Facing it together
When we receive a cancer diagnosis, we are not faced with a wall but with a void. The horizon becomes clouded. The things we have built collapse. Pleasures no longer have any meaning. Fear is undoubtedly the only logical response.
This situation is as true for the patient as it is for their loved ones. I experienced this myself when I was diagnosed with a brain tumor, and then when my mother was diagnosed with peritoneal mesothelioma a few years later.
Supporting my mother during this uncertain time was one of the most important experiences of my life. Being by her side to prepare for what promised to be a difficult operation. Being by her side to fight through the post-operative period in the hospital and after she was discharged. Being by her side so that we would not be consumed by the disease, talking about the good times we had had and those we hoped to have in the future.
In short, it was no longer a question of facing the void, but of facing the disease together.