Tigerlily Foundation MY LIFE Blog: The Realities of Living with MBC

Kelli Parker became a Metastatic breast cancer patient at age 33.
She is a wife, mother, Walmart sr manager, and fierce and outspoken advocate for MBC.
She promotes for less pink, more research, and promotes awareness and conversation through her social media.
On March 30th, Kelli opened a conversation for her Metastatic network:
"What would you most like people to understand about the reality of living with metastatic breast cancer?"

Join the conversation: Visit Kelli Parker's Facebook and Twitter Page

Kelli Parker

March 30 at 11:30amBentonville, AR, United States

What would you most like people to understand about the reality of living with metastatic breast cancer?

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Denise Chynoweth what it truly means.

LikeReply8March 30 at 11:33am

Pamela Hacker i agreeeeee

LikeReply1March 30 at 11:34am

Patty Silvers New That we might not look sick but the side effects of our meds pile up and the fatigue and anxiety are real.

LikeReply39March 30 at 11:35am

Jersi Baker Very real

LikeReplyMarch 30 at 11:37am

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Erica Tubbs Baadzhi the sadness that whips up and wacks you in the face when you least expect it

LikeReply23March 30 at 11:35am

Leah Townsend What reality is for us...what our true quality of life is, what we have to go through, how we have to feel, what all gets taken from us JUST to be alive.

LikeReply19March 30 at 11:39am

Ruth Hirsch Josa that just because you are NED or clear scans does not mean that you are cured or beat it. All the side effects that we all have to endure just to try to keep things stable and by stable I do not mean cured.

LikeReply24March 30 at 11:39am

Nancy Shell That we wake up and go to bed with it everyday. No day is the same for us. One day we may be able to do things and the next we may not. That we want to make plans, and be able to actually carry those plans out but truth is we don't know if we will be able to do them. They should understand that we want to go out. We want to have fun and get together but when the time comes, we may not be up to it.

LikeReply27March 30 at 11:40am

Polly Barker Walker That it's not something we "beat" and even though we look well... That doesn't mean we feel well,

LikeReply21March 30 at 11:43am

Colleen Logan Hofmeister Most people are DUMBFOUNDED when I tell them 30% of all breast cancer diagnoses will become metastatic, that mammograms don't detect all breast cancer, and that a paltry percentage of all monies raised go into research for stopping metastases and findi...See More

LikeReply38March 30 at 11:45am

Connie Conrad-Baker I agree ^100% spot on... Couldn't have said it better!

LikeReplyMarch 30 at 12:27pm

Kim Schmidt Ramsthel True. That some days when they ask me how I am I just say fine even though I don't know how I am making it through the day because they really don't want to hear about my pain again. How can I be in pain I look fine. Or the best is when someone asks yo...See More

LikeReply2March 30 at 2:59pm

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Shannen M Chavez That regardless of anything else we are still dying from this .. It's inevitable unless we are in some freak accident and lose life instantly.. I just choose to stay as positive as possible which allows me to live my life on my terms

LikeReply13March 30 at 11:46am

Kim Schmidt Ramsthel While I do have an overall positive outlook or attitude I still have my moments where I am angry. I do my best to let it go because that's not how I want to live my life. I also don't want to be a negative nelly 24/7. Everyone has a balance. Mine just happens to lean more towards the positive side.

LikeReply1March 30 at 3:01pm

Shannen M Chavez That's great we all choose how we personally deal with our own situations, ups & downs and emotional status.. Nothing is right or wrong in our situations.. I choose positivity because I cannot change the cards dealt to me just my outlook on it..

LikeReplyMarch 30 at 3:12pm

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Sheila Rodriguez That there's no magical treatment; your special curry/turmeric/raw veggie enema isn't going to cure me! AND, I'm NOT failing or losing just because I can't be who you think I should be based on your reality TV viewing and 10-15 minutes of some special ...See More

LikeReply32March 30 at 11:47am

Angela Valverde-Meza Being a stage 4 breast cancer survivor means something different for us. We will never beat it. We don't always look sick. Stage 4 is a marathon where the finish line is death, unless we find a cure. For some, the race is longer and for others it is shorter. Never stop praying for us. Put your money toward a cure.

LikeReply29March 30 at 11:49am

Beth Angst-Beaver You never know what each new day will bring. Good day, terrible day, ehh day. And it never goes away. I am not a better person because of cancer. Just cause I look good on the outside..........My positive attitude isn't going to cure my cancer. Just ca...See More

LikeReply14March 30 at 11:50am

Linda Christine Ellis Time side affects of meds who can we trust in the medical profession to many questions unanswered I feel invisible around my hospital how to get my consultant to listen many thanks god bless dying from the outside in not with out a fight cancer 0 Linda will win with dignity until the fight is over 😇😇

LikeReply4March 30 at 11:58amEdited

Cheryl Harmon-Miller That it's not fake..

LikeReply4March 30 at 12:02pm

Kristy Senior Hart That I'm not going to get better! It's not something that is just going to go away! I want them to stop saying "you beat it once, you can beat it again"

LikeReply13March 30 at 12:04pm

JohnandAlissa Thomas That even though I look the same as I did at dx, I am not the same person, at all.

LikeReply8March 30 at 12:10pm

Michelle Heitmann That the 'other shoe' can drop at anytime without warning. I suddenly lost use of my legs this past Friday...been in the hospital ever since. But...this seems to be neurological only...from my Rads in 2012. They are still testing. My previous spine sur...See More

LikeReply10March 30 at 12:12pm