brain cancer

Premature Isolation of a Young Caregiver

Mama Jude and Me (20-something years ago) I turned 30 this past April, something I find myself embarrassingly admitting lately. It’s what I find most isolating about being a young caregiver ― the young part. It seems most everyone else I meet caring for a parent is about 20 years […]

My Amazing, Memorable Mama

Mama and Me My Mama is just adorable. She glows with an inner excitement for life, even amid debilitating cancer treatments. I realize I’m biased as her daughter, but in truth she’s always been “cool” (though very strict when I was a kid). She’s done so many things and lived […]

Mama’s Last Wish

The 3 of Us (taken just weeks before Mama’s diagnosis last year) A year ago, my sweet mama had brain surgery. It was one of the scariest days of my life, to come that near to losing my only close family and my lifelong best friend. I am still struggling […]

Natural Remedies Ease Cancer Symptoms

First, here’s my disclaimer: I’m no doctor and I am in no way professing to cure any cancer. I am a caregiver and a writer. My mama is battling brain cancer and we’ve found some natural remedies for the symptoms of her cancer and treatments. All of these items can […]

30 Days to 30

I’m turning 30 next month ― and though I’m not where I want to be, or doing what I thought I’d be doing by now ― I’m actually quite excited. I intend to relish the decade as it will certainly be my best to date, turning-30 advice echoed by (fellow […]

The Big Role Reversal

Mama and Me As a good Jewish daughter, I knew that one day I would care for my mom. But we didn’t expect that day to come for another 15 to 20 years (figuring by then I’d move her into an in-law unit with her own nurse wherever I lived […]

Rescue Dog Has Healing Powers

Happy Birthday Abby! Two years ago this New Year’s, I adopted a Boston Bull Terrier (perhaps some Pug?) dog from Wonder Dog Rescue in San Francisco. We met on a sunny afternoon in the Mission District. Her tongue perpetually hung out to the side and we simply took to each […]

An Unsteady Upwardish Path

Perhaps you’ve wondered what happened to me. I know some of my friends have. I’ve been busy surviving. I had a lot of plans. As did my mom. But in the first days of June, we got a shock. Doctors found a mass in her brain. First there was the […]

Far From OK

So you might be wondering what happened to me… why my blog has been on hold. The thing is… I don’t know what to say. And frankly, this doesn’t happen to me often. People keep asking (as the well-meaning tend to do in difficult times), ‘How’re you doing?’ But do […]