The past 2 weeks, I have been incredibly busy! Between public speaking, sports games and chemo treatments I haven't had time to do a blog update! My apologies! Last Tuesday, I was very honored to speak at Cobourg Collegiate Institute's Terry Fox Run Kick off assembly. Even though I practiced my speech many times, it was challenging to read in front of so many students. I have been to so many assemblies just like this in public school not knowing I'd be standing on the other side of the stage one day. Speaking at the assembly made me realize that I'm not alone and that the fact that I am a young adult makes me very similar to Terry Fox. I'll be 21 years old this November and Terry started the Marathon of Hope at the very same age. I could not imagine running across Canada. I was very honored to contribute to Terry Fox's Legacy and to be apart of this wonderful fundraiser, I have included a video from my speech below and I hope you all watch and enjoy! Speaking of fundraisers... I am very proud of my friends in St. John's who took part in the Light the Night Walk in St. John's on Saturday September 23rd. Together my friends raised $350, in their very first fundraiser together! The whole event brought in over $110, 000! I believe this was the very first walk in St. John's and I am incredibly proud of my friends and the community! Seeing pictures of the event makes me feel so blessed that I have friends that will take time out of their busy lives and show their support to help find a cure to this horrible disease. My friends and I are still so young and I think we still struggle to fathom why this happening to us. I say "us" because it doesn't just affect me, it affects everybody in my life. I am so proud of them for coming together, and hopefully this event showed them that we aren't alone and that so many other people have been affected and want to find a cure. Its amazing to see what just a small group of people can do! Hopefully one day, we can all walk together in this amazing event! This Friday, I am very excited to be heading to Quebec to be apart of a "On the Tip of the Toes" foundation expedition where myself and approximately 10 other young adults from the ages of 19-29 affected by cancer will go camping! I am very excited to finally have a trip for myself and get a chance to meet other people who have been through very similar situations. I think this will be such an amazing opportunity for me and I cant wait to share my experience with all of you when I get back! Last Thursday, I had chemo #7! I cant believe how time flies! At the start I was more afraid of the time therapy would take than the cancer itself itself. Its already the end of September and I cant believe in just a few short months I'll be done treatment and hopefully be back in school! In this past few months I have learnt so much about Cancer. I have learnt how cancer affects everyone, the science behind it and how it has changed my life. I would keep going on but PLEASE watch my video from the Terry Fox Speech and hopefully you will learn a lot too! Now that I am right in the middle of Chemotherapy, the side effects are worsening. My muscle pains start the night of my chemo and then last for the next few days. I've tried many pain killers and most don't seem to help and unfortunately I have to let Chemo take its course. I have just started to use essential oils and they seem to help ALOT! Some people may say its just in my head and that it doesn't actually work, but if I believe it works and I don't feel the pain anymore, that's all that really matters. Recently, I find I am a little nauseous the night of my chemo treatment. I've been very lucky to not have any up until this point. My skin is still very sensitive and have found that certain material and creams can irritate my skin even more. Now that I am just over halfway, I just have to think that this will be all over soon and that these side effects are just part of getting better. AGAIN... PLEASE watch my video and I have also shared with you pictures from the Light the Night Walk in St. Johns. I can't wait till next week when I can share with you my experience from the camping trip!
1 Comment
JEANETTE SIMKINS
9/30/2017 04:58:24 pm
Hi Katie. I have fibromyalgia and use essential oils for muscle spasms and pain. Try using Epsom salts and lavender oil in a hot bath. that helps me a lot. Eucalyptus and peppermint essential oil drops mixed in coconut oil and rubbed on sore muscles helps too. Great speech! Keep fighting, you are kicking cancers ass! xoxo
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Author: Katie BarkerJust an average Sailor who battled Cancer and won! Archives
August 2018
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