Confidently, Chronically Me

One of the biggest, most prominent things I had to deal with throughout and after my cancer treatment, were the reactions other people had to my situation. There was everything from insecurities about my appearance, which every teenager has, to concerns that other's might treat me badly because I was now disabled. In this episode, I'm taking you through some of the most common experiences I've had dealing with other people as pediatric cancer kid and as an amputee. We'll talk about how I and my family adjusted to the sight of my residual limb and prosthetic leg, how other people tended to react to my openness about my disability, as well as some of the less than pleasant situations I've found myself in as a young, disabled person.

Kids deserve a childhood that is happy, healthy, and safe. So why would kids with chronic medical conditions be any different? The problem: mental health is often not a priority when treating kids for long-term medical conditions. I should know; I was one of those kids. My name is Cheyenne Heflin: I was diagnosed with pediatric cancer at thirteen, and ended up getting an amputation to save my life. One thing I learned through treatment was that my biggest problems weren’t always the physical ones. Mental and social problems were the ones I had the hardest time with.

I’m going to show you what it means to be one-legged and resilient. Mental health issues, social problems, the whole deal. What it meant for me to try and figure these problems out on my own. But my story isn’t the only example of why psychology needs more emphasis. I’ll be talking about various medical conditions through the lens of pediatric psychology: a recent field all about studying and promoting development in the context of pediatric health. I’ll also be trying to bring on guests with various conditions, so they can talk about their unique experiences living as chronically ill kids. Together, we can show the world that kids’ mental health is a gateway to living happy, healthy, childhoods with a chronic illness.

One of the biggest, most prominent things I had to deal with throughout and after my cancer treatment, were the reactions other people had to my situation. There was everything from insecurities about my appearance, which every teenager has, to concerns that other's might treat me badly because I was now disabled. In this episode, I'm taking you through some of the most common experiences I've had dealing with other people as pediatric cancer kid and as an amputee. We'll talk about how I and my family adjusted to the sight of my residual limb and prosthetic leg, how other people tended to react to my openness about my disability, as well as some of the less than pleasant situations I've found myself in as a young, disabled person.

A full year of my life was spent calling a hospital "home", after I was diagnosed with osteosarcoma in 2012. “The Confiscated Leg” is my attempt at showing the world what can come after pediatric cancer, when so few people seem to think about it. But before we can talk about “after”, it’s important to discuss what lead me to this point.

In this episode, I’ll go over the signs and symptoms that eventually lead me to a cancer diagnosis, some of the general consequences of chemotherapy, why I ended up electing for an amputation, and how ending treatment was only the beginning of another journey to recovery.