First let me say that I hope you all have the best Thanksgiving yet! My family decided not to celebrate thanksgiving this year, which I’m a little bummed out about. This would’ve been the first Thanksgiving with them in 8 years which I was looking forward to! It did, however, make me realize that I […]

I was feeling pretty good about going in for my 11th chemo infusion, but chemo always finds a way to kick me back into reality and remind me just how serious these drugs are. My mom and I were determined to turn what normally is a pretty depressing day into a fun day. I talked […]

Today I’ll be going in for treatment number 11 and for the first time ever, I feel ok about going to chemo. I only have two treatments left and because the finish line finally feels like it’s in sight, I’m ready to power through them. The faster we can get chemo started today, the faster […]

A cancer diagnosis comes with a LOT of things to worry about. Will I be ok? How will it affect me? What about my job? Oh, and “Who will ever want to date me after this?” As I type that out, I realize how silly it probably sounds, but it was something that I actually […]

I wanted so badly to be able to title this post “Number 9, feeling fine!” News flash, Crystal! It’s chemo, of course I’m not going to be feeling fine lol. One of my doctors told me that my first treatment would likely be one of the worst because the chemo was wiping out all of […]

In case you missed it, last week I asked people to do something kind for a stranger on Facebook and Instagram. View this post on Instagram I have a favor to ask. My birthday is on Saturday and I would never normally ask for anything, but I'm making an exception this year. I'm asking for […]

I spent all morning trying to decide if I should post this or not. It’s always hard to post the “not happy” blog entries and I’m really not looking for sympathy, but I decided to write this because you’re all part of my journey now. Also, I truly hope this might help someone else who […]

Today is World Lymphoma Awareness Day. Exactly one year ago, this day meant nothing to me. Actually, I wouldn’t even be able to tell you what lymphoma was. It didn’t matter anyway, I was too young and healthy to get cancer.  I exercised regularly and ate good. Seriously, I was the weird person at work […]

It’s awkward, isn’t it? You find out someone you care about just got diagnosed with cancer. It’s terrifying and you want to be there for them but you don’t know what to do, say, or even how to act. As a cancer patient myself, I know we aren’t exactly the easiest people to deal with. […]

I was so happy to have both of my sisters with me for my 5th treatment. Amy, my older sister, drove me to the hospital and sat through all of my preliminary appointments. She had to leave shortly after I was sent to my chemo room. My younger sister, Melyssa, got there just before my […]

I want to start out by saying that I feel really, really good this week. Maybe it’s because my cancer is slowly withering away, maybe it’s because I know for a fact that my treatment is working, maybe it’s from my time away with family, or maybe it’s because I had a few extra days […]

It’s getting more and more difficult to talk myself into going through these treatments and this last one was the hardest so far. I started to feel bit a little queasy the night before chemo which has never happened before. I didn’t think much of it and blamed it on my dinner because I had […]

I know I’ve been slacking on the blog lately, I’m sorry!

Here it is… my never before seen scalp!

A lot of people have been asking me how my recent diagnosis will affect my military service. I’ve been really nervous about it too, to be honest.

I said I was going to be honest with everyone, so here it is- chemotherapy sucks.

Some of Crystal’s viewers asked that I write a post from a parent’s point of view. The following is what I wrote the night before her first chemo treatment and the day of. It is now two days later. Crystal is extremely tired and has lost her appetite, but is starting to feel a little […]