Dear Paul,

My dear Aunt Rosemary chose to do nothing after finding out that she was suffering from a recurrence of her cancer. That was back at the end of July. The one thing I can tell you for sure is that her condition may change drastically from one day to the next at some point and for that reason, I strongly suggest that you take Brian's advice and contact a hospice service immediately. My Aunt was surviving pain-wise on Vicodin for a long time. She was visiting our Grandmother, was out in her tremendous football field of a yard with her dogs, and then one day, the pain became overwhelming, extreme nausea and gagging prevented her from holding anything down- even her liquid nutrition, and it has been downhill all the way since then. Please be prepared! Despite their faith, their inner strength and their will- things will definitely change with no treatment. She will need pain meds, she will need help to do everything and eventually she will need to be monitored. Contact Gary privately for an understanding of what is to be expected. He can give you a lot of resource reading material that will help you to understand her journey.

The hardest part for us is understanding, living with and respecting this choice. I will pray for your strength and your ability to continue to love her even though you may disagree with her. Believe me, sometimes it gets hard, really hard.

May God be with you, your Mom and your family.

Hugs,
Lisa