Keeping It Light May be a Positive Choice
Following her daughter’s lead, Nancy found herself reporting back funny stories about appointments, rather than serious facts about her treatment. That kind of approach seemed to help. “At times, she was lovely,” Nancy says of her daughter. “I had no hair and she told me I was so pretty, I had such style the way I wore the scarves.”
Helene’s kids were helpful, too, especially one day when she “lost it” and her daughter sewed extra hooks to her bra so she could wear it with painful radiation burns. “No one would ever accuse my kids of being selfish,” Helene says, noting realistically, “But they’re still in their own little world.”
Breast cancer treatment is never easy, but Nancy says both she and her daughter learned a lot during that time. Watching her daughter prepare applications for college, a study abroad program and eventually, a college transfer that would bring her closer to home, Nancy gained a new respect for her teen.
“Before, I thought she got things done because I asked and prodded,” Nancy says. “I found out I didn’t need to do that. She takes care of business. She’s a powerful force herself.”
Amelia Rogers 10/10/07
We tend to think that teens are selfish beings and can’t see past their own petty concerns. But it’s more to the point that they are trying to make sense of feelings and situations they haven’t encountered before. I would be interested to see interviews with teens who are dealing with life-threatening conditions, too.
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