Chemotional Rollercoaster

Ep42: Season Two Wrap UP

Fri, 14 Nov 2025 07:11:10 GMT

It’s nearly Aussie summer. Which means it’s time for cricket, beaches, and sensible sun protection. It also means we need a break.

In this episode, we look back at what was season 2, and the giant year that was 2025…finishing treatment, getting results, and learning to live a new normal on the other side of cancer.

Don’t worry, we’ll be back in season 3, in early 2026. We have some great guests lined up that we’re looking forward to showing off.

We would love to hear from you if this episode resonated with you, if you have questions, if there’s things you want to hear about, or if you just want to let us know you’re listening. You can email us at hello@chemotionalrollercoaster.com

You can also follow us on Instagram.

New episodes of Chemotional Rollercoaster are published weekly, on Thursdays, Australian Eastern Time.

Chemotional Rollercoaster is not a substitute for seeking one’s own professional advice. The strategies and skills discussed in all Chemotional Rollercoaster episodes are either what has worked for Glynn or his guests, specifically, or are things discussed in a general way. Anyone who is dealing with their own health issues, mental or physical, should seek their own professional advice on what may help to support them, uniquely. Often, the best place to start is your family doctor or GP. If anyone is struggling, and needs to talk immediately, please call Lifeline on 13 11 14.

Thanks go out to Rory Chambers, as always, for his music featured in this episode (info@rorychambers.com).

Chemotional Rollercoaster is presented by Glynn Chambers

Production, sound and editing by Rose Paton

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ep41: Weapon of Ass Destruction (Part 2)

Thu, 23 Oct 2025 08:52:33 GMT

Today is the second installment in the story of cancer legend, Julia Henderson - the woman who named her cancer.

In part two, Julia continues with her honest look at herself. She talks more about her perfectionism, her struggles with self-compassion, and honestly questions if she deserves people’s sympathy. She’s also super open about her treatment process and shares all the intimate details of how radiotherapy can look for women when the target area is downstairs.

Like we said last week…we love Julia. We are sure you all will too.

You can read her blog, Weapon of Ass Destruction, on Substack here: https://substack.com/@weaponofassdestruction?utm_campaign=profile&utm_medium=profile-page

We would love to hear from you if this episode resonated with you, if you have questions, or if you just want to let us know you’re listening. You can email us at hello@chemotionalrollercoaster.com

You can also follow us on Instagram.

New episodes of Chemotional Rollercoaster are published weekly, on Thursdays, Australian Eastern Time.

Thanks go out to Rory Chambers, as always, for his music featured in this episode (info@rorychambers.com).

Chemotional Rollercoaster is presented by Glynn Chambers

Production, sound and editing by Rose Paton

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ep40: Weapon of Ass Destruction (Part 1)

Thu, 16 Oct 2025 04:57:20 GMT

Ever named a tumor? Today’s guest did! Julia Henderson, an honest and humorous cancer legend, joins us for part 1 of her story of rectal cancer.

Julia doesn’t hold back. She tells it like it is. She talks about Mum guilt for being sick, conflicting medical opinions and having to choose for herself the path forward, and perfectionism in her world - how to optimise her life to give her herself the best chance of staying in remission vs being self-critical for stepping outside of the lines of what is considered “healthy”.

We love Julia. Glynn and Rose both want to be friends with her. Take a listen, and you probably will too.

You can read her blog on Substack here: https://substack.com/@weaponofassdestruction?utm_campaign=profile&utm_medium=profile-page

We would love to hear from you if this episode resonated with you, if you have questions, or if you just want to let us know you’re listening. You can email us at hello@chemotionalrollercoaster.com

You can also follow us on Instagram.

New episodes of Chemotional Rollercoaster are published weekly, on Thursdays(ish), Australian Eastern Time.

Chemotional Rollercoaster is not a substitute for seeking your own professional advice. The strategies and skills discussed in all Chemotional Rollercoaster episodes are either what has worked for Glynn or his guests, specifically, or are things discussed in a general way. Anyone who is dealing with their own health issues, mental or physical, should seek their own professional advice on what may help to support them, uniquely. Often, the best place to start is your family doctor or GP. If anyone is struggling, and needs to talk immediately, please call Lifeline on 13 11 14.

Thanks go out to Rory Chambers, as always, for his music featured in this episode (info@rorychambers.com).

Chemotional Rollercoaster is presented by Glynn Chambers

Production, sound and editing by Rose Paton

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ep39: Into the Deep

Thu, 02 Oct 2025 02:17:38 GMT

In this episode, Glynn opens up about his latest visit to the oncologist—those nerve-wracking check-ups that stir up big emotions and “what ifs” about cancer coming back. He gets real about the rollercoaster of living with uncertainty, and we dive into what “deep remission” really means. Along the way, Glynn shares how he tackles fear and anxiety without letting them run the show, and why embracing joy, presence, and even the messy feelings is key to living fully.

This episode is a brief one, as Glynn and Rose are both up to their eyeballs in school holiday fun with their kids.

We would love to hear from you if this episode resonated with you, if you have questions, or if you just want to let us know you’re listening. You can email us at hello@chemotionalrollercoaster.com

You can also follow us on Instagram.

New episodes of Chemotional Rollercoaster are published weekly, on Thursdays, Australian Eastern Time.

Thanks go out to Rory Chambers, as always, for his music featured in this episode (info@rorychambers.com).

Chemotional Rollercoaster is presented by Glynn Chambers

Production, sound and editing by Rose Paton

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ep38: Fertility, Hair, Cancer. Part 2

Thu, 25 Sep 2025 08:13:49 GMT

This episode is part two of our discussion with Emily Grant; a story about how far into your life cancer can reach. Emily is honest about a whole bunch of things including the impacts of losing her hair, and why trying to keep it was so important to her; facing life without children due to her fertility challenges, and feeling as though she has lost some rhythm in her life post-treatment. Once again, Emily, thanks for being open and willing to share, in the hope of making the ride smoother for the next person.

Emily refers in this episode to a few products that she found helpful:

Her secret serum to grow back some killer eye lashes. We can’t endorse it, but Emily sure does.

-teaspoon castor oil

-teaspoon almond oil

-5 drops of vitamin E

Vegan eye liner, shadow and brow pigment that helped paint back those lost brows.

https://kvdveganbeauty.com/products/super-pomade-vegan-eyeliner-shadow-brow-pigment?srsltid=AfmBOoqYqjpV5hbE1NQu2vw6NjLJG-YdOHu-gjpGzNgXMoX_5UpV3Hnt

Glynn also tells us about the great cancer and psychology podcast he is listening to, by Dr Charlotte Tottman, called Upfront About Breast Cancer, which can be found here:

https://podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/upfront-about-breast-cancer-what-you-dont-know-until/id1595689416

We would love to hear from you if this episode resonated with you, if you have questions, or if you just want to let us know you’re listening. You can email us at hello@chemotionalrollercoaster.com

You can also follow us on Instagram.

New episodes of Chemotional Rollercoaster are published weekly, on Thursdays, Australian Eastern Time.

Thanks go out to Rory Chambers, as always, for his music featured in this episode (info@rorychambers.com).

Chemotional Rollercoaster is presented by Glynn Chambers

Production, sound and editing by Rose Paton

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ep37: Fertility, Hair, Cancer. Part 1

Thu, 18 Sep 2025 09:31:27 GMT

Picture this: one minute you are overseas, 35 years old, having a good time. Next minute you are home, tackling breast cancer, hair falling out in clumps, and making fertility decisions.

Today’s episode is part 1 in a two part series with Emily Grant. This is a story that truly highlights just how far and wide into one’s life cancer reaches, long after treatment is finished.

Emily very generously shares her story and talks us through all manner of things: cooling caps to preserve her hair, IVF attempts, medically induced menopause (who knew that was part of this cancer deal?!?) and a post-treatment rut that lasts well after the medicine has stopped.

Emily, you’re a unit. Thanks for your bravery and honesty in sharing your journey with us.

We would love to hear from you if this episode resonated with you, if you have questions, or if you just want to let us know you’re listening. You can email us at hello@chemotionalrollercoaster.com

You can also follow us on Instagram.

New episodes of Chemotional Rollercoaster are published weekly, on Thursdays, Australian Eastern Time.

Thanks go out to Rory Chambers, as always, for his music featured in this episode (info@rorychambers.com).

Chemotional Rollercoaster is presented by Glynn Chambers

Production, sound and editing by Rose Paton

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ep36: Mid season break

Thu, 11 Sep 2025 01:06:59 GMT

We'll be back soon!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ep35: Survivor Guilt

Thu, 04 Sep 2025 08:21:24 GMT

You come through cancer treatment with your life intact, and then you feel guilt?! What an odd phenomenon.

This guilt can be hard, uncomfortable, strange…and it makes some sense sometimes if we really mull it over. Maybe, it is designed to occur inside us for the good of humanity.

In this episode, Glynn takes a look inside at his own survivor guilt. Is it there? Is it dressed up as another feeling altogether? Is it perhaps responsible for this whole podcast even existing?

We explore some excellent mailbag correspondence in this episode, and we would love to hear from anyone if this episode resonated with you, if you have questions, or if you just want to let us know you’re listening. You can email us at hello@chemotionalrollercoaster.com

You can also follow us on Instagram.

New episodes of Chemotional Rollercoaster are published weekly, on Thursdays, Australian Eastern Time.

Lastly, Chemotional Rollercoaster is not a substitute for seeking one’s own professional advice. The strategies and skills discussed in all Chemotional Rollercoaster episodes are either what has worked for Glynn or his guests, specifically, or are things discussed in a general way. Anyone who is dealing with their own health issues, mental or physical, should seek their own professional advice on what may help to support them, uniquely. Often, the best place to start is your family doctor or GP. If anyone is struggling, and needs to talk immediately, please call Lifeline on 13 11 14.

Thanks go out to Rory Chambers, as always, for his music featured in this episode (info@rorychambers.com).

Chemotional Rollercoaster is presented by Glynn Chambers

Production, sound and editing by Rose Paton

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ep34: Compassion Focused Therapy (CFT)

Thu, 28 Aug 2025 01:00:30 GMT

“Remember, be kind to yourself!” We’ve heard this a zillion times but what does this look like? How do we actually do it?

Today we are diving into the world of Compassion Focused Therapy (CFT) with expert and Clinical Psychologist, Stan Steindl. Stan gives us the whistle-stop tour through CFT, showing us how human it is for life to have difficult bits in it, and how tricky our brains can be. Stan talks about how treating ourselves with more compassion can be a tool to limit our suffering, which would be mighty helpful for those tackling cancer as well as for those running alongside them.

For those wanting to do a deeper dive into CFT, click these links to access Stan’s YouTube channel and Podcast called, Compassion in a T-Shirt, where he talks to all manner of interesting people about all things Compassion.

Stan is also an author, with his book, The Gifts of Compassion, which can be found at the link below:

https://www.amazon.com/Gifts-Compassion-understand-overcome-suffering/dp/1925644480

In this episode, Stan talks about the Compassionate Mind Foundation. This can be found at the link below:

https://www.compassionatemind.co.uk/

We would love to hear from you if this episode resonated with you, if you have questions, or if you just want to let us know you’re listening. You can email us at hello@chemotionalrollercoaster.com

You can also follow us on Instagram

New episodes of Chemotional Rollercoaster are published weekly, on Thursdays, Australian Eastern Time.

Thanks go out to Rory Chambers, as always, for his music featured in this episode (info@rorychambers.com).

Chemotional Rollercoaster is presented by Glynn Chambers

Production, sound and editing by Rose Paton

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ep33: Lisa Chesters MP - Cancer in Parliament

Thu, 21 Aug 2025 02:15:16 GMT

Imagine trying to help run the country and you get slapped with cancer. Lisa Chesters, elected as the federal member for Bendigo five times running, has faced this very scenario.

Lisa was very generous with her time in sharing her experience of having melanoma in her eye—a very rare form of the disease. This conversation offers insight into how she coped mentally and what she wishes she had done differently at the time. Lisa also reflects on federal politics: her gratitude for the Australian healthcare system, thoughts on how it could be improved, the realities of taking leave as a sitting politician, and the ways parliament has become more compassionate toward members facing personal health challenges. She also discusses a major life decision that cancer prompted her to make.

We are grateful to Lisa for sitting down to chat. We wish her well as she seeks to help Australia become a place that is fair for all, with quality healthcare accessible for everyone.

We would love to hear from you if this episode resonated with you, if you have questions, or if you just want to let us know you’re listening. You can email us at hello@chemotionalrollercoaster.com

New episodes of Chemotional Rollercoaster are published weekly, on Thursdays, Australian Eastern Time.

Thanks go out to Rory Chambers, as always, for his music featured in this episode (info@rorychambers.com).

Chemotional Rollercoaster is presented by Glynn Chambers

Production, sound and editing by Rose Paton

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ep32: High Five a Cancer Nurse

Thu, 14 Aug 2025 10:15:58 GMT

Nobody wants to be in the kids cancer ward. Yet, there are superstar nurses who choose to work there. Today we chat to one of those superstars, Michelle Edwards, who lifts the lid on what it’s like.

The role is so much bigger than it seems on the surface and Michelle gives us the ins and outs of it - how it looks (spoiler - they have a McDonalds!), why she does it, and why she can’t leave. Michelle also highlights how much cancer happens to families, not just individuals, and helps us appreciate the unique issues families face in this scenario. She passes on some things she sees families do as they cope in this tricky world of kids cancer.

We are grateful to Michelle, and all who work alongside her, for the work in caring for Australia’s kids. We dare you to high five a cancer nurse near you.

We would love to hear from you if this episode resonated with you, if you have questions, or if you just want to let us know you’re listening. You can email us at hello@chemotionalrollercoaster.com

You can also follow us on Instagram

New episodes of Chemotional Rollercoaster are published weekly, on Thursdays, Australian Eastern Time.

Thanks go out to Rory Chambers, as always, for his music featured in this episode (info@rorychambers.com).

Chemotional Rollercoaster is presented by Glynn Chambers

Production, sound and editing by Rose Paton

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ep31: Cancer Muscles

Thu, 07 Aug 2025 06:50:27 GMT

Cancer in your 30s really sucks. Having it come back again sucks even more. Today we chat to Phil Mellen, the bloke who nearly cancelled his colonoscopy. Lucky he didn’t.

Phil is a mega reflective, rational and pragmatic guy who still talks about his emotions. Glynn loves blokes like that! Phil has a great perspective on life, built over years of experiences, yet forged even further by cancer. He chats with us about the concepts of what is fair in life, the role of spirituality for him, what actually happens in the psychologist’s office, and how he learned he can cope with more than he thought he could at the start of the journey.

We use the term cancer legend a lot on this podcast. Phil definitely embodies this term - a bloke who has grown from the experience and is keen to pass on the wisdom to others. Phil, you’re a gun.

We would love to hear from you if this episode resonated with you, if you have questions, or if you just want to let us know you’re listening. You can email us at hello@chemotionalrollercoaster.com

You can also follow us on Instagram

New episodes of Chemotional Rollercoaster are published weekly, on Thursdays, Australian Eastern Time.

Thanks go out to Rory Chambers, as always, for his music featured in this episode (info@rorychambers.com).

Chemotional Rollercoaster is presented by Glynn Chambers

Production, sound and editing by Rose Paton

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ep30: No blank slates around here

Fri, 01 Aug 2025 08:54:46 GMT

“One issue at a time please!” If only this was possible in life. Here’s the rub: all people, everywhere, have issues they are managing…and then some people get cancer on top.

Nobody enters the cancer journey as a blank slate. We all bring our past, our traumas, our relationships, our mental health levels, our skills (or lack there of), our financial situations, our cancer knowledge or naivety...etc. This stuff has an influence on us as we step through the cancer journey and it’s worth taking stock of these factors and planning for them as soon as we can.

In this episode, Glynn gives us a bit of a cheat sheet on what some of these factors may be. He opens up about what some of his were. There are more factors than we list in this episode, no doubt. But thinking through all the issues to be considered is a good place to start. After that, ask your friendly hospital social worker for help in navigating some of these issues, to hopefully minimise suffering and hardship along the journey.

We would love to hear from you if this episode resonated with you, if you have questions, or if you just want to let us know you’re listening. You can email us at hello@chemotionalrollercoaster.com

You can also follow us on Instagram

New episodes of Chemotional Rollercoaster are published weekly, on Thursdays, Australian Eastern Time.

Thanks go out to Rory Chambers, as always, for his music featured in this episode (info@rorychambers.com).

Chemotional Rollercoaster is presented by Glynn Chambers

Production, sound and editing by Rose Paton

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ep 29: Cancer, COVID & couldn't get home

Thu, 24 Jul 2025 04:50:21 GMT

We were all scared in COVID times. Fair enough. Well, now imagine living overseas in that time, with little kids, adding a cancer diagnosis on top, with a border to your home country and family support slammed shut.

Today’s story is brought to us by Steph, a cancer legend, who lived this very reality. What we loved about Steph was her willingness to talk beyond cancer and share with us other parts of her life; what challenges she brought to cancer, and what she feared was coming after it. Cryptic statement, I know, but we don’t want to give the story away.

Like Glynn says in this episode, he sat next to Steph many times not knowing what journey she had been on. A good lesson for us all to keep in mind in our lives.

We would love to hear from you if this episode resonated with you, if you have questions, or if you just want to let us know you’re listening. You can email us at hello@chemotionalrollercoaster.com

You can also follow us on Instagram

New episodes of Chemotional Rollercoaster are published weekly, on Thursdays, morning-ish Australian Eastern Time.

Thanks go out to Rory Chambers, as always, for his music featured in this episode (info@rorychambers.com).

Chemotional Rollercoaster is presented by Glynn Chambers

Production, sound and editing by Rose Paton

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ep28: How to face treatment - Part 2 ACT

Wed, 16 Jul 2025 01:21:14 GMT

Make room in life for uncomfortable thoughts and feelings?! Has Glynn lost his mind?!

Cancer treatment brings with it all sorts of challenging thoughts, feelings, urges and body sensation…and he reckons you can just let them be?

This is part two of a mini-series looking at the different mental approaches to treatment that we might take…and what Glynn did at different times to get through. On the docket this episode is Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT). From this approach, we learn to dance with thoughts and feelings differently; mostly by making room for them, so we can get on with chasing our values-driven life. Extra suffering can be created, sometimes, when we don’t do this.

In this episode, Glynn shares with us the ACT concepts, as well as some of the times he used this approach to be who he wanted to be in some really hard times in his own treatment journey.

Again, this isn’t about pretending treatment is easy or fun if you just follow some simple steps. This is about stepping into behaviours that help us be who we want to be in the midst of hard times.

In this episode we refer to some great books that discuss ACT, which can be found at the links below.

The Happiness Trap by Dr. Russ Harris - https://amzn.asia/d/41KODhw

Unstuck: A guide to finding your way forward to the life you want to live - Dr. Emily Musgrove - https://amzn.asia/d/g08b5Ew

We would love to hear from you if this episode resonated with you, if you have questions, or if you just want to let us know you’re listening. You can email us at hello@chemotionalrollercoaster.com

You can also follow us on Instagram

New episodes of Chemotional Rollercoaster are published weekly, on Wednesdays, Australian Eastern Time.

Thanks go out to Rory Chambers, as always, for his music featured in this episode (info@rorychambers.com).

Chemotional Rollercoaster is presented by Glynn Chambers

Production, sound and editing by Rose Paton

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ep27: How to face treatment - Part 1 CBT

Wed, 09 Jul 2025 03:11:19 GMT

Last week on the show, Tannis McDonald — two-time cancer legend — shared a powerful piece of advice: try to embrace chemo, radiation, and other treatments not as something awful, but as something life-saving.

Glynn had a similar experience with radiation. At first, he hated the mask that bolted him to the treatment table. But then he reframed it — the mask wasn’t the enemy. It was part of his team, helping him fight cancer.

This isn’t about pretending treatment is easy or fun. We’re not here to push toxic positivity. But the way we think about tough experiences can make a huge difference. So, this episode is the first in a two-part series on facing treatment — and how strategies from cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) can help you show up, cope, and get through it.

Glynn mentions the Centre for Clinical Interventions

And also, the best TGIF video ever

We would love to hear from you if this episode resonated with you, if you have questions, or if you just want to let us know you’re listening. You can email us at hello@chemotionalrollercoaster.com

You can also follow us on Instagram

New episodes of Chemotional Rollercoaster are published weekly, on Wednesdays, Australian Eastern Time.

Thanks go out to Rory Chambers, as always, for his music featured in this episode (info@rorychambers.com).

Chemotional Rollercoaster is presented by Glynn Chambers

Production, sound and editing by Rose Paton

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ep26: Medicinal Donuts & Hot Doctors - surviving cancer in the 80s

Wed, 02 Jul 2025 01:13:28 GMT

Some people dance in the rain, others eat donuts on the way to cancer treatment. Is it possible for cancer treatment to make you feel like a better version of you? Probably not for all of us, but for today’s guest, Tannis McDonald, this was certainly the case.

Tannis is a long-time cancer legend, who stared down cancer as a teenager. This is a remarkable story of parental choices, teenage coping, new treatments in the 80s, and learning to find the joy and positivity amongst the hard moments. Tannis shares how comfortable she has become in the cancer world, how she embraced her treatment, and sought to step into a different, perhaps even more joyous, mode of herself.

We would love to hear from you if this episode resonated with you, if you have questions, or if you just want to let us know you’re listening. You can email us at hello@chemotionalrollercoaster.com

You can also follow us on Instagram

New episodes of Chemotional Rollercoaster are published weekly, on Wednesdays, Australian Eastern Time.

Thanks go out to Rory Chambers, as always, for his music featured in this episode (info@rorychambers.com).

Chemotional Rollercoaster is presented by Glynn Chambers

Production, sound and editing by Rose Paton

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ep 25: It should be me, not him

Wed, 25 Jun 2025 00:10:29 GMT

What’s it like when your adult son gets cancer? When the natural order of things is off. When it feels like it should be you, and not them.

In this episode we hear from Maz, Glynn’s mum. She shares with us about her feelings along the way - what does it feel like to have your kid cop cancer and not you? She opens up the playbook on how she approached Glynn’s journey. She talks about how she saw her role in it all, what she did, what she did not do, and how she thought it all through. There’s some good practical wisdom in this episode, and definitely one to share with other parents going through something similar, or with other cancer legends whose parents are still alive.

In this episode we make reference to one of Glynn’s favorite videos on the internet…The Magic Coffee Table.

https://youtu.be/-_kXIGvB1uU?si=lWuiADGyrim5vckv

Maz recites the Albert Camus poem, ‘In the midst of winter, I found there was, within me, an invincible summer,’ which is an extract from his essay Return to Tipasa https://www.goodreads.com/en/book/show/34876155-return-to-tipasa

We would love to hear from you if this episode resonated with you, if you have questions, or if you just want to let us know you’re listening. You can email us at hello@chemotionalrollercoaster.com

You can also follow us on Instagram

New episodes of Chemotional Rollercoaster are published weekly, on Wednesdays, Australian Eastern Time.

Thanks go out to Rory Chambers, as always, for his music featured in this episode (info@rorychambers.com).

Chemotional Rollercoaster is presented by Glynn Chambers

Production, sound and editing by Rose Paton

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ep 24: How to make BIG decisions after cancer

Wed, 18 Jun 2025 06:45:46 GMT

Treatment is done…and life resumes. Big decisions all made for now? WRONG! Well, wrong for Glynn, anyway.

Where does cancer fit in the picture once treatment is all said and done? Do you factor it into life moving forward, or do you kick it in the rear, try to forget about it and go about life as before?

Glynn gives us his take on how he tackles this in his own life. He shares with us the things he is thinking through now he’s sitting in remission; the extra considerations he has now. It’s fair to say, cancer is still playing a role and weaving its tentacles into the future.

We would love to hear from you if this episode resonated with you, if you have questions, or if you just want to let us know you’re listening. You can email us at hello@chemotionalrollercoaster.com

You can also follow us on Instagram

New episodes of Chemotional Rollercoaster are published weekly, on Wednesdays, Australian Eastern Time.

Thanks go out to Rory Chambers, as always, for his music featured in this episode (info@rorychambers.com).

Chemotional Rollercoaster is presented by Glynn Chambers

Production, sound and editing by Rose Paton

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ep23: Kez Pell - Dad's fine... apart from his health.

Wed, 11 Jun 2025 06:13:25 GMT

What’s it like to be in your mid-twenties and have your Dad get cancer? Well, obviously, it sucks. But, what is it actually like? In this episode we hear from Kez Pell, a long time friend of Glynn’s, as she shares her journey of walking alongside her Dad through cancer treatment until his eventual death.

This is an honest chat about treatment changing mental health, creating unpredictability, and wearing down the carers. It’s also a chat about an absolute legend of man, Kez’s Dad, Rod Pell. She passes on some of his hard fought lessons from his cancer journey, and we are all better off for hearing them.

We would love to hear from you if this episode resonated with you, if you have questions, or if you just want to let us know you’re listening. You can email us at hello@chemotionalrollercoaster.com

You can also follow us on Instagram.

New episodes of Chemotional Rollercoaster are published weekly, on Wednesdays, Australian Eastern Time.

Thanks go out to Rory Chambers, as always, for his music featured in this episode (info@rorychambers.com).

Chemotional Rollercoaster is presented by Glynn Chambers

Production, sound and editing by Rose Paton

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ep 22: An Update - life in remission

Wed, 04 Jun 2025 06:10:27 GMT

We’re back—fashionably late, but here nonetheless! In this episode, Glynn shares an honest update on life in remission, reflecting on his mindset and the ongoing balance between remission and the fear of recurrence. We also chat about the future direction of the podcast and offer some thoughts on managing post-cancer anxiety.

We would love to hear from you if this episode resonated with you, if you have questions, or if you just want to let us know you’re listening. You can email us at hello@chemotionalrollercoaster.com

You can also follow us on Instagram.

New episodes of Chemotional Rollercoaster are published weekly, on Wednesdays, Australian Eastern Time.

Thanks go out to Rory Chambers, as always, for his music featured in this episode (info@rorychambers.com).

Chemotional Rollercoaster is presented by Glynn Chambers

Production, sound and editing by Rose Paton

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ep21: Purpose - Do we really need a big, shiny goal in life?

Wed, 09 Apr 2025 02:22:25 GMT

Something good comes out of cancer? It certainly can if we see it that way.

Cancer can be a sharpening stone for life’s purpose. It can show us what matters to us and what really doesn’t. And…what matters does not have to be the big achievements or the flashy glory soaked goals. For so many, life is clarified to show us the absolute beauty in the ‘smaller’ things.

Glynn shares with us a little about how cancer sharpened his purpose mid-treatment, and how it’s all sitting now that he’s no longer in chemo chair.

We also get a good update on how remission feels. Does it feel normal? Like nothing happened?

Big thanks to Kate Forster for letting us play her piece, 'Why having a Purpose in life is bulls*#*t". Kate can be found here: https://www.instagram.com/kateforsterwrites/

We refer to a good life design book in this episode, called Living Forward, by Michael Hyattt and Daniel Harkavy

Another book the whole world should read is Man’s Search For Meaning, by Viktor E Frankl

We would love to hear from you if this episode resonated with you, if you have questions, or if you just want to let us know you’re listening. You can email us at hello@chemotionalrollercoaster.com

You can also follow us on Instagram.

New episodes of Chemotional Rollercoaster are published weekly, on Wednesdays, Australian Eastern Time.

Thanks go out to Rory Chambers, as always, for his music featured in this episode (info@rorychambers.com).

Chemotional Rollercoaster is presented by Glynn Chambers

Production, sound and editing by Rose Paton

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ep20: Wayne Bell - When a man gets breast cancer

Wed, 02 Apr 2025 01:13:52 GMT

Wait…men get breast cancer?! Who knew?! 1% of all breast cancer cases occur in men, and our guest in this episode, Wayne Bell, is in that 1%.

Wayne talks us through the ins and outs of it all. How he discovered it, his treatment journey, some of the mental side of it all, and what tattoos he’s considering to incorporate his scar on his pec from his breast cancer removal surgery.

Through this episode we have learned that male breast cancer is more common than we thought. Men need to know this is a possibility so we check all of our bits, and not just the testicle, like they taught us school. Thanks go out to Wayne for being a legend and being willing to share the rollercoaster ride he’s been on.

We would love to hear from you if this episode resonated with you, if you have questions, or if you just want to let us know you’re listening. You can email us at hello@chemotionalrollercoaster.com

You can also follow us on Instagram.

New episodes of Chemotional Rollercoaster are published weekly, on Wednesdays, Australian Eastern Time.

Thanks go out to Rory Chambers, as always, for his music featured in this episode (info@rorychambers.com).

Chemotional Rollercoaster is presented by Glynn Chambers

Production, sound and editing by Rose Paton

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ep19: Trust - the cousin of Anxiety

Tue, 25 Mar 2025 22:23:29 GMT

Without trust in others, we’d be anxious all the time and everything would be a threat. The cancer journey requires a lot of trust in doctors, nurses, pharmacists, technicians. The stakes feel high, we feel vulnerable, and we often have to outsource our healthcare to folks we have very little relationship with.

So, how do we do it? What can we trust in? What can we think about? Is trust a choice? Is trust earned? What level of distrust is normal? Glynn answers some of these questions as he shares his journey through his own treatment and what he considered.

In this episode, we briefly discuss the IPSOS Global Trustworthiness Index. If you’re interested for a look, take a peek using the URL below, or just give it a google.

https://www.ipsos.com/en/ipsos-global-trustworthiness-index-2024

We would love to hear from you if this episode resonated with you, if you have questions, or if you just want to let us know you’re listening. You can email us at hello@chemotionalrollercoaster.com

You can also follow us on Instagram.

New episodes of Chemotional Rollercoaster are published weekly, on Wednesdays, Australian Eastern Time.

Thanks go out to Rory Chambers, as always, for his music featured in this episode (info@rorychambers.com).

Chemotional Rollercoaster is presented by Glynn Chambers

Production, sound and editing by Rose Paton

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ep 18: Baxter Hutchinson - When an athlete takes on cancer

Tue, 18 Mar 2025 22:51:05 GMT

Ever been 17 years-old, had a 12 hour brain surgery and then raised half a million dollars? One man has - Baxter Hutchinson. He’s a true cancer legend with a great story to tell.

Baxter shares with us how an athlete approaches cancer treatment and all the messy side effects along the way. Through some very low lows, he trained himself back into health with a steely resolve. Give this man a goal, and he’ll go beyond it.

This guy’s story is hard, yet his perspective is awesome; a perspective changed by cancer, and he would say for the better. We are all lucky to get to listen to this tale of courage, determination and grit.

We would love to hear from you if this episode resonated with you, if you have questions, or if you just want to let us know you’re listening. You can email us at hello@chemotionalrollercoaster.com

New episodes of Chemotional Rollercoaster are published weekly, on Wednesdays, Australian Eastern Time.

Thanks go out to Rory Chambers, as always, for his music featured in this episode (info@rorychambers.com).

Chemotional Rollercoaster is presented by Glynn Chambers

Production, sound and editing by Rose Paton

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ep 17: The Results are In!

Wed, 12 Mar 2025 00:30:39 GMT

Was all of Glynn’s chemo and radiation worth it? Did it do the job?

This episode is special - there’s nothing planned or scripted here. Glynn spoke to his oncologist about 90 minutes before this episode was recorded. He found out the results of the scan that looked inside and he lets us in on the truth of it all. This one’s a bit more raw…and a true piece of real life. It’s just two old friends, facing the hard parts of life, and sharing in a milestone together.

We would love to hear from you if this episode resonated with you, if you have questions, or if you just want to let us know you’re listening. You can email us at hello@chemotionalrollercoaster.com

New episodes of Chemotional Rollercoaster are published weekly, on Wednesdays, Australian Eastern Time.

Thanks go out to Rory Chambers, as always, for his music featured in this episode (info@rorychambers.com).

Chemotional Rollercoaster is presented by Glynn Chambers

Production, sound and editing by Rose Paton

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ep 16: Scanziety

Tue, 04 Mar 2025 23:32:30 GMT

Scanziety - What a beast! Going through the scanning machine and getting the results can be a scary process. Some struggle with the machine itself - It’s a bit of a tight squeeze. Finding out results, well…that’s also a sobering reality to sit in; is the news good or bad? The lead up in the weeks before the whole thing can also be a serious challenge to sit with the worry and ‘what ifs’.

This episode was recorded the day before Glynn’s big scan that tells him the news - did all that radiation and chemo work? Is the cancer still there or has it been blasted outta here?

Glynn lets us in on how he’s feeling, what he’s doing to manage his own scanziety, and gives lots of other things to think about when sitting on the edge of big, potentially scary, news like scan results.

We would love to hear from you if this episode resonated with you, if you have questions, or if you just want to let us know you’re listening. You can email us at hello@chemotionalrollercoaster.com

New episodes of Chemotional Rollercoaster are published weekly, on Wednesdays, Australian Eastern Time.

Thanks go out to Rory Chambers, as always, for his music featured in this episode (info@rorychambers.com).

Chemotional Rollercoaster is presented by Glynn Chambers

Production, sound and editing by Rose Paton

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ep 15: How to help someone with Cancer

Wed, 26 Feb 2025 00:23:30 GMT

Got someone in a crisis, and you don’t know how to help? Want to do something but you’re not sure what? This episode is for you.

Here is the rub: we can’t always fix the issue/diagnosis, that's up to the health professionals. But as friends, we can help our mates cope by making our care active, rather than passive. We can turn our 'thinking of you's' into actionable gestures. And we can get our caring out of our heads and into the world.

In this episode, Glynn gives us some things to think about, in regards to what good helping can look like and what should be considered. We look at what actually makes a difference. Glynn also opens up the playbook of things that were done for him and his family that they really appreciated during the diagnosis and treatment journey.

We would love to hear from you if this episode resonated with you, if you have questions, or if you just want to let us know you’re listening. You can email us at hello@chemotionalrollercoaster.com

New episodes of Chemotional Rollercoaster are published weekly, on Wednesdays, Australian Eastern Time.

Lastly, Chemotional Rollercoaster is not a substitute for seeking professional advice. The strategies and skills discussed in all Chemotional Rollercoaster episodes are either what has worked for Glynn or his guests, specifically, or are things discussed in a general way. Anyone who is dealing with their own health issues, mental or physical, should seek their own professional advice on what may help to support them, uniquely. Often, the best place to start is your family doctor or GP. If anyone is struggling, and needs to talk immediately, please call Lifeline on 13 11 14.

Thanks go out to Rory Chambers, as always, for his music featured in this episode (info@rorychambers.com).

Chemotional Rollercoaster is presented by Glynn Chambers

Production, sound and editing by Rose Paton

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ep14: How I got through treatment

Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:02:22 GMT

12 Rounds of Radiation, 6 Rounds of chemo, 8 months of treatment and 56 laxatives later, Glynn has finished cancer treatment. In this episode, he reflects on what he did well, some of his 'cancer stats', and what he’d do differently.

And the most surprising thing? Glynn found treatment harder on his mind than on his body. While this won’t be true for everyone’s cancer journey, as a psychologist, Glynn shares his perspective on how to keep the mental-health impacts of treatment to minimum.

We would love to hear from you if this episode resonated with you, if you have questions, or if you just want to let us know you’re listening. You can email us at hello@chemotionalrollercoaster.com

New episodes of Chemotional Rollercoaster are published weekly, on Wednesdays, Australian Eastern Time.

Lastly, Chemotional Rollercoaster is not a substitute for seeking one’s own professional advice. The strategies and skills discussed in all Chemotional Rollercoaster episodes are either what has worked for Glynn or his guests, specifically, or are things discussed in a general way. Anyone who is dealing with their own health issues, mental or physical, should seek their own professional advice on what may help to support them, uniquely. If anyone is struggling, and needs to talk, please call Lifeline on 13 11 14.

Thanks go out to Rory Chambers, as always, for his music featured in this episode (info@rorychambers.com).

Chemotional Rollercoaster is presented by Glynn Chambers

Production, sound and editing by Rose Paton

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ep13: Talking to Kids about Cancer - Part 2

Tue, 11 Feb 2025 22:22:43 GMT

So you’ve told your kids about your cancer. Now what? Who else in their life do you tell? Can the kids tell their mates? Do their teachers need to know? What other info do the kids need to know? Glynn and Jaz share the ways their parenting approach had to shift at times. They discuss practical things they did to allow life to be as normal as possible whilst also protecting Glynn’s struggling immune system.

Mentioned...

-Camp Quality (https://www.campquality.org.au/) who provide programs and services to young people and their families for free, including free accommodation around Australia to help families reconnect.

- Caring Kids (https://caringkids.org.au/caringkids-toy-box/) is the organisation that send out joy boxes to young carers of cancer patients.

-The Cancer Council has some great resources on talking to young people about cancer, specifically, at this link: (https://www.cancervic.org.au/cancer-information/children-teens-and-young-adults/talking-to-kids-about-cancer/overview.html)

Canteen is another great resource for supporting young people affected by cancer and has some helpful information that can assist young people in adjusting to a parental cancer diagnosis. (https://www.canteen.org.au/young-people/parent-carer-cancer)

Books discussed in this episode include ‘Hey Warrior: A Book for Kids About Anxiety’ by Karen Young. This is an excellent read that discusses the mind and brain when kids (actually, grown ups too) are anxious. Karen Young has also written ‘Hey Awesome’, which is worth a read. We also chat about ‘The Invisible’ String by Patrice Kast and ‘The Memory Tree’ by Britta Teckentrup - Both beautiful kids books about grief.

We would love to hear from you if this episode resonated with you, if you have questions, or if you just want to let us know you’re listening. You can email us at hello@chemotionalrollercoaster.com

New episodes of Chemotional Rollercoaster are published weekly, on Wednesdays, Australian Eastern Time.

Lastly, Chemotional Rollercoaster is not a substitute for seeking one’s own professional advice. The strategies and skills discussed in all Chemotional Rollercoaster episodes are either what has worked for Glynn or his guests, specifically, or are things discussed in a general way. Anyone who is dealing with their own health issues, mental or physical, should seek their own professional advice on what may help to support them, uniquely. If anyone is struggling, and needs to talk, please call Lifeline on 13 11 14.

If you do want to access a psychologist for you or your kids, seeing your GP or family doctor for a referral is an excellent place to start.

Thanks go out to Rory Chambers, as always, for his music featured in this episode (info@rorychambers.com).

Chemotional Rollercoaster is presented by Glynn Chambers

Production, sound and editing by Rose Paton

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ep12: Talking to Kids about Cancer - Part 1

Tue, 04 Feb 2025 23:57:04 GMT

You get cancer. How do you tell your kids? This is not a conversation that we typically learn in parenting courses.

In this episode, Glynn and Jaz open up their playbook. They talk through the things they considered in deciding when and how to have this conversation with their own children. Considerations like…Do they need to know? Is the conversation hurting them? What words to use? How blunt to be? How long to wait? Who should know first? How much detail is enough?

These conversations looked differently for their different kids based on age and developmental stage. Glynn and Jaz don’t pretend to have done it perfectly, but they hope that sharing their story might make this process slightly less daunting for the next set of parents having these hard, but very important, sets of conversations.

Also in this episode, we hear from one of those children - Mr Ten - to see what we can learn from him. We dive into how he found this conversation, where his mind went, and what some of the challenges have been with his Dad going through cancer treatment.

The Cancer Council has some great resources on this topic, specifically, at the link below.

https://www.cancervic.org.au/cancer-information/children-teens-and-young-adults/talking-to-kids-about-cancer/overview.html

Canteen is another great resource for supporting young people affected by cancer and has some helpful information that can assist young people in adjusting to a parental cancer diagnosis.

https://www.canteen.org.au/young-people/parent-carer-cancer

We would love to hear from you if this episode resonated with you, if you have questions, or if you just want to let us know you’re listening. You can email us at hello@chemotionalrollercoaster.com

New episodes of Chemotional Rollercoaster are published weekly, on Wednesdays, Australian Eastern Time.

Lastly, Chemotional Rollercoaster is not a substitute for seeking one’s own professional advice. The strategies and skills discussed in all Chemotional Rollercoaster episodes are either what has worked for Glynn or his guests, specifically, or are things discussed in a general way. Anyone who is dealing with their own health issues, mental or physical, should seek their own professional advice on what may help to support them, uniquely. If anyone is struggling, and needs to talk, please call Lifeline on 13 11 14.

Thanks go out to Rory Chambers, as always, for his music featured in this episode (info@rorychambers.com).

Chemotional Rollercoaster is presented by Glynn Chambers

Production, sound and editing by Rose Paton

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ep11: Pain - How to cope when it hurts

Tue, 28 Jan 2025 23:11:22 GMT

Cancer often comes with pain in varying forms and this can be truly hard to deal with. Glynn had some nasty pain post-radiation that blindsided him, and he shares with us how this went (spoiler - not well!). He talks through the ways he didn't cope, and the ways he could have done things differently.

‘Go get your life’ is a theme on this show, but sometimes the idea of living life to some high, and values based, standard just seems so hard to do when we are in pain. We discuss what is reasonable to expect of ourselves when the pain is so strong and so much.

We would love to hear from you if this episode resonated with you, if you have questions, or if you just want to let us know you’re listening. You can email us at hello@chemotionalrollercoaster.com

New episodes of Chemotional Rollercoaster are published weekly, on Wednesdays, Australian Eastern Time.

Lastly, Chemotional Rollercoaster is not a substitute for seeking one’s own professional advice. The strategies and skills discussed in all Chemotional Rollercoaster episodes are either what has worked for Glynn or his guests, specifically, or are things discussed in a general way. Anyone who is dealing with their own health issues, mental or physical, should seek their own professional advice on what may help to support them, uniquely. If anyone is struggling, and needs to talk, please call Lifeline on 13 11 14.

Thanks go out to Rory Chambers, as always, for his music featured in this episode (info@rorychambers.com).

Chemotional Rollercoaster is presented by Glynn Chambers

Production, sound and editing by Rose Paton

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ep10: Intent - Let your values, not your cancer, run your life

Tue, 21 Jan 2025 22:35:32 GMT

How do you live a meaningful life when cancer overshadows everything? Do you just have to lie down and let the big C ruin it all? Glynn believes we often can still live lives with intent and meaning in them, amidst the pain, treatment, anxiety and unknowns. That’s what he is pushing for. He’s trying to go get his life.

In this episode we look at the notion of living a life directed by values; deciding the type of person we want to be, the qualities we want to embody, making choices on how to live these qualities out, and going for it. Glynn shares with us his top 8 values that matter to him, and walks us through some easy activities people can do to discover their own values for themselves.

We discuss some research in this episode about cancer patients re-appraising values. The link to this can be found here: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/375419289_Reappraising_personal_values_in_cancer_Meaning-in-life_adaptation_meaningfulness_and_quality_of_life

We would love to hear from you if this episode resonated with you, if you have questions, or if you just want to let us know you’re listening. You can email us at hello@chemotionalrollercoaster.com

New episodes of Chemotional Rollercoaster are published weekly, on Wednesdays, Australian Eastern Time.

Lastly, Chemotional Rollercoaster is not a substitute for seeking one’s own professional advice. The strategies and skills discussed in all Chemotional Rollercoaster episodes are either what has worked for Glynn or his guests, specifically, or are things discussed in a general way. Anyone who is dealing with their own health issues, mental or physical, should seek their own professional advice on what may help to support them, uniquely. If anyone is struggling, and needs to talk, please call Lifeline on 13 11 14.

Thanks go out to Rory Chambers, as always, for his music featured in this episode (info@rorychambers.com).

Chemotional Rollercoaster is presented by Glynn Chambers

Production, sound and editing by Rose Paton

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ep9: The Unknown - Cancer is a lot of scary unknowns

Tue, 14 Jan 2025 23:21:48 GMT

Humans hate uncertainty! How do we sit with all the unknowns that come with a cancer diagnosis? What’s the disease? What will treatment be like? How long have I got? Will the disease come back? What is that random pain I have? Why is my nose itchy? The mental game of this is incredibly challenging, and something some people find equally as hard as the physical challenges.

In this episode, Glynn shares his recent dance with uncertainty as he has faced the unknown length of his life and his mind giving him some truly intrusive thoughts. He goes full ‘psychologist mode’ on himself and gives us a glimpse into his recent mental challenges and how he stepped through it. There’s a fair bit of Chemotional Intelligence in this one, as we look at bits of two therapeutic approaches and how Glynn has used both at different times. We also discuss breast socks, a cheeky 70 year old woman, and emotional gorillas.

We would love to hear from you if this episode resonated with you, if you have questions, or if you just want to let us know you’re listening. You can email us at hello@chemotionalrollercoaster.com

New episodes of Chemotional Rollercoaster are published weekly, on Wednesdays, Australian Eastern Time.

Lastly, Chemotional Rollercoaster is not a substitute for seeking your own professional advice. The strategies and skills discussed in all Chemotional Rollercoaster episodes are either what has worked for Glynn or his guests, specifically, or are things discussed in a general way. Anyone who is dealing with their own health issues, mental or physical, should seek their own professional advice on what may help to support them, uniquely. If anyone is struggling, and needs to talk, please call Lifeline on 13 11 14.

Thanks go out to Rory Chambers, as always, for his music featured in this episode.

Chemotional Rollercoaster is presented by Glynn Chambers

Production, sound and editing by Rose Paton

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ep8: Acceptance - Are we ever done accepting things?

Tue, 07 Jan 2025 21:53:11 GMT

Accepting cancer isn't easy. How do you accept something that hurts? Something that you don’t like and didn’t ask for? What does acceptance even mean? As we dive into the topic, Glynn admits to some of his misunderstandings and faulty assumptions about acceptance.

We look at two different concepts of acceptance - as a stage one can be in, and the moment to moment acceptance of our emotional experiences and thoughts. We also discuss what acceptance is not. There’s some practical wisdom in here, too, regarding how support people can help and encourage the process and the better questions they can ask. The reality is that the acceptance process is often an ongoing one with twists and turns in it, and friends and family can help a lot.

As always, Glynn gives us an update on how he’s going with treatment. Specifically, how the steroids have kicked his mood around and some of the things he’s done to cope. He also talks about where his mental goal posts are set at the moment.

We would love to hear from you if this episode resonated with you, if you have questions, or if you just want to let us know you’re listening. You can email us at hello@chemotionalrollercoaster.com

New episodes of Chemotional Rollercoaster are published weekly, on Wednesdays, Australian Eastern Time.

Lastly, Chemotional Rollercoaster is not a substitute for seeking one’s own professional advice. The strategies and skills discussed in all Chemotional Rollercoaster episodes are either what has worked for Glynn or his guests, specifically, or are things discussed in a general way. Anyone who is dealing with their own health issues, mental or physical, should seek their own professional advice on what may help to support them, uniquely. If anyone is struggling, and needs to talk, please call Lifeline on 13 11 14.

Thanks go out to Rory Chambers, as always, for his music featured in this episode.

Chemotional Rollercoaster is presented by Glynn Chambers

Production, sound and editing by Rose Paton

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ep7: How to talk about Cancer

Tue, 31 Dec 2024 21:34:32 GMT

Found yourself not knowing what to say when someone has cancer? Us too! Is silence golden? Don’t wanna upset the vibe? Just come out and say what we think and feel? Should we check in again, or is that hounding? It can feel like a minefield. Now that Glynn is a man on the inside, he shares with us how he talks with others with cancer, and how he would like others to talk with him. It may not be simple, but it’s often simpler than we all think.

We hear Glynn’s proprietary formula for how we can show care for others and initiate conversations with those with cancer, when we are worried about upsetting them and want to respect their space. We look at how it feels to be on both sides of cancer conversations - the caring support person, and the cancer guy - and what we are both worried about (News flash: neither of us want to bring down the vibe). We look at the benefits of talking about cancer, and how it helps process our reality. We also share the thoughts of some other cancer patients about what kinds of responses help and what truly doesn’t. In truth, no two people are the same and want the exact same things, but maybe this episode will give some things to discuss and think about as we all seek to care for each other better.

Glynn updates us on his neutrophils and the results of his immune system fertilizer. He also shares his spoonful of sugar from the archives - a brave Lymphoma joke by a dear friend on diagnosis day, knowing it would make Glynn smile.

We would love to hear from you if this episode resonated with you, if you have questions, or if you just want to let us know you’re listening. You can email us at hello@chemotionalrollercoaster.com

New episodes of Chemotional Rollercoaster are published weekly, on Wednesdays, Australian Eastern Time.

Lastly, Chemotional Rollercoaster is not a substitute for seeking one’s own professional advice. The strategies and skills discussed in all Chemotional Rollercoaster episodes are either what has worked for Glynn or his guests, specifically, or are things discussed in a general way. Anyone who is dealing with their own health issues, mental or physical, should seek their own professional advice on what may help to support them, uniquely. If anyone is struggling, and needs to talk, please call Lifeline on 13 11 14.

Thanks go out to Rory Chambers, as always, for his music featured in this episode.

Chemotional Rollercoaster is presented by Glynn Chambers

Production, sound and editing by Rose Paton

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ep6: Cancer at Christmas - Finding the Merry

Mon, 23 Dec 2024 22:19:39 GMT

It’s the most wonderful time of the year, right?! This may not be the case if you’re in the midst of a cancer battle. How do we still wring some goodness out of this season if we are having challenging physical and/or emotional battles? Maybe you’re waiting for diagnosis, in treatment, or missing loved ones. Glynn shares three bits of wisdom about how he will be doing Christmas differently this year, his first Christmas with cancer, as he stares down his next chemo infusion session on December 27th.

We talk about the need to be clear and compassionate regarding our expectations for ourselves on Christmas Day, so we don’t make any suffering worse. We discuss the need to keep up our self-care routines. We look at the power of truly connecting with the present moment to induce positive emotions to come alongside our hard feelings. We also muse on the notion of the perspective we can take on Christmas - do we view it through the lens of having cancer, or can Christmas be viewed as it is with cancer on the side.

As always, we dive into Glynn’s multiple spoons full of sugar - family and Christmas feasts.

We would love to hear from you if this episode resonated with you, if you have questions, or if you just want to let us know you’re listening. You can email us at hello@chemotionalrollercoaster.com

New episodes of Chemotional Rollercoaster are published weekly, on Wednesdays, Australian Eastern Time.

Lastly, Chemotional Rollercoaster is not a substitute for seeking one’s own professional advice. The strategies and skills discussed in all Chemotional Rollercoaster episodes are either what has worked for Glynn or his guests, specifically, or are things discussed in a general way. Anyone who is dealing with their own health issues, mental or physical, should seek their own professional advice on what may help to support them, uniquely. If anyone is struggling, and needs to talk, please call Lifeline on 13 11 14.

Chemotional Rollercoaster is presented by Glynn Chambers

Production, sound and editing by Rose Paton

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ep5: The Spouse - Same journey, different paths

Tue, 17 Dec 2024 23:46:18 GMT

Cancer, not in your body, so not your problem? Sadly, not when you’re the spouse. In this episode we hear from the very lovely Jaz, who is married to Glynn. We dive into what it is like to be on the sidelines, supporting, caring, and cheering him on.

In truth, cancer happens to individuals and it also happens to their families. It’s just that the paths through it look differently for each person. Jaz discusses with us her story of how this cancer journey has affected her so far. She talks of how hard it is to feel helpless and how she copes, sometimes, by rage cleaning, researching, and having sneaky shower cries. Jaz shared with us her wisdom of what she wished she had known way back at the start of the journey, in the hope that this makes things easier for the next spouse running alongside their own cancer warrior.

As always, you’ll hear Glynn’s update on how he’s travelling. Things got a bit wild in the last little while, with an immune system bottoming out and chemo being delayed. We’ll also look at the great things that are getting him through - his spoon full of sugar - which this week comes in the form of his own phone betraying him. Our Chemotional Intelligence this week is pretty much spread throughout the episode; looking at the power and benefits of sharing the burden and journey with one’s partner.

We would love to hear from you if this episode resonated with you, if you have questions, or if you just want to let us know you’re listening. You can email us at hello@chemotionalrollercoaster.com

New episodes of Chemotional Rollercoaster are published weekly, on Wednesdays, Australian Eastern Time.

Lastly, Chemotional Rollercoaster is not a substitute for seeking one’s own professional advice. The strategies and skills discussed in all Chemotional Rollercoaster episodes are either what has worked for Glynn or his guests, specifically, or are things discussed in a general way. Anyone who is dealing with their own health issues, mental or physical, should seek their own professional advice on what may help to support them, uniquely. If anyone is struggling, and needs to talk, please call Lifeline on 13 11 14.

Chemotional Rollercoaster is presented by Glynn Chambers

Production, sound and editing by Rose Paton

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ep4: Bonus! - Glynn’s Career, the extended cut

Wed, 11 Dec 2024 09:23:38 GMT

Episode four is a little early for a bonus episode, don’t you think? Well, you could say that, but there’s no rules!

Rose was interested in talking through Glynn’s weird and wonderful career progression, and how it informs his current mindset. This is a career that has spanned four countries and has not followed a common trajectory for the average psychologist. Glynn’s career has seen him working in refugee camps, being in private practice, running summer camps for at-risk youth in the USA, overseeing a multi-million dollar building project, working to help rehabilitate offenders in prison, and now counselling teenagers in a school. This all adds up to a broad view of humanity, and the world, that sees just how amazing and resilient humans can be.

We would love to hear from you if this episode resonated with you, if you have questions, or if you just want to let us know you’re listening. You can email us at hello@chemotionalrollercoaster.com

New episodes of Chemotional Rollercoaster are published weekly, on Wednesdays, Australian Eastern Time

Lastly, Chemotional Rollercoaster is not a substitute for seeking one’s own professional advice. The strategies and skills discussed in all Chemotional Rollercoaster episodes are either what has worked for Glynn or his guests, specifically, or are things discussed in a general way. Anyone who is dealing with their own health issues, mental or physical, should seek their own professional advice on what may help to support them, uniquely. If anyone is struggling, and needs to talk, please call Lifeline on 13 11 14.

Chemotional Rollercoaster is presented by Glynn Chambers

Production, sound and editing by Rose Paton

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ep3: Radiation - Got through it but didn’t love it!

Wed, 11 Dec 2024 09:22:20 GMT

Radiation, who knew it was tricky? Glynn sure didn’t. This episode looks at Glynn’s radiation experiences; how he took it cheaply and thought it was an easy process, only to find it was more difficult than he expected.

We look back at the radiation process, and how thinking about Wayne’s World helped Glynn get through. We discuss the process of making Glynn’s radiation mask and the challenge of wearing it day in and day out for treatment. There was some panic to contend with, but things got easier with some experience, good skills and strategies from Glynn’s psychologist brain. We deep dive into what Glynn did to make this experience easier for himself to navigate.

As always, you’ll hear Glynn’s update on how he’s travelling - pretty darn well at this point. We’ll also look at the great things that are getting him through - his spoon full of sugar - which this week is in the form of some cheeky teenage behaviour, and his daughter expressing herself to the full. Lastly, we look at some Chemotional Intelligence - the power of our mindfulness practice.

We would love to hear from you if this episode resonated with you, if you have questions, or if you just want to let us know you’re listening. You can email us at hello@chemotionalrollercoaster.com

New episodes of Chemotional Rollercoaster are published weekly, on Wednesdays, Australian Eastern Time

Chemotional Rollercoaster is presented by Glynn Chambers

Production, sound and editing by Rose Paton

Lastly, Chemotional Rollercoaster is not a substitute for seeking one’s own professional advice. The strategies and skills discussed in all Chemotional Rollercoaster episodes are either what has worked for Glynn or his guests, specifically, or are things discussed in a general way. Anyone who is dealing with their own health issues, mental or physical, should seek their own professional advice on what may help to support them, uniquely. If anyone is struggling, and needs to talk, please call Lifeline on 13 11 14.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ep2: Diagnosis - What a Mind Bend

Wed, 11 Dec 2024 09:21:18 GMT

Diagnosed with cancer, eh? Yeah, it sucks. In this episode, we discuss how all this happened for Glynn. The process took some months, and was full of unknowns. We talk about ultrasounds, fine needle biopsies, CT scans, surgeries, and the day the surgeon drops the news on Glynn that he has cancer….whilst he has his four year old in the room. Yikes!

Perhaps more importantly, we discuss how this played out in Glynn’s mind and life. How he reacted (spoiler, he was blindsided!) and coped in those early days, turned into an emotional zombie, and where he is sitting with it all now, 8 months on.

You’ll hear a little update on where Glynn is up to treatment-wise, and why he is wearing two hoodies at once. You’ll also hear what is making all of this journey easier - his spoon full of sugar - which this week is in the form of some unique hugs.

In this episode, Glynn gives some Chemotional Intelligence about the benefits of being outside. This article, by the American Psychological Association, can be found here:

https://www.apa.org/monitor/2020/04/nurtured-nature#:~:text=From%20a%20stroll%20through%20a,upticks%20in%20empathy%20and%20cooperation.

We would love to hear from you if this episode resonated with you, if you have questions, or if you just want to let us know you’re listening. You can email us at hello@chemotionalrollercoaster.com

New Episodes of Chemotional Rollercoaster are published weekly, on Wednesdays, Australian Eastern Time

Lastly, Chemotional Rollercoaster is not a substitute for seeking one’s own professional advice. The strategies and skills discussed in all Chemotional Rollercoaster episodes are either what has worked for Glynn or his guests, specifically, or are things discussed in a general way. Anyone who is dealing with their own health issues, mental or physical, should seek their own professional advice on what may help to support them, uniquely. If anyone is struggling, and needs to talk, please call Lifeline on 13 11 14.

Chemotional Rollercoaster is presented by Glynn Chambers

Production, sound and editing by Rose Paton

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ep1: Introduction - Climb Aboard the Chemotional Rollercoaster

Wed, 04 Dec 2024 22:29:03 GMT

Ever wondered what it’s like to have chemo? Maybe you are going through it right now, and want to hear someone else’s experience. In this episode, the very first Chemotional Rollercoaster episode ever, Glynn tells us all about it. He had chemotherapy just before hitting record.

We first discuss who we are, Glynn and Rose. Glynn's a psychologist with cancer, and Rose is a producer for a national broadcaster in Australia (which is absolutely the recipe for a podcast). We look at why we are doing this podcast, what it is all about, and what segments you can expect to hear in each episode.

We then move on to discuss the chemo experience: what chemo is. Glynn’s weird and scary reaction to the drugs today that saw him turn varying shades of red and yellow. His expectations of chemo that were so wrong. His desire to quit. And, ultimately, we discuss the mind bending rollercoaster that the chemo journey can be. Just when you think you have it nailed, things seem to change…like many other things in life.

We would love to hear from you if this episode resonated with you, if you have questions, or if you just want to let us know you’re listening. You can email us at hello@chemotionalrollercoaster.com

New Episodes of Chemotional Rollercoaster are published weekly, on Wednesdays, Australian Eastern Time

Lastly, Chemotional Rollercoaster is not a substitute for seeking one’s own professional advice. The strategies and skills discussed in all Chemotional Rollercoaster episodes are either what has worked for Glynn and his guests, specifically, or are things discussed in a general way. Anyone who is dealing with their own health issues, mental or physical, should seek their own professional advice on what may help to support them, uniquely. If anyone is struggling, and needs to talk, please call Lifeline on 13 11 14.

Chemotional Rollercoaster is presented by Glynn Chambers

Production, sound and editing by Rose Paton

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.