Wheaton cancer survivor and artist creates coloring books for patients undergoing cancer care
For many, there's not much to laugh about during the stressful time of cancer care. However, finding the humor in even the most difficult situations can actually be therapeutic, explains author, artist and cancer survivor, Jeri Davis of Wheaton.
As a result of having a good sense of humor and needing to brighten her own scary days of cancer treatment, she started developing ideas that eventually became a 54-page coloring book with humorous captions. Its clever title is: "Greetings from Chemo Country: An Irreverent & Often Inappropriate Coloring Book About Chemotherapy." It is available for $20 on Amazon, "Greetings from Chemo Country" or her website, www.extralineas.org
After years of working in advertising and garnering many talented friends and co-workers, the coloring book is filled with the artwork of 15 contributors. It is dedicated to her oncologist and chemo nurse and all the chemo/oncology nurses who love, nurture, and keep their patients steady as they face cancer.
In September 2020, Jeri's cancer diagnosis came as a complete shock. Her symptoms seemed benign - a simple case of allergies - she thought. Instead, when a mass pushed aside her trachea/esophagus area, she learned she had non-Hodgkin lymphoma, an aggressive cancer that can be cured when caught early enough.
"After six rounds of chemotherapy, with some infusions lasting eight hours, it became clear that a coloring book, where chemo patients could see a bit of themselves or their experience, could be a great distraction," Jeri says. "It could also provide relaxation and comfort for family, friends, and med teams."
Although Jeri felt fatigue at the time of her treatments, she wasn't sick. She wanted to describe the weirdness of it all, as she saw it, and starting writing during her hospitalizations. Slowly her ideas came together eventually deciding on a coloring book format.
"There's something soothing about the repetitive process of coloring," she notes. "And the humor aspect was especially important to me. We protect ourselves during illness and can be afraid to laugh aloud. But I wanted to laugh and laughing helped me feel power over my cancer."
Her idea launched successfully. Coloring Book #2 ("Welcome to Six Chemos Theme Park") is now well on its way, along with forging important medical partnerships who can help distribute to those in need. She did not turn this endeavor into a business, but a legally formed charity. She also has ideas for other topics such as grief as well as Spanish translations.
"There's commonality in our cancer experiences," Jeri sums up. "And permission to laugh is needed along with the vehicle in which to do it. It provides a way to stop pushing cancer from behind but to get out in front of it instead."