I'm asking this community because I always found that you all gave the most educated and helpful answers to a breadth of topics:
A close family member of mine was very recently diagnosed with stage 4 cancer (glioma) in the spinal cord and it doesn't look good. She is hospitalized and will go through chemotherapy and irradiation for the next four weeks. Outcome is very unclear to say the least.
I want to do everything I can to make the time as passable as possible.
Do you have any tips or advice how I can support her? Can you recommend any gadgets / things that are a good gift to pass time and get her distracted?
Would you happen to have any other any other advice?
Thank you all for your advice.
Time and attention. Ask them what they want/need. There can be a lot of up and down and the treatment can be really hard (there are lots of types of chemo) and for others it might not be too bad.
A lot depends on the person and the treatment course. They may want to talk about it, or not. Face death or not. Just going through the treatment is a huge ordeal though and they'll be tired so may not have much to say. I guess I'm trying to say that they could very well be so sick that they don't need anything to help pass the time. Or, if they are feeling well then, yeah, they may be bored.
She has most loved the following:
- jigsaw puzzles
- painting/drawing supplies
- cozy blankets
- handwritten cards from friends and family
- [lots of] quarters for the vending machines