Newcomer 101

[MaryIN]

Welcome newcomers!

Sadly, we have new arrivals every day, and I thought it might be helpful if we created a welcome thread that gives people some of the basics of our little message board. I'm sure I'll forget at least half of the things newcomers should know, so chime in, okay?

First, I'm glad you found us. Whether you have Hodgkin's lymphoma, or know and love someone with HD, you're welcome here. You'll find answers and insights, opinions and ideas, posts that will make you laugh and ones that will make you cry. Most of all, you'll find a community of people who understand what you're facing and will gladly walk beside you in this journey.

When you register on the site, one of the first things you might want to do is create a signature line for your post. Go to the "My Home" link above and click on "Personal Information" - Edit. There you can let us know as much as you'd like, and write your own signature. As you can probably see, most people identify their sub-type and any treatment they've received. Our favorite signatures are the ones that say how many years they've been in remission!

To add a photo as your avitar, many people use photobucket.com. Once you upload your picture, use the IMG code to add it when you're working on your Personal Information. You can also list your personal website/blog on the same page, and if you indicate your birthday, the site will remind us you're celebrating!

Consider popping up to the "Our Stories" thread and adding your story there. I know when I joined this site, I spent more than one evening digesting what I read there, reinforcing that I was in no way alone in this struggle.

You might be encouraged to "PM" someone. That's Private Message. Again, go to My Home and click on Send a Private Message. That's your way of sending private email via the site. When you log on, if you see a little flashing envelope in the upper left, that means you have mail. Just click on that to retrieve your message.

Before I close, I will add a couple of caveats to using this site.

First, remember this is a public forum and, as a result, all points of view are welcome. You may feel very strongly about something, but someone else here may feel equally strongly in the opposite direction. Be aware that we've had some spirited discussions...and that's okay. I guess I'm just suggesting not to take anything too personally, and remember that there are people from all walks of life who contribute to this forum, including many ages, ethnicities, national origins, religions, political affiliations and sexual orientations.

Second, please do not consider the opinions you read here as anything other than that. They are personal experiences and something you can consider discussing with your oncologist. They are NOT medical advice.

Lastly, remember that the experiences of the people here do not reflect the universe of HD patients. Many people here use the forum throughout treatment, get well and move on. You may be afraid when you encounter so many refractory and relapse people here. That's simply because we're still in the trenches, fighting. Hopefully, your experience will NOT be that - you'll have your treatment, achieve remission and move on. :-)

Again, welcome. We're sorry you're here, but delighted that you've found us.

~Mary

[Sandralee]

Thank you Mary for your help! I'm so glad that I found this site.

[LAULAUSMAMMA]

Thank you Mary - this is a good post for our Newcomers to find....let's be sure we keep bumping it up often so it doesn't get lost

[Moondoggie22]

Here are some of the more popular links on the forum that we tend to try to keeped bumped up for the newcomers. I keep an up-to-date list on my site at that link in my signature, but here's what's in the list right now:

The "101" Posts
<ul type="square">[*]Newcomer 101 started by Mary (MaryIN)[*]Chemo 101 started by Mary (MaryIN)[*]Radiation 101 started by Sarah (SarahSmile)[*]Hospital Visits 101 started by Brian (Moondoggie22)[*]Relapse 101 started by Sarah (SarahSmile)[*]Stem Cell Transplant 101 started by Anne (ag2006)[*]SCT Tips started by Nancy (pine soul) over on the NHL side of things (but we'll forgive her ).[*]Weird Side Effects 101 started by Mel (BeanieRN)[/list]
The "Informational" Posts
<ul type="square">[*]Some Good Articles on Chemo Brain started by Anjou (anjou)[*]Itching Posts started by Tiffany (Faith143)[*]What color frosting?????? started by Wendy (baldlilfairy)[*]Crapsicle. (Not cancer bad, but quite annoying) started by Brian (Moondoggie22)[*]History of PET started by Hansel (hansel)[*]Info on MOPP started by Anne-Marie (AMD45)[*]MOPP! suuuuuucks... started by Brian (Moondoggie22)[*]A quick explanation of British MOPP[*]Needles of hair poking into my braaaaain!!!! started by Brian (Moondoggie22)[*]So who here has smoked pot during chemo... (aka "The Post Heard 'Round the World") started by Ryan (BigRyan)[*]US Employee Rights as a Disabled American started by Allison (everydayrose)[/list]
The "Points to Ponder" Posts
<ul type="square">[*]Afterlife? started by Hansel (hansel)[/list]
The "Inspirational" Posts
<ul type="square">[*]The Myth of the Good Cancer Patient started by Kim (izzydoesit)[*]Time to Let Your Cancer Flag Fly started by Brian (Moondoggie22)[*]Quotes/Inspiration started by Darrel (Zarathustra)[*]Thoughts from SCT started by Darrel (Zarathustra)[*]The Picture Thread, Post Your "HAPPY" Pics! started by Ryan (Big Ryan)[*]everyday "i am hot shiznit" activities started by Rachael (Rachael42)[/list]
The "You're Not Alone" Posts
<ul type="square">[*]Our Stories started by Kathy (KR,Rn)[*]let's talk about sex, baby... started by Skye (chemocranky)[*]The Dumb Things People Say started by Kelly (Chemopalooza)[*]Post HL Blues started by Paige (PaigeIIB)[/list]

[Moondoggie22]

Oh, and I just realized that I've never put up a link to my CT Scan FAQ of sorts I wrote up awhile back.

Also, people often wonder how to get pictures in their posts.


If you're talking about the little avatar/icon many of us have under our names, you need to learn to not skim the posts - go back and read Mary's instructions.

If you're talking about a photo in your post itself, first step is to upload your photo to a server somewhere. I think Photobucket's usually a common choice, though I'm feeling forgetful at the moment. If you don't have your own webspace, look around, 'cause there are a few different places you can do it for free.

Once it's on a website somewhere, you can insert the photo two ways. You can click the word "Image" in the "Instant UBB Code" section of your screen and follow the prompts, or you can type the same information by hand:

<font class="small">Code:[/color]<hr /><pre>[image]http://www.heresmyphoto.com/righthere.jpg[/image]</pre><hr />

[chemocranky]

Great idea, Mary--but then again, you have ALL the great ideas, don't you!!!

Can someone add the directions to posting a link. I'm an idiot and have NEVER been able to figure that out, so use small words!!! Hell, I can't even figure out how to make text bold or underlined!

Maybe we can also add some of our terminology, such as:

NED=No evidence of disease (something we all strive for!)

Port=several different varieties, but basically a device implanted under (or outside of) the skin to make administering chemo, taking blood draws, and maybe even giving the color contrast for CT scans all a much easier and faster process

Deported=no, we aren't getting kicked out of the country, it actually means we are getting out port taken out

Scanic, Scanziety=the nervousness (or sometimes panic) we sometimes get before going in for follow-up scans

Rads=radiation treatment

I'm fresh out of ideas--any others?

[MaryIN]

Thanks for posting the links, Brian. I was thinking last night that I needed someone to do that. Like Skye, I'm clueless about how that happens.

[Moondoggie22]

Bah dah bing!

To post links in a post, you can use the "URL" link in the Instant BB Code section, or do it manually:

<font class="small">Code:[/color]<hr /><pre>[url=http://www.marymarywhyyabuggin.com[/url]</pre><hr />

The other handy ones are:

Bold
<font class="small">Code:[/color]<hr /><pre>is not!</pre><hr />
Italics
<font class="small">Code:[/color]<hr /><pre>[/i]is to![/i]</pre><hr />
Underline
<font class="small">Code:[/color]<hr /><pre>Underline, not underwear</pre><hr />

Also, a tip from a windbag who shall remain nameless. If you take too long in writing your post, or if you're writing your post in one window and check the forum in another, your post won't be posted. Be sure you always copy your writing before clicking the "continue" button. To do that, click in the post area, use CTRL+A to highlight everything and CTRL+C to copy it. If your post gets zapped, start a new one, click in the post area and use CTRL+V to paste it back in.

If you have a reeeeeally long post in the works, it's generally best to compose it in a text editor (notepad, for example) and copy/paste it into a post.

[alisonh]

Is there a way to make this one stick to the top of the list?

[chemocranky]

Okay, Brian, I must be a complete moron because none of what you wrote made a bit of sense to me. I still don't have a clue as to how to post links