Riley was a healthy, active 8 year old boy. I noticed he was closing one eye during his nightly reading, so I asked him about it and he said he was seeing double. We took him to the optometrist that week and he was given eye exercises. About a month later, he was noticeably falling a lot during hockey, became hesitant to tackle in football and, unbeknownst to us (parents), was having headaches at school. When the headaches appeared in the mornings, they were short but intense. I decided to read up on them. What I got from my research was to take him to see a doctor if the headaches were accompanied by vomiting in the morning. This happened shortly after and that is where his cancer journey began.
In the span of a year, Riley had 30 proton therapy treatments followed by 9 rounds of chemo treatment. For the most part, his body handled the treatment okay. He was able to finish protocol. Riley did struggle with acceptance of the diagnosis, and had a hard time with needless/IVs. Before diagnosis, Riley did not ever get sick. Taking medication, needles and hospital stays were all new to him so it is no wonder why he found it difficult. Despite the nausea, tiredness, hair-loss and many other side-affects of treatment, he attended school when he was not hospitalized. It was encouraged and I am glad he had the support of the school and friends during that time.
I’ve needed to remind myself that life happened before his diagnosis. Just because we had a Christmas party before his diagnosis, doesn’t mean that if we have another Christmas party it will come back. I’ve also needed to remind myself that Riley needs to just be a kid and that I need to let him grow by letting him do things on his own. We have been very fortunate that Riley can still do most things he used to do.
Riley’s diagnosis was a shock to us all. We are now almost 2 years post treatment and looking back, we managed to stay close through it all. Cancer will always be a part of Riley’s history, but we are really trying to focus more on the here and now. Live for today because the worrying of tomorrow is not healthy nor is it helpful.
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