Mohawks and Henna: Ideas for treating cancer with fun

I’ve been wracking my brain trying to decide on an OT-related thing to write about today. It’s hard to think of things after being out of school a month. I thought briefly about writing about my experience watching pediatric burn care, or sharing a really bad poem I wrote about grief, or maybe digging up another story from fieldwork. But I’m not feeling inspired. So I’ll tell you something that does inspire me.

My mom was diagnosed with Stage IV breast cancer a few years ago. She decided to undergo chemotherapy and radiation, which is obviously not fun. But she did it with humor. When her hair started to fall out from the chemotherapy, she went and got a rainbow mohawk. She kept it in a day or two and then shaved it off. And then once she was completely bald, she got a henna artist to come to her house. The henna artist tatooed her scalp using Mom’s original designs, and then added glitter and gems. It was beautiful.

Luckily her treatment was successful. It’s now been several years and there is no sign of the cancer. I am so grateful to have her and I am so proud of how she handled her treatments! I think it would be great if more cancer patients could embrace the idea of having a little fun with their cancer journey.

When my mom is handed lemons in life, she doesn’t make lemonade, she makes lemonart! (I spent like ten minutes trying to think of a clever lemon pun, but totally never managed it. I’m giving up.) Hope you like the the pictures!!

Jul 02, 2007 | Category: Occupational Therapy | Comments: none