# Jonesing For The Journey Journal


## Posts

- [Before Radiation Treatment #1 — What My Radiation Mapping Appointment Was Really Like](https://jonesingforthejourney.com/journal/mile-markers-prostate-cancer-radiation-mapping/): Before radiation treatment could begin, I had to go through radiation mapping—also called CT simulation. I take you inside that appointment, explain what happened, what surprised me, why bladder and bowel preparation matter, and the five questions I believe every patient should ask before treatment starts.
- [WHERE DO I START?](https://jonesingforthejourney.com/journal/where-do-i-start/): A cancer diagnosis can turn life into a fire hose of unfamiliar words, decisions, and questions. Jonesing for the Journey started as our story, but over time we realized it needed to become something more: a place where patients, spouses, caregivers, and families could find a place to begin.
- [What HoLEP Fixed — and What It Didn’t](https://jonesingforthejourney.com/journal/what-holep-fixed-and-what-it-didnt/): I thought my prostate problem had been fixed. My HoLEP procedure worked, the tissue removed showed no cancer, and my urinary symptoms improved. Eight years later, I was diagnosed with aggressive prostate cancer. The lesson wasn’t that HoLEP failed. It was that treating BPH didn’t mean I could stop paying attention to my prostate.
- [When the Story Went Public](https://jonesingforthejourney.com/journal/when-the-story-went-public/): Sue and I had already been sharing our cancer journey in real time. Then The Patient Story asked us to tell it again—from the beginning. Saying yes showed me something I hadn't fully understood: sometimes you have to step outside your own story before you can see what it has become.
- [A Detour Is Not the Same as a Dead End](https://jonesingforthejourney.com/journal/a-detour-is-not-the-same-as-a-dead-end/): Life has a way of changing the route without asking permission. I’m learning that a detour can delay you, frustrate you, and completely rewrite the map without necessarily taking away the destination.
- [Why We Chose a 45-Foot Motorhome to Live In Full-Time](https://jonesingforthejourney.com/journal/why-we-chose-a-45-foot-motorhome-to-live-in-full-time/): Sue and I weren't planning to buy an RV for vacations. Our retirement plan was to sell everything, move into a 45-foot motorhome full-time, and travel the country on our terms—following the seasons and “chasing 70 degrees.” Cancer changed when that happens. It didn't change the dream.
- [The Road We Still Plan to Take](https://jonesingforthejourney.com/journal/the-road-we-still-plan-to-take/): For years, Sue and I imagined retirement on the road—national parks, long trips, and a motorhome built for the life we had worked toward. Cancer changed the timing and the logistics. It did not erase the dream. Now we are learning what it means to modify the route without surrendering the destination.
- [Title: The Trip We Didn’t Take](https://jonesingforthejourney.com/journal/title-the-trip-we-didnt-take/): Today is our 30th wedding anniversary—and Sue and I were supposed to be celebrating it in Alaska. Cancer changed the calendar and forced us to cancel the trip we had planned for years. But it didn't cancel Alaska, and it certainly didn't cancel what those 30 years mean.
- [The Hormone Shift](https://jonesingforthejourney.com/journal/the-hormone-shift/): I turned 60 on Monday. On Tuesday, I began two years of androgen deprivation therapy for prostate cancer. This Mile Marker is about more than lowering a lab number—it is about what it felt like to knowingly change my body, my energy, my intimacy, and potentially my sense of self in order to keep fighting.
- [The 90-Day Clock](https://jonesingforthejourney.com/journal/the-90-day-clock/): Every 90 days, one blood test has the potential to change the conversation about my prostate cancer. The draw takes minutes. The waiting can occupy your mind for weeks. This is what it feels like to live between the results—and why I am learning not to let the next PSA decide how I live today.
- [The Co-Pilot](https://jonesingforthejourney.com/journal/the-co-pilot/): Cancer happened in my body, but the journey happened to both of us. This is Sue’s view from the passenger seat—the injury she was already carrying, the sudden role reversal, the worry nobody saw, and the question caregivers are too rarely asked: What do you need?
- [The Recovery](https://jonesingforthejourney.com/journal/the-recovery/): What the first weeks after radical prostatectomy really felt like — the catheter, leakage, exhaustion, small victories, and the things I wish someone had told me before surgery.
- [What Was Already in the Room: Before Advanced Prostate Cancer](https://jonesingforthejourney.com/journal/what-was-already-in-the-room/): After my prostate cancer diagnosis, I started looking backward. The HoLEP, the PSA history, the changing numbers, the assumptions that seemed reasonable at the time—none of them told the whole story alone. But together, they taught me why knowing your baseline and watching the trend can matter.
- [Someday Is Not a Date on the Calendar](https://jonesingforthejourney.com/journal/someday-is-not-a-date-on-the-calendar/): For years, “someday” sounded responsible. Someday we would travel. Someday we would have more time. Someday we would do the things we kept postponing. Then life reminded me of something uncomfortable: someday has never appeared on a calendar.
- [Our Story: When the Journey Changed](https://jonesingforthejourney.com/journal/our-story/): We thought we knew what retirement would look like. Then prostate cancer changed our plans, our marriage, and our future. This is how Jonesing For The Journey was born.
- [PAYING HOPE FORWARD](https://jonesingforthejourney.com/journal/paying-hope-forward/): People shared information, encouragement, resources, and hope with Sue and me when we needed them most. Paying Hope Forward is our way of making sure some of that help keeps moving—to the patient, caregiver, or family coming behind us.
- [THE PURPOSE](https://jonesingforthejourney.com/journal/the-purpose/): At First, I Was Just Trying to Make Sense of What Was Happening Jonesing For The Journey did not begin because I had some grand plan to build a prostate cancer platform. It began because life had changed. Sue and I were trying to understand what was happening to us, what came next, and how a future we had spent years imagining had suddenly become something very different. At first, sharing the journey was simply a way to document it. The appointments. The decisions. The surgery. The recovery. The questions. The moments when we thought we understood the road — and…
- [The Numbers Don’t Know Everything](https://jonesingforthejourney.com/journal/the-numbers-dont-know-everything/): Cancer introduces you to a world of numbers. PSA. Gleason scores. Percentages. Test results. Risk estimates. Dates. Numbers matter. They guide treatment and help doctors understand what may be happening. But I have learned not to let a number become the entire story. A lab value cannot measure the quality of a conversation with Sue. A scan cannot measure hope. A prognosis cannot tell me what tomorrow morning will feel like. Medical information deserves our full attention. But so does the life happening around it. I want to understand the numbers. I just do not want to become one.
- [THE JOURNEY SHIFTS](https://jonesingforthejourney.com/journal/the-journey-shifts/): When the Future Suddenly Looks Different Cancer did more than change my medical calendar. It changed the way Sue and I looked at the future. Before prostate cancer, we had plans. Retirement plans. Travel plans. RV plans. Places we wanted to see. Things we had spent years saying we would do when life finally slowed down enough to let us do them. Then cancer arrived. And suddenly the future didn’t feel like something we could simply put on a calendar. It felt conditional. Dependent on the next appointment. The next treatment. The next blood test. The next piece of information. The…
- [Don’t Wait for Later](https://jonesingforthejourney.com/journal/dont-wait-for-later/): We use the word later so casually. We’ll take that trip later. I’ll call them later. We’ll slow down later. I’ll do the thing I’ve always wanted to do when life settles down. Then something happens that reminds you that later was never guaranteed. Cancer did that for me. I am not suggesting that we abandon responsibility or live recklessly. I am suggesting that sometimes we postpone the things that matter most because we assume there will always be another opportunity. There may be. But why make that bet unnecessarily? Tell people you love them. Take the picture. Make the call.…
- [THE TREATMENT](https://jonesingforthejourney.com/journal/the-treatment/): Radiation, ADT and the Road Ahead I once believed surgery might be the chapter where cancer treatment ended. My pathology told us otherwise. After the prostatectomy, the conversation changed. The pathology showed aggressive disease, including cancer outside the prostate, seminal vesicle involvement, positive surgical margins, and lymph-node involvement. Suddenly, Sue and I were no longer talking only about recovering from surgery. We were talking about what came next. Radiation. Hormone therapy. Systemic treatment. Words like ADT, Eligard, abiraterone, and prednisone became part of our vocabulary. Once again, the road had changed. Surgery Wasn’t the Finish Line There is something emotionally difficult…
- [The Plan Changed. The Purpose Didn’t.](https://jonesingforthejourney.com/journal/the-plan-changed-the-purpose-didnt/): We had plans. Retirement. Travel. Adventures. Places we wanted to see and things we assumed we had plenty of time to do. Then cancer changed the calendar. For a while, it was easy to focus on everything that had been interrupted. But eventually we began to understand something important: A changed plan does not have to mean a lost purpose. Maybe the road looks different now. Maybe some destinations have changed. Maybe we have to travel more slowly. But there is still life ahead. There are still people to love, stories to tell, places to go, and hope to share. Cancer…
- [THE QUESTION](https://jonesingforthejourney.com/journal/the-question/): The Question That Changed Everything People sometimes assume Ask One More Question came from one dramatic moment in my prostate cancer journey. It really didn’t. There wasn’t one appointment where I suddenly discovered the perfect question. There wasn’t one doctor, one test result, or one conversation that created the phrase. It grew out of something I kept experiencing over and over again. Every time I thought I understood what was happening, another question appeared. What does this number mean? What happens if we wait? What are the alternatives? What isn’t this test showing us? What would change your recommendation? What happens…
- [The One Question Nobody Asks](https://jonesingforthejourney.com/journal/the-one-question-nobody-asks/): What It’s Really Like on the Caregiver Journey By Sue Jones When someone you love is diagnosed with cancer, everyone understandably turns their attention to the patient. How are they doing? What did the doctor say? When is the surgery? What treatment comes next? How are they feeling? Those are important questions. I asked them too. In fact, for a long time, they became the questions around which our entire life revolved. But there is another person standing just outside the spotlight. The caregiver. And there is one question that, surprisingly, very few people think to ask: How are you doing?…
- [THE SURGERY](https://jonesingforthejourney.com/journal/the-surgery/): Facing the Unknown and Finding Strength There is something surreal about walking into a hospital knowing that when you wake up, a part of your body will be gone. My radical prostatectomy wasn’t simply a medical procedure. It represented hope. Fear. Loss. Possibility. And the belief that removing the prostate might remove the cancer with it. At that point in the journey, surgery felt like one of the biggest Mile Markers we would ever cross. I knew recovery would come afterward. What I didn’t fully understand yet was how much surgery would teach me — not only about recovery, but about…
- [Ask One More Question](https://jonesingforthejourney.com/journal/ask-one-more-question/): There is a moment in almost every difficult conversation when it would be easier to nod, say thank you, and move on. Sometimes that is exactly the moment to ask one more question. Not because you distrust the person sitting across from you. Not because you think you know more than the expert. But because this is your life, your body, your family, and your future. One more question can uncover an option you did not know existed. It can clarify something you misunderstood. It can give you enough information to make a decision you can live with. I have learned…
- [THE DECISION](https://jonesingforthejourney.com/journal/the-decision/): There Was No Simple Answer Once the words “You have prostate cancer” had started to sink in, another reality showed up almost immediately. We had to decide what to do about it. I think part of me expected that once the diagnosis was confirmed, someone would simply tell me what the answer was. Do this. This is the treatment. This is the path. Instead, what Sue and I discovered was a decision filled with probabilities, tradeoffs, risks, opinions, and questions. Surgery. Radiation. Hormone treatment. Combinations of treatments. There were legitimate approaches to consider, and each one came with its own potential…
- [THE DIAGNOSIS](https://jonesingforthejourney.com/journal/the-diagnosis/): The Words That Changed Everything There are certain sentences you remember differently than everything around them. You may not remember every detail of the room. You may not remember exactly what happened five minutes before or five minutes after. But you remember the words. “You have prostate cancer.” I was 59 years old. And before this journey began, I knew almost nothing about prostate cancer. I knew men got it. I knew PSA had something to do with it. And that was about the extent of my education. Suddenly, Sue and I were being asked to understand a disease we had…
- [What I Wish I Knew Before Prostate Cancer Surgery](https://jonesingforthejourney.com/journal/what-i-wish-i-knew-before-prostate-cancer-surgery/): Surgery was not the end of my prostate cancer journey. It was the beginning of a much deeper lesson about recovery, uncertainty, marriage, advocacy, and hope. 

## Pages

- [Terms and Conditions](https://jonesingforthejourney.com/journal/terms-and-conditions/): TERMS & CONDITIONS Terms & Conditions Last Updated: August 31, 2026 Welcome to Jonesing for the Journey. By accessing or using this website, you agree to the following Terms & Conditions. Please read them carefully. If you do not agree with these terms, please discontinue use of the website. About This Website Jonesing for the Journey is a storytelling, education, advocacy, media, and community platform focused on real-life experiences involving prostate cancer, caregiving, resilience, retirement, travel, patient advocacy, and navigating unexpected changes in life. Content may include personal stories, articles, videos, podcasts, interviews, downloadable resources, product recommendations, fundraising opportunities, and links…
- [WHY GET INVOLVED?](https://jonesingforthejourney.com/journal/why-get-involved/): GET INVOLVED One Journey Can Help Change Another Jonesing for the Journey began with our own unexpected change in direction. But it has grown into something bigger: a way to share what we are learning, encourage patients and caregivers, support prostate cancer advocacy, and remind people that none of us has to walk the difficult parts of life alone. You don’t have to be a prostate cancer patient to make a difference. You simply have to care. Together, we can pay hope forward. Join the Team Be part of Team Jonesing For The Journey and help support the mission of ZERO…
- [Collaborate With Us](https://jonesingforthejourney.com/journal/collaborate-with-us/): COLLABORATE WITH US Let’s Create Something That Helps People Jonesing for the Journey is built around honest storytelling, patient advocacy, caregiving, resilience, hope, and navigating life when the road changes. We welcome opportunities to collaborate with organizations, nonprofits, healthcare teams, media outlets, podcast hosts, patient communities, advocacy groups, and purpose-driven brands whose work aligns with that mission. Our goal is simple: create meaningful conversations, useful resources, and authentic stories that help people feel better informed, better supported, and less alone. WAYS WE CAN WORK TOGETHER Collaboration Opportunities Interviews & Media Podcast interviews, video conversations, media features, patient stories, and educational discussions.…
- [The Dream We Had Before Cancer](https://jonesingforthejourney.com/journal/the-dream-we-had-before-cancer/): RETIREMENT STORY The Dream We Had Before Cancer We thought retirement would mean an RV, open roads, and finallyhaving the freedom to explore. For years, we imagined this chapter differently. Retirement was supposed to be the time when the calendar opened up,work stopped dictating the schedule, and the road ahead finallybelonged to us. We talked about an RV. Long drives. National parks. Time with family.Places we had always said we would visit “someday.” And then cancer changed the route. Not gradually. Not conveniently. Almost overnight, the future we had pictured became filled withappointments, scans, surgery, treatment decisions, recovery, bloodwork,and a new…
- [Shop](https://jonesingforthejourney.com/journal/shop/): Jonesing For The Journey Shop Products With a Purpose This is not a list of products added simply because they can earn a commission. These are tools, books, recovery items, travel products, and everyday resources connected to experiences Sue and I have actually had along the journey. When we have personally used something, I’ll tell you why it mattered. When an item is included because I believe it may solve a problem for someone facing a similar situation, I’ll explain that too. A quick note: What helped me may not be right for everyone. Products related to recovery or health are…
- [Ask One More Question — Reader Resources](https://jonesingforthejourney.com/journal/ask-one-more-question-reader-resources/): ASK ONE MORE QUESTION Reader Resources Printable tools from the guide If you arrived here from the Ask One More Question ebook, you’re in the right place. These printable resources were created to accompany the guide and give you clean copies you can print, save, and bring to an appointment. You may have downloaded the ebook from Jonesing for the Journey or received it from a friend, family member, patient group, or another source. Either way, these tools are here for you. No signup required. Download what you need. PRINTABLE RESOURCES Tools to Help You Prepare and Track 01 PSA Tracking…
- [Speaking Opportunities](https://jonesingforthejourney.com/journal/speaking-opportunities/): Real Stories. Practical Lessons. Meaningful Conversations. Life rarely follows the plan we imagined. After an unexpected cancer diagnosis changed the course of retirement, family life, and the future, Jonesing for the Journey became a platform built around one simple idea: Ask One More Question. Mike speaks from lived experience about advocacy, resilience, leadership, caregiving, purpose, and what happens when life forces us to rewrite the road ahead. LET’S TALK ABOUT YOUR EVENT WHO MIKE SPEAKS TO Built for Audiences Navigating Change, Challenge, and Purpose Corporate & Leadership Groups Healthcare Organizations Patient Advocacy Organizations Cancer Support Communities Conferences & Associations Retirement &…
- [JONESING FOR THE JOURNEY PODCAST](https://jonesingforthejourney.com/journal/jonesing-for-the-journey-podcast/): Sometimes the best conversations happen when you’re not sitting in front of a screen. The Jonesing For The Journey Podcast brings the same honest stories, lessons, patient advocacy, and real-life conversations from JFTJ into an audio format you can take with you — whether you’re driving, walking, sitting in a waiting room, or simply looking for a little perspective during your own journey. These aren’t polished stories told after everything has been neatly resolved. They’re conversations from the middle of the journey. Sue and I share what we’re learning as life unfolds: navigating prostate cancer, treatment and recovery, caregiving, changing plans,…
- [Privacy Policy](https://jonesingforthejourney.com/journal/privacy-policy-2/): Who we are Our website address is: https://jonesingforthejourney.com/ Comments When visitors leave comments on the site we collect the data shown in the comments form, and also the visitor’s IP address and browser user agent string to help spam detection. An anonymized string created from your email address (also called a hash) may be provided to the Gravatar service to see if you are using it. The Gravatar service privacy policy is available here: https://automattic.com/privacy/. After approval of your comment, your profile picture is visible to the public in the context of your comment. Media If you upload images to the…
- [The Resource Map for the Journey](https://jonesingforthejourney.com/journal/the-resource-map-for-the-journey/): A Map for the Journey Start Where You Are When I was diagnosed with prostate cancer, I knew almost nothing about prostate cancer. I knew the word cancer. I knew enough to understand that it was serious. But I did not understand the terminology, the treatment options, the questions I should be asking, or how many decisions would eventually become part of my journey. I also learned very quickly that there is an enormous amount of information available. The hard part is figuring out what is relevant, what is reliable, and what question you need answered next. That is why we…
- [Watch Our Journey](https://jonesingforthejourney.com/journal/watch-our-journey/): Jonesing For The Journey began as a way to document what happens when life suddenly takes a turn you never planned for. What started with our own experience became something much bigger — a place to talk openly about prostate cancer, treatment, recovery, caregiving, patient advocacy, difficult decisions, and the unexpected detours that can completely change the road ahead. Sue and I don’t pretend to have all the answers. What we can offer is our experience in real time: what happened, what we were told, the questions we asked, the decisions we faced, what worked for us, what surprised us, and…
- [Journal](https://jonesingforthejourney.com/journal/journal/)
- [Home](https://jonesingforthejourney.com/journal/)
- [Privacy Policy](https://jonesingforthejourney.com/journal/privacy-policy/): PRIVACY POLICY Privacy Policy Last Updated: August 31, 2026 Jonesing for the Journey respects your privacy and is committed to being transparent about how information may be collected and used when you visit our website. Our website address is: https://jonesingforthejourney.com/ This Privacy Policy explains what information we may collect, how we use it, and the choices available to you. Information We Collect We may collect information that you voluntarily provide when you: subscribe to our email list or request a free resource; submit a contact, speaking, collaboration, or other inquiry form; leave a comment; communicate with us by email; participate in…

## Optional

- [Agent (MCP protocol)](websites-agents.hostinger.com/jonesingforthejourney.com/mcp)

[comment]: # (Generated by Hostinger Tools Plugin)