When "How can I help?" does more harm than good
“Hey, I just heard the news and I’m so sorry. Is there anything I can do to help?” This was one of dozens of similar messages that flooded my phone around the time of my diagnosis. However well intentioned, this question is often counterproductive. For starters, it has the unintended consequence of shifting the burden of responsibility onto the patient. With so many people asking, “How can I help?” I...
Why "gives"
In short, resilience gives is not a project that has a completion date, but instead, we are an organization rooted in our mission to inspire resilience in patients nationwide and hell-bent on using our experience to change the experience of others.
Gratitude: A Gift from Anthony
It’s late Monday morning and suddenly the well-organized color-coded Google Calendar becomes meaningless. Anthony Jonathan Angel, a seven-year-old with a brain tumor and one of our newest patients, is on a respirator and isn’t doing well.
More than Cancer. More than Socks.
Although Resilience Project took shape after my rebellion against standard issue hospital socks, it stemmed from something larger, something much closer to my heart than a pair of socks.
Supporting a Loved One During Cancer: a Patient’s Perspective
Imagine getting a call from your brother and hearing a quivering voice on the other end struggling through tears to tell you his cancer is continuing to grow despite the chemotherapy.
Tomorrow is a Big Day
Tomorrow I’ll have my first PET scan since December of 2015, when, for the first time since starting treatment, my scan revealed a substantial decrease in mass and activity of the lymphoma clusters. It was awesome news and my family wanted to celebrate. I didn’t.