for you, your friends or your loved ones to help with the often frightening and overwhelming early part of the journey, from diagnosis through the various stages often involved in recovery.

Books

The Breast Cancer Survival Manual: A Step-by-Step Guide for Women with Newly Diagnosed Breast Cancer by John S. Link

When you are first diagnosed with breast cancer, this is a good place to start. It is chock full of basic information about understanding what breast cancer is, the different types of breast cancer, the stages, types of breast surgery and treatment options. There is also a comprehensive list of resources in the back of the book.

Bald Is Better with Earrings: A Survivor's Guide to Getting Through Breast Cancer by Andrea Hutton

This is a humorous account of the author’s own experience with being diagnosed with breast cancer. She explains what to expect and walks you through the intense and emotional process of the endless tests and coping with the results, what surgery can be like, chemotherapy and its effects, what it was like to shave her head and become bald. She also explains what going through radiation treatments what like and much more.

Crazy Sexy Cancer Tips by Kris Carr, forward by Sheryl Crow

When actress and photographer Kris Carr was told that she had cancer after going to a doctor’s appointment for another problem, she was floored. She was a thirty-one years old and has always exercised and ate a healthy diet. Not one to take things lying down, she vowed “Cancer needed a makeover and I am just the gal to do it!” She decided to document her story and provide humorous anecdotes and advice on socializing, dating, healthy eating, and more while living with cancer. It also contains very helpful tips on dealing with health insurance companies. Although it is geared toward the young cancer survivor, this contains valuable tips for the cancer survivor of any age.

Help Me Live: 20 Things People with Cancer Want You to Know by Lori Hope

For some cancer survivors, talking about their cancer situation with others is uncomfortable. Caregivers may also be unsure of what the best thing is to say or do. They may not know how to best help or ‘be there’ for their friends and loved ones living with cancer. Written for both cancer survivors and caregivers, this book discusses the different needs and issues that cancer patients commonly have and want their caregivers to understand.

Websites

SHARE
If you are feeling alone and overwhelmed because of your breast cancer diagnosis, support is out there. You can connect with other breast cancer survivors who have walked in your shoes. In-person support groups, virtual online support groups and help over the telephone are all available.

Questions to Ask Your Doctor
This page on the Susan G. Komen website may be helpful to print out and take to your doctor’s appointments along with a pen or pencil to jot down notes. There are also many other resources on their website to familiarize yourself with all things breast cancer related.

Your Guide to the Breast Cancer Pathology Report
Soon after you are diagnosed, you will probably hear your doctor mention your pathology report a lot and how the course of your treatment is determined by its results. This guide, published by the Breastcancer.org, explains its various aspects in a user friendly format. Good for those without prior medical backgrounds.

Breastcancer.org Discussion Boards
These discussion boards provide various useful tips on coping with various aspects related to breast cancer treatment, from diagnosis, surgery and beyond. One can do a search on various topics on these discussion boards.

Working During Cancer Treatment
Are you concerned about how you will cope with work related matters? This page on the American Cancer Society website contains tips on talking to your supervisor and coworkers about your treatment with various links and resources on work related matter related to cancer treatment.

Look Better, Feel Better
Is the thought of appearance-related side effects caused by cancer treatment getting you down? Check out a free Look Good Feel Better workshop. These free hands-on workshops are conducted by volunteer beauty professionals and teach women cancer patients about various aspects of beauty including wig care, applying makeup, skin care, nail care and more.

“A Guide to Chemotherapy”
This guide published by the American Cancer Society website, provides a good general overview of the general chemotherapy process: how it all works, the different types and how it can kill cancer cells.

Related Posts

Breast Cancer: A Research Guide
A very comprehensive guide chock full of links and resources on various aspects of breast cancer, what it is and how to treat it.

Cancer Survivor Stories: A Reading List
A booklist of some of the cancer survivor stories available at the library.

October is National Breast Cancer Awareness Month
This provides an overview of the National Breast Cancer Awareness Month that started in 1985. This post also contains links and book titles related to breast cancer.