Today, AJ Wyman’s daughter, Emma, is thriving in school and pursuing her passion for music, but her journey began with an unimaginable challenge. Diagnosed with cancer at just seven months old, Emma suffered a stroke following her first round of chemotherapy, causing her heart to stop beating for six minutes. As AJ and his wife were just beginning to navigate parenthood, they found themselves facing a life-changing cancer journey with their baby.
“It felt like our world was crashing down,” said AJ Wyman. “We worked with oncologists at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia to develop a treatment plan, but what we thought would just be a brief trip to the hospital to place her port, turned into the scariest moments of my life,” said AJ.
During treatment overnight, Emma experienced a respiratory arrest, causing her heart to stop. Wyman and his wife watched for what felt like an eternity as doctors and nurses worked to restore her heartbeat. Emma was transferred to the ICU and spent the next three months in the hospital. While undergoing cancer treatment, Emma also received physical, occupational, and speech therapy to recover from the stroke that impacted the left side of her body. Emma received her last treatment on December 30, 2015, and has been in remission ever since!
Although Emma triumphed over cancer, the effects of her journey continued to have an impact on her family long after her recovery.
The Emotional Toll of Childhood Cancer
Throughout his daughter’s cancer journey, AJ Wyman grappled with anger and resentment that significantly affected his mental health. Following Emma’s treatment, he turned to drugs to cope with the lasting emotional impact of the experience.
“The weight of caregiving for a child with cancer is often overlooked,” said Wyman. “I unraveled and had to learn how to live again.”
While AJ Wyman was in therapy to overcome his drug addiction, he began writing about his family’s journey and eventually, decided to turn his journaling into a book. Available on Amazon, “The Grace to Carry On” details Wyman’s relentless fight to save his daughter’s life and the aftermath of childhood cancer.
“Our family is in a much better place now and I’m willing to openly share the experience to give other people hope and demonstrate the importance of seeking help,” said Wyman.
Understanding Through Shared Experience
Wanting to give back and help other parents facing pediatric cancer, AJ Wyman became a volunteer Peer Mentor for Cancer Hope Network’s Hopeful Hearts: Parents Supporting Parents. A free, one-on-one peer mentorship support program, Hopeful Hearts connects parents and guardians of children with pediatric cancer with trained mentors who have endured the same challenges. AJ Wyman has been a Hopeful Hearts mentor for over a year and focuses his mentorship on encouraging parents to focus on themselves.
“As difficult as it may be, parents navigating their child’s cancer journey need to make time for themselves and reflect on how they’re coping with everything,” said Wyman. “Looking back, I wonder if having someone to talk to during our own battle would have helped me better handle the trauma. That’s why I try to offer that support to other parents through Hopeful Hearts.”
Through Hopeful Hearts, peer mentors connect with their adult mentees via phone, text, or video to offer emotional support, best practices, and strength so their caregivers are better able to advocate for their child at every stage of the cancer journey.
