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    Living, Loving & Learning....Fighting Cancer with Vigor
    Living, Loving & Learning....Fighting Cancer with Vigor
    Living, Loving & Learning....Fighting Cancer with Vigor
    Ebook123 pages1 hour

    Living, Loving & Learning....Fighting Cancer with Vigor

    By Eric R. Nahm

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    About this ebook

    I have terminal cancer. Even with today’s advanced medical technology, my cancer is not curable. It will not go into remission. Its spread cannot be contained indefinitely. It is, in medical terms, a chronic condition. I will have to live with it for as long as possible until its progression leads to my death. There is no way to sugar-coat these facts. I have accepted my fate and have found a way to live my remaining days to the fullest – and with real joy. Hopefully I can provide a template for hope and encouragement, and a path that leads to a joyful and fulfilling life –every day – until the end. I am not suggesting it will be easy, but that it is possible. You will soon discover that your attitude is the only element remaining in your control. That awareness has made all the difference for me!

    In the words of my youngest daughter:
    "For the majority of his adult life, my dad always said, If I ever get cancer, I’m just going to blow my brains out. Based on his experience watching both his father and brother die of cancer before Dad turned 22, I don’t think that my mom, myself, or either of my sisters ever doubted him, but we all prayed life would never call his bluff. He has always been resilient, but it wasn’t until life pushed him down in ways he couldn’t control that he really learned how to be a fighter. This book will show you how Eric Nahm went from being a man so scared of cancer that he’d rather not even show up to the battle, to a man who leads his charge against this disease. Whether he wins the war or succumbs to his enemy is not ours to decide....but whatever the outcome, he’s fighting with vigor."

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherEric R. Nahm
    Release dateJan 1, 2015
    ISBN9781310736766
    Living, Loving & Learning....Fighting Cancer with Vigor
    Author

    Eric R. Nahm

    Eric is semi-retired after a lengthy business career in sales, marketing and executive management. He has worked for IBM, AT&T and Verbex Voice Systems. He is currently an owner in two companies, one in technology and the other in residential real estate.Proceeds from sales of this book are being donated to various cancer research organizations.

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      Book preview

      Living, Loving & Learning....Fighting Cancer with Vigor - Eric R. Nahm

      Living, Loving and Learning…

      Fighting Cancer with Vigor

      Eric R. Nahm

      Copyright © 2014 by Eric R. Nahm

      Smashwords Edition

      All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews. Please do not participate in or encourage the piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the author’s rights. Purchase only authorized editions.

      CONTENTS

      Introduction

      Foreword by Erica E. Kerr, M.A. Counseling

      Acknowledgements

      1. Life is what happens while you are making other plans

      2. The first few days

      3. The first few weeks

      4. Reality sets in

      5. Getting a second opinion

      6. What are your real priorities?

      7. Getting into a routine

      LOVING PERSPECTIVES

      Ruth Rhodes Nahm - A Wife’s View

      Erica E. Kerr – It’s All in Your Head

      Kristin Walsh – Being There When You’re Not

      Lindsay Vieira – Being There

      8. Dealing with family and friends

      9. Dealing with the death of family and friends

      10. Looking good and staying optimistic

      11. Handling the setbacks

      12. Having fun & living your dreams

      13. Remembering to be grateful

      14. This is not my fight alone

      15. Spiritual Awakening

      16. Letting go

      INTRODUCTION

      I have terminal cancer. Even with today’s advanced medical technology, my cancer is not curable. It will not go into remission. Its spread cannot be contained indefinitely. It is, in medical terms, a chronic condition. I will have to live with it for as long as possible until its progression leads to my death. There is no way to sugar-coat these facts. I have accepted my fate and have found a way to live my remaining days to the fullest – and with real joy.

      My goal in sharing my story is to help others with life-threatening diagnoses, and their families, learn how to cope with this news without getting stuck in despair or fear. Hopefully I can provide a template for hope and encouragement, and a path that leads to a joyful and fulfilling life –every day – until the end. I am not suggesting it will be easy, but that it is possible. You will soon discover that your attitude is the only element remaining in your control. That awareness has made all the difference for me!

      FOREWORD

      Erica E. Kerr, M.A. Counseling

      "According to the American Cancer Society, around 300,000 individuals are diagnosed with breast cancer annually in the United States. In 2012, the amount of money that went to breast cancer research was $602,000,000. That’s roughly $2000 allocated per new patient.

      According to the American Cancer Society, around 3,000 individuals are diagnosed with Cholangiocarcinoma Annually in the United States (haven’t heard of it, have you?). In 2012, the amount of money that went to Cholangiocarcinoma research was $3,100,000. That’s roughly $1000 allocated per new patient.

      So why does this matter? Rare cancers are just that…rare. If you are lucky, they never affect you, but if you are one of the thousands diagnosed annually or their family members, you face a challenge from day one. There are not countless options for treatment. There are generally fewer than can be counted on one hand. Why should research on rare cancers receive such lower funding?

      Funding for breast cancer over the past decades has dramatically increased survival rates so that for many, it is no longer a death sentence. Patients with rare cancers are usually not that lucky.

      My father is one of these people. His options are limited. He fights every single day to see his grandchildren grow up. He fights every single day for one more day with his wife and children. Help him fight!

      This is my plea….instead of putting your dollars towards Breast Cancer Awareness this October, put it toward Cholangiocarcinoma research. Or put it toward some other rare disease that needs every single dollar it gets.

      This is the face of rare cancer. This is my dad."

      I wrote that as a post on my Facebook page on October 1, 2014. I feel beyond blessed to have been able to write that small blurb about my father’s fight with Stage IV Cholangiocarcinoma, a cancer of the bile duct that is nearly always fatal. Blessed? Yes, blessed.

      My father’s life has been affected by cancer far more than anyone’s should be. As a teenager, he watched his father, suffer through and eventually die from leukemia and melanoma. My dad wasn’t even 18 when he lost Dr. Eric H. Nahm who was not just my father’s father, he was my father’s hero, his mentor, his friend, and he was gone. Then just as life was beginning to feel normal again a few years later, my dad was handed another blow. Kent: his baby brother, the best man in his wedding, and his only sibling, finally lost his battle with Glioblastoma, an aggressive form of brain cancer.

      My grandmother was not one to talk about death or dying or illness. Cancer was a bad word in her household and my father was forbidden to speak to his dying brother about the fact that he was dying. After his loved ones died, they were gone. There was little to no reminiscing or lovingly sharing memories, it was just too painful for her. And it was just too painful for my father.

      It’s no wonder that for the majority of his adult life, my dad always said, If I ever get cancer, I’m just going to blow my brains out. I don’t think that my mom, myself, or either of my sisters ever doubted him, but we all prayed life would never call his bluff.

      Luckily (I can say this now), my father was the victim of a freak accident in his early 50’s in which he tore the ACL in both his legs. This required him to undergo surgery, immobility, rehabilitation, and taught him how to fight with his family on his side, not just fight against his circumstances. Together, as a family, we got him back to health from that accident. I had tears in my eyes when I saw him learn how to walk and take his first steps after the accident. I spent hours walking up and down the beaches of the Jersey shore with him trying to strengthen his legs and rebuild lost muscle. But we didn’t just walk and we didn’t just build his muscles…we grew closer on those walks. We talked and laughed and let the memories make themselves.

      My father has always been resilient, but it wasn’t until life pushed him down in ways he couldn’t control that he really learned how to be a fighter. This book will show you how Eric Nahm went from being a man so scared of cancer that he’d rather not even show up to the battle, to a man who leads his charge against this disease. Whether he wins the war or succumbs to his enemy is not ours to decide….but whatever the outcome, he’s fighting with vigor.

      ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

      Everything good in my life I owe to Ruth. She has brought love, encouragement and support to my life and to the lives of our three daughters. This is the basis, I believe, for my ability to deal with cancer.

      Our girls, Kristin Walsh, Lindsay Vieira and Erica Kerr are inspiring young women, and I am blessed to have a special relationship with each of them. Their love, support and encouragement have helped me tremendously. I speak with them frequently, even if only for a few minutes.

      I run two companies, and my partners have each gone to extraordinary lengths to be supportive and pick up my responsibilities during the periods when I could not work, sometimes months at a time. This eliminated so much mental stress about my professional responsibilities so I could focus solely on my treatment and recovery. Thank you Ahmed, Gary, Bill, Michelle, Julie and Tiffany. Love you all.

      Once I had completed the first draft of this book I realized it would require the work of a professional editor. After months of trying, I finally found Judi Logan Welch, through Pastor Anne. She has authored and published many children’s books and articles. I know her work to turn my draft into a readable story was very personal to her.

      I would be remiss not to mention my two dogs as key members of my support team. Maggie and Kelly, both rescued from shelters as puppies, provide the unconditional love that makes them Man’s best friend. They seem to know I am ill and are always by my side when I’m home.

      CHAPTER ONE

      LIFE IS WHAT HAPPENS WHILE YOU ARE MAKING OTHER PLANS

      SEPTEMBER 2012

      My wife Ruth and I have enjoyed the beach since we were kids. Married 41 years, we often took family vacations to shore destinations, always looking at the beach-front homes and fanaticizing someday… Through the years it seemed unlikely that such a big

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