I expected hot flashes when I started hormone therapy for prostate cancer. What caught me off guard was how a night of broken sleep could follow me into the next morning’s meetings, or how easily I could lose a word I’d used a thousand times.

Three months into a planned two years of androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) for Stage 4A prostate cancer, I’m still working full time and going through salvage radiation. In this episode, I share what low testosterone has felt like for me, from hot flashes and brain fog to the emotional changes I wasn’t ready for.

I also talk about the practical adjustments that have helped and why I bring these changes up with my care team.If you’ve been on ADT or supported someone through it, what surprised you most about the first few months?

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I’m sharing my own experience as a patient. Bring questions about your symptoms and treatment to your care team.

What does prostate cancer radiation treatment really feel like when you're halfway through 39 sessions?

I'm now 22 treatments into a planned course of 39 salvage radiation treatments following my radical prostatectomy for Stage 4A prostate cancer.

And if there's one thing I'm learning, it's that there's a pretty big difference between knowing what the side effects might be and actually living with them.

In this episode of Jonesing For The Journey, I'm sharing an honest, firsthand update on what radiation treatment has been like as I reach the halfway point.

The first week wasn't particularly difficult. But as the treatments continued, the side effects began adding up.

We're talking about the things that don't always make it into conversations about radiation treatment:

🔹 Radiation fatigue: Why this exhaustion feels different from simply being tired—and why I describe it as something that settles deep into your bones.

🔹 Bowel changes and diarrhea: One of the less glamorous realities of pelvic radiation treatment, but something patients deserve to know about.

🔹 Urinary frequency and interrupted sleep: What it's like waking up repeatedly throughout the night and trying to start the next day feeling rested.

🔹 Working through treatment: Balancing daily radiation appointments, physical fatigue, and the brain fog that can accompany androgen deprivation therapy (ADT).

🔹 The cumulative effects of radiation: Why feeling reasonably well during the first few treatments doesn't necessarily predict how you'll feel several weeks later.

I'm also sharing what I've learned about listening to my body, communicating with my treatment team, and managing the challenges that come with radiation therapy.

My treatment includes salvage radiation following prostate surgery, along with ADT. Everyone's experience is different, but I believe hearing what treatment is actually like from another patient's perspective can help make the unknown a little less intimidating.

If you're preparing for prostate cancer radiation, currently undergoing treatment, or supporting someone who is, I hope this conversation helps you feel more informed and less alone.

And if you've already been through radiation, I'd love to hear how your experience compared with mine.

Remember: Ask one more question. Take an active interest in your own rescue.

🌐 EXPLORE OUR JOURNEY

Visit our website for personal stories, patient advocacy resources, and information to help you navigate your own journey.

jonesingforthejourney.com

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Real Life. Real Journeys. Real Hope.

And so…the adventure continues.

Medical disclaimer: This podcast shares my personal experiences and is not intended to replace professional medical advice. Always discuss symptoms, treatment decisions, and concerns with your healthcare team.

Seven months after radical prostatectomy, how much recovery should you expect? What gets better, what doesn't, and what happens when prostate cancer treatment is far from over?

Seven months ago, I underwent a robotic-assisted radical prostatectomy after being diagnosed with aggressive prostate cancer. I knew recovery wouldn't happen overnight, but I don't think I fully understood how much life would change after surgery.

In this episode of Jonesing For The Journey, I'm sharing an honest update on where things stand seven months later—the progress, the frustrations, the unexpected challenges, and the things I'm still learning.

We talk about:

• Urinary incontinence: Going from approximately six pads a day after catheter removal to just one insert a day, and what that progress has meant.

• Erectile dysfunction and intimacy: The reality of recovery when nerve-sparing surgery wasn't possible, and why intimacy is about so much more than intercourse.

• Physical recovery: The lingering swelling in my legs, the changes to my body, and learning to recognize what recovery looks like for me.

• The emotional side of recovery: Coming to terms with the changes cancer has brought to my life, my marriage, and the future Sue and I had envisioned.

• Life after surgery: Why reaching the seven-month milestone doesn't mean the cancer journey is over, especially as I continue treatment for Stage 4A prostate cancer.

Some things have improved considerably. Others are still a work in progress.

And some things may never return to exactly what they were before.

But I'm learning that recovery isn't always about getting back to who you were. Sometimes it's about learning how to move forward with who you are today.

If you're preparing for a radical prostatectomy, recovering from prostate cancer surgery, or supporting someone who is, I hope hearing my experience helps you feel a little more informed and a little less alone.

Remember: Never make an important decision based on a single piece of information. Ask one more question.

🎙️ Jonesing For The Journey
Real Life. Real Journeys. Real Hope.

🌐 Explore our stories, resources, and patient advocacy information:
https://jonesingforthejourney.com

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Medical disclaimer: This episode reflects my personal experiences with prostate cancer surgery and recovery. Everyone's recovery is different. Always discuss medical concerns and treatment decisions with your healthcare team.

And so…the adventure continues.

Can you keep working full-time while going through cancer treatment? And what happens when the fatigue becomes more than simply feeling tired?

I'm still working while undergoing radiation therapy and androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) for advanced prostate cancer. But working through treatment has required some changes I never anticipated.

In this episode of Jonesing For The Journey, I share what cancer-related fatigue really feels like during a workday—from the bone-deep exhaustion after radiation to the brain fog that can make even familiar tasks challenging.

I also share the three adjustments that have helped me continue working:

1. Organizing my workday around treatment and energy levels.

2. Being honest about my limitations before they become bigger problems.

3. Letting go of the pressure to prove I can still work exactly as I did before cancer.

I talk about the support I've received from my employer, the importance of communicating with your boss, and why needing flexibility or stepping away from work should never be mistaken for failure.

This isn't about being tough. It's about giving yourself permission to adapt.

Whether you're navigating cancer treatment while working, supporting an employee or coworker, or caring for someone facing these challenges, I hope my experience offers some perspective and encouragement.

This is my personal experience, not medical or employment advice. Everyone's treatment, circumstances, and ability to work are different.

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Real Life. Real Journeys. Real Hope.

And so…the adventure continues.

7 DOWN. 32 TO GO.

What is prostate cancer radiation treatment actually like? What happens during an appointment? How do you prepare? And what about the side effects?

After completing the first 7 of my planned 39 radiation treatments for Stage 4A prostate cancer, I wanted to share what the experience has really been like—from the daily preparation and positioning on the treatment table to the emotional side of showing up day after day.

In this episode of Jonesing For The Journey, I walk you through 7 things I've learned from my first 7 radiation treatments.

I talk about:

• What I expected before starting radiation—and what actually happened.

• The daily routine of preparing my bladder and bowel for treatment.

• What happens inside the radiation treatment room, including positioning, imaging, and treatment delivery.

• Why those little alignment marks matter.

• How long the appointments actually take.

• The radiation side effects I've experienced so far—and those I haven't.

• How Sue and I are adjusting to what I call "a new normal. For now."

One of the biggest surprises? After those first seven treatments, I hadn't noticed any new problems with my energy, urinary function, bowel habits, or physical discomfort.

But that's my experience after seven treatments. It doesn't mean the remaining treatments will be the same, and everyone's cancer journey is different.

This is also another chapter in a much bigger story. Following my radical prostatectomy, we learned that my prostate cancer was more advanced than originally believed. Then, just as radiation was approaching, another unexpected discovery—prostate cancer cells in tissue removed from my bladder—added another detour.

Now, with radiation and ongoing hormone therapy, we continue moving forward.

And through every appointment, Sue has been right there beside me. Because cancer doesn't just affect the patient. It changes life for the people who love and care for us, too.

If you're preparing for prostate cancer radiation, currently undergoing treatment, or supporting someone you love, I hope hearing about my experience makes the unknown a little less intimidating.

We're not medical professionals. We're sharing our personal experience, what we're learning, and the questions we're asking along the way. Always follow the guidance of your own medical team.

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🧭 Our Resource Map — trusted cancer, patient advocacy, and caregiver resources, conveniently gathered in one place:
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Some product links may be affiliate links, which means we may earn a commission from qualifying purchases at no additional cost to you.

JOIN THE CONVERSATION

Have you been through radiation treatment? What surprised you most? Or, if you're preparing to start, what's your biggest question?

Share your experience in the comments. Your story might help someone else facing the same uncertainty.

Follow Jonesing For The Journey on Spotify for more firsthand stories about prostate cancer, treatment, recovery, caregiving, advocacy, and finding a way forward when life changes the plans.

Remember: Never make an important decision on a single piece of information. Ask one more question.

Real Life. Real Journeys. Real Hope.

And so…the adventure continues. 💙

A routine baseline MRI after my radical prostatectomy was supposed to be just that — a baseline.

Instead, it found a new spot on my bladder.

That unexpected finding led to another cystoscopy, another surgery under full anesthesia, a bladder biopsy, days of waiting for pathology, and a delay in starting my planned 39 radiation treatments.

And then we got the answer.

The spot was not bladder cancer.

Pathology showed prostate cancer in the bladder tissue.

In this episode of Jonesing For The Journey, I walk through what happened from that first MRI in July through surgery on September 14th, what we know — and don’t know — about how the prostate cancer ended up there, and how the finding affected the next phase of my Stage 4A prostate cancer treatment.

One of the biggest lessons from this detour reinforced something I have said throughout my journey:

Never make an important decision on a single piece of information.

The MRI told us something was there.

The cystoscopy confirmed the spot.

Surgery removed it.

Pathology finally told us what it actually was.

Cancer has a way of moving the finish line just when you think you know what comes next. Sometimes the route changes.

You adjust.

And you keep moving forward.

If you or someone you love is navigating prostate cancer, surgery, radiation, recurrence, biopsies, scans, or simply the uncertainty that comes between appointments, I hope sharing my experience helps you ask better questions about your own care.

In this episode

00:00 — The Scan That Changed Everything
00:48 — The Baseline MRI
01:34 — A New Spot Appears
03:07 — The Second Cystoscopy
03:47 — Back in Surgery
04:18 — Waiting for Pathology
04:51 — The Answer
06:02 — Radiation on Hold
06:56 — Why One Test Isn't Enough
08:02 — Moving the Finish Line
08:55 — Where We Are Now

📘 FREE GUIDE — Ask One More Question
Visit JonesingForTheJourney.com

✍️ Mile Markers Journal
Follow the journey, treatment updates, recovery experiences, and lessons learned at:
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Reputable prostate cancer, patient, caregiver, and advocacy resources gathered in one place:
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🤝 ZERO Prostate Cancer
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I’m not a doctor, and Jonesing For The Journey is not medical advice. I’m sharing my personal experience as a Stage 4A prostate cancer patient. Every diagnosis and treatment plan is different. Please discuss your individual diagnosis, test results, treatment options, and medical decisions with your own healthcare team.

My name is Mike Jones.

This is Jonesing For The Journey.

And so…the adventure continues.

#ProstateCancer #Stage4ProstateCancer #Prostatectomy #Cystoscopy #RadiationTherapy #CancerJourney #PatientAdvocacy

The first four weeks at home after my prostatectomy brought a lot of things I wasn’t fully prepared for.

Leakage. Protecting the bed at night. Walking when I didn’t feel completely steady. Managing a Foley catheter. Constipation and gas. And sometimes just trying to feel clean and normal again.

In this episode of Jonesing For The Journey, I’m sharing 7 things that genuinely helped me through prostatectomy recovery weeks 1–4, along with several bonus products, practical ideas, and lessons Sue and I learned along the way.

This is not a shopping list.

It’s a preparation list.

We talk about:

• Daytime leakage protection
• Nighttime protection
• Walking support
• Having somewhere to stop and rest
• Compression socks
• Bowel and gas management
• Easier ways to clean up during recovery
• Managing a Foley drainage bag
• The little things Sue and I wish we had thought about before surgery

One of the biggest lessons I learned was that recovery wasn’t one giant problem we had to solve.

It was dozens of little problems.

And every little problem you can prepare for ahead of time leaves you with a little more energy for the one job that really matters:

Healing.

These are things that helped during my personal recovery. Your experience may be different, and your surgeon’s instructions and discharge plan should always come first. 7 THINGS THAT GOT ME THROUGH PR…

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6 Things Nobody Warns You About After Radical Prostatectomy

https://youtu.be/C2_zxAR85_w

That video goes deeper into the gap between what we talk about before surgery and what everyday recovery can actually feel like once you get home.

https://jonesingforthejourney.com

Real Life. Real Journeys. Real Hope.

If you’ve already been through prostatectomy, I’d love to hear your answer:

What was the one thing you were really glad you had at home — or the one thing you wish somebody had told you to have ready?

Your experience might help the next person preparing for surgery.

And so…the adventure continues.

🛒 Products & Recovery Resources▶️ Related Video🌐 Jonesing For The Journey

Before prostate cancer radiation treatments can begin, there's another important step: radiation mapping and simulation.

But what actually happens during that appointment? Does it hurt? How long does it take? And what are they doing while you're lying on that table?

In this episode of Jonesing For The Journey, I take you through my own radiation simulation and mapping experience as I prepare for 39 radiation treatments. I share what the appointment was like from a patient's perspective, what surprised me, how I prepared, and some of the questions worth asking your radiation oncology team before treatment begins.

I'm sharing my experience not as medical advice, but because knowing what to expect can make an unfamiliar part of the cancer journey a little less intimidating.

If you're preparing for radiation—or supporting someone who is—I hope walking through this part of my journey helps you prepare for yours.

Ask one more question. Take an active interest in your own rescue.

Real Life. Real Journeys. Real Hope.

And so…the adventure continues.