Mother and daughter publish book about their journey after a terminal diagnosis

A mother and daughter from Saskatchewan, Tennille and Lydia Corbett, were given news that no one wants to receive: one of them is dying.

Tennille was diagnosed with terminal endometrial cancer and given 18 months to live.

“When she said, ‘I have about 18 months to live,’ we were like, ‘That’s just a number. It’s fine.’ But … the more you sit with it and the more you think about how much time we really have, it’s not a lot,” Lydia said.

To cope with their feelings and the sudden change, the two wrote a book called (Un)remarkable.

“(Un)remarkable is sort of a play on words…. For those that have chronic illness or cancer and you’re reading your medical reports for the first time, the medical community, when something is not right, it’s remarkable. And when something is all clear or it looks fine, it’s unremarkable,” Tennille said.

Lydia recognizes that her mom is “very strong” but while she was grappling with her emotions on her mother’s diagnosis, she realized that while many were showing their support for her mother, no one was asking how she was handling the news.

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“I am getting frustrated that no one’s asking about how I’m feeling,” Lydia said.

“It’s difficult not knowing how to navigate your emotions. You feel guilt because you know you don’t want to complain about your mom having cancer, but it’s affecting you just as much.”

So, Lydia began to write down her feelings and share her story and feelings – and her mother, Tenille, joined in the writing with her perspective.

“It shocked me. I was not expecting my life to change in the way that it did,” Tennille said.

Tennille said that with how quickly things can change, she felt there was “some urgency” to tell her story.

Lydia stressed that it is important to listen to your body and feel your feelings.

“Just listen to your body. Listen to your thoughts. They’re all valid. They’re all real.”

The book launched in September due to the month’s significance.

“September is Endometrial and Uterine Cancer Awareness Month, and it is also Suicide Prevention and Awareness Month as well. So with our two key points about our book, mental health and endometrial cancer, we wanted to make sure that people knew about that and to look up what both of those awareness months mean,” Tennille said.

One dollar from each book sold will be donated to each of the Saskatchewan Cancer Foundation and the Canadian Mental Health Association, Saskatoon branch.

The book is currently being sold online at McNally Robinsons and Indigo.

“I’m still in the shock phase of like people are actually reading it,” Lydia said.

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