Coffee with All4Cure - Wietske

My journey with multiple myeloma began July 17, 2003, when I received a call from my doctor saying, “There seems to be something wrong with your bloodwork.” My heart sank. Even though I had felt tired during the last school year, I was taking the summer to rest and get ready for my eager little first graders! This was going to be my 39th year of teaching children to read and each new year was so rewarding!

Giving up my career and entering a new journey I knew nothing about made me cry many tears! The more I found out about Multiple Myeloma, the more concerned I became. This was a cancer that was going to put me on a very difficult journey. Dear family and friends came to my side and helped me get through an autologous transplant which put me in the hospital for 9 days. I then entered a clinical trial with thalidomide. With each unknown step, I came to a remission for 10 years!

Now, what shall I do? I was content at home gardening, walking, knitting, and reading. I had traveled to Europe--Holland, my native country, Hawaii, Japan, and taught for four years in Taiwan. While I was there, I adopted a little girl. I felt I had the energy to do some volunteer work. After taking some classes, I counselled pregnant girls. When the opportunity came to teach first graders at a Hutterite colony, I couldn’t say, “No.”

In 2014, I had a bad pain in my thigh that was very debilitating. A disc fragment was pinching on a nerve before dissolving a year and a half later. I thought it was time to sell my lovely home of 20 years and move closer to my daughter in Western Washington. I moved into a little house in a gated community just minutes from my daughter and her husband in Orting. In 2016, my cancer returned. My oncologist, Dr. Sibel Blau, has medicated me back into remission. I think Revlimid helped me the most.

I feel so blessed to be closer to my daughter. I have lived almost 18 years with MM and I am still enjoying a quality of life much beyond my expectations. When I started treatment, I was very sick with pneumonia and given a 20% chance to live. The neuropathy in my feet is very annoying at times, but the many good days--YEARS--far outweigh the bad days on this challenging journey. Looking forward to the things I like to do helps me get through the hard times!