How do i tell my kids?

I was told a week ago I had  cancerous ulcer in my rectum (how glamourous!)  I have had an MRI/ Ct scan but am yet to find out what my treatment is/ what stage I am at and am struggling to get my head around it all - it just feels so surreal  I wake up in the morning feeling normal and then it hits - I am normally the daft one, always on the go, driving my kids mad and it just feels like it has taken being me away if that makes sense. I have not told kids - when I say kids they are 23, 18 and 16 and want to have more information about my treatment so I can answer any questions as I really do not want to drop this bombshell into their lives, I am dreading telling them - I lost my own mum to cancer when I was 19  and I am scared they will woryy that history will repeat itself if that makes sense, i also blame myself for it - is it because I have eaten wrong food/drunk wine/ not exercised enough/ just countless thoughts in my head - how do I tell them - how do I stay me??

  • Hi nnic,

    Welcome to Cancer Chat. I'm sorry to read about what you're going through at the moment, although I'm glad you found this forum.

    Firstly, you absolutely shouldn't blame yourself. Finding things out like this can be a shock to the system, and it throws normality out the window. No doubt you have and will experience a range of emotions, with some better days and some not so good days.

    It is cliched but taking things one step at a time usually does help, and keeping up with as much of your usual routines as possible. Once you find out more about next steps - information and treatment - hopefully this will help in terms of being clearer about what might happen next.

    As for telling your children, it's of course up to you when you do this but I'm sure they will appreciate you telling them and hopefully will understand and support you.

    Hopefully you have support elsewhere too, whether it is friends or family - it helps to speak to others and also to make sure you look after yourself. You'll find support here on this forum too - it's a very welcoming and understanding community of people, so do use it as much as is helpful.

    Wishing you all the best,

    Ben
    Cancer Chat Moderator