Four days after I got engaged in March of this year I was diagnosed with cervical cancer. The doctor said, “You have a cauliflower growth on your cervix. That’s not normal. I am booking you in to see a specialist.”

A myriad of tests and a few weeks later I am getting ready to go into hospital tomorrow and have what is called a ‘radical trachelectomy’ - removal of the cervix, leaving the uterus and ovaries intact in order to preserve my fertility.

I decided to share this story because I know that each one of you reading this will know someone who has cancer, whether it be a friend, family member, or a colleague. I am hoping that some of what I share will be helpful to you.

Like you, when you hear of someone being diagnosed with cancer there is a shock and horror about the news, and then a secret relief that it is not you. I believed cancer was for other people. Not me. People who do not look after themselves get cancer. Old people get cancer. Some poor unfortunate kids get cancer. Not me. I’m healthy. I have been a vegetarian for twenty years and have run five marathons. When I went to see the doctor I was two weeks away from running my sixth marathon.

When I got the call saying I had cancer, this was my reaction: terror. Then grief, then shock, then horror, and a whole cocktail of other emotions. I sobbed long and hard. I looked at my new husband-to-be and wondered if he still wanted to marry me as I faced the prospect of losing my ability to give us children.

I would love to say that I was strong, that I saw the positive side of things, that I laughed it off. I did no such thing. I was as terrified as anyone else who learns their body is under major threat. Being told you have cancer really, really sucks. It hardly seems real, even now, a month later.

The worst part was the waiting between tests and results and doctor’s visits to clarify what it was we were dealing with. The worst imaginings tend to wreak havoc.

Then there were plenty of questions. Why? How? How does a life coach get cancer?? The truth is that a life coach did not get cancer. Zoë got cancer. And that’s when I started to understand a little more about what this could teach me.

I raked my history to find some source, some reason for my cancer, some personal transgression, some oversight in my health that I had missed. I beat myself up wondering how I did this to myself. I stripped all of my emotional and mental cloaks away to go to the source and stood there raw and vulnerable to see the human being under the skin. And that’s when I felt a deep compassion - a compassion for myself. When I reached this deep place of love, I was then able to let it flow to others and feel compassion for every other human being who is wrestling or hiding from their own demons - physical, emotional, or spiritual. It is a big journey requiring much courage.

Some people say that cancer is a gift, or that they have it for a reason. This sounds dreadfully punishing. I choose to find something I can learn from this. It is a big journey, only just beginning, but I have found some crystals of truth in the anguish.

Here is what I am learning on my cancer journey:
* Each and every human being is a universe of gifts and stories and wonder.
* I love many people and am loved deeply in return.
* I don’t have to be brave all on my own.
* I can heal my soul, if not my body.
* I am already good enough - I do not need a massive bank balance, fancy clothes, or any other markers to know that I am a worthy human being.
* I am who I am - I am not my job, my services, the roles I play in life as sister, daughter, partner, business owner. I am Zoë - a woman who lives and loves deeply.
* Laughing is a really, really good thing.

My wish for you, dear readers, is that you pause for a moment each day in full and complete gratitude for the gift of life and all the wonderful things before you. See and appreciate the sunlight on the trees, the blue sky, a smiling dog, a beautiful song.

Copyright Inner Compass 2005 innercompass.com.au www.innercompass.com.au

Cancer survivor Zoe Routh is the Head Coach at Inner Compass, a personal development organisation that helps busy professionals work less and achieve more. Inner Compass offers practical strategies and solutions to improve personal effectiveness and live an inspired life.

Zoe has worked with groups and individuals since 1987. She has worked as a trainer, coach and facilitator in helping people achieve their personal best.

Inner Compass offers articles, resources, and coaching programs to help busy professionals radically improve their personal effectiveness to live an inspired life.

innercompass.com.au innercompass.com.au

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Tags: cervical cancer

I was first diagnosed with breast cancer in October of 1992, at the age of 37. My life changed that day, in ways that I wouldn’t fully understand until many years later.

I was living in Miami at the time, a city I had lived in during my teenage years. I have many friend there and thought it would be nice to live and work there for a year before returning to California, where I am originally from. I took a job with the Department of Transportation and moved to a house in an area called Cutler Ridge in January of 1992.

On the weekends I saw all of the people that I had known since I was twelve years old and first living in south Florida. We would go to the beach and spend time catching up after all those years. Although I had regularly visited I had not spent much time in Miami since I had returned to California in 1974.

On August 17, 1992, Hurricane Andrew struck Miami. The house I was renting was torn apart and I spent six hours in a closet with my little dog and my insurance policy. When I was finally able to come out of the closet my world had forever changed. I lost everything, except for my life. I thanked God every minute for sparing me after such an ordeal.

I was ready to return to California when I became quite ill. After seeing three different doctors I was told that I had breast cancer and would have to undergo a radical mastectomy. I was finally able to return to California in time for Thanksgiving, but the doctors were sure that I would not see Christmas. Again I asked God to spare my life. I told Him that I had important work to do for Him, and promised to spend the rest of my life making Him proud.

Here I am, 14 years, 6 months, and 8 days later. I have kept my promise. I have also kept a positive attitude. I believe that my outlook on life is what keeps me going. I do have important work to do and I remember that each and every day. Each moment is a gift from God and I don’t forget that. Gratitude is another part of each of my days. My most important letter of gratitude was one I wrote to my first oncologist last year. I thanked him for what he had done to save my life and told him a little about how I live my life. I hope and believe that God is proud of me.

Connie Ragen Green is a motivational speaker and writer living in southern California. Visit her at ReinventYourLifeWithPassion.com/ ReinventYourLifeWithPassion.com/

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Tags: breast cancer, mastectomy

“Of course serious illness is serious! Why else would they call it ’serious?’ That is all the more reason to avail yourself of every advantage—including laughter.”
—Ronn Fay Jevne & Alexander Levitan, No Time for Nonsense

In my humor and healing programs, I do an exercise with red clown noses. Everyone in the audience gets a sealed packet with one inside. With their eyes closed, I ask them to think of some difficulty they are having and then, still with their eyes closed, to open the packet and put the clown nose on. Then I ask the audience to open their eyes and look around the room.

I was a little reluctant to do this activity, however, when I addressed the annual meeting of the National Coalition of Cancer Survivorship. I knew that a number of people in the group had facial cancer. Some had only a partial nose, some none at all.

I checked with the meeting planner to make sure that the clown-nose-process was appropriate. She assured me that even those with facial disfigurement would love it. Still, I was uncomfortable about doing it. My fears were quickly alleviated, however, when the group not only responded with overwhelming laughter but also delighted in sharing stories with me about their prosthetic noses.

One woman joyfully showed me a Polaroid photo taken in her hotel room minutes before my speech. She told me that she was getting ready to attend my talk and proceeded to put adhesive glue on her prosthetic nose. Then she waited for it to dry. When it came time to attach the nose, however, it was gone. She could not find it.

At that moment a friend knocked on the door. So she asked her friend to help locate it. The nose was finally found and a picture taken. It showed the nose stuck to her rear-end.

She delighted in telling me the story and in explaining the photo. But she was even more elated with the her new clown nose. She said, “This is great. From now on, I have a choice of which nose to wear.”

“Cancer, schmancer—as long as your healthy.”

Jewish saying

Surrounding cancer patients who are facing life-challenging issues with solemnity does not make sense. It neither helps their current condition nor their recovery. What is needed is something that will aid them in forgetting about cancer. They need something to take their mind off of their illness instantly. That something is the other “C” word—comedy.

“Someone asked, ‘Did you have colon cancer?’ and I said,
‘Well, mine was a little bit different; I had cancer of the semi-colon.’
—Steve Allen

In the January 1993 edition of McCall’s, TV journalist Linda Ellerbee wrote about some of her humorous cancer experiences:

Cancer is serious. But there are funny things about it too.

That summer I bought some breast prostheses to use while swimming. Instead of fastening them to my skin with Velcro as the directions instructed, I simply inserted the prostheses into my bathing suit. When I came out of the water, one had migrated around to my back! Now, how can you not laugh at such a thing? Either you laugh or you cry your eyes out. . . .

“As I left the doctor’s office the nurse put an envelope in my hand and said, ‘This isn’t a real prosthesis, but slip it into your bra and you’ll look a little more balanced.’ In the car, I opened the envelope, extracted a small wad of cotton, and shouted, ‘My God! I’ve got bigger dust balls under my bed than this!”
—Erma Bombeck

In Anatole Broyard’s brilliant book, Intoxicated by My Illness, he writes eloquently about being diagnosed with prostate cancer. One of the striking points he makes is that “Illness is primarily a drama, and it should be possible to enjoy it as well as to suffer it. . . Illness is not all tragedy. Much of it is funny.”

As we have seen from the people above who have gone through the cancer experience, much of it is laughable.

Allen Klein, MA, CSP, is the world’s only “Jollytologist”. His is also an awardwinning professional speaker, bestselling author, and the 2005-2006 president of The Association for Applied and Therapeutic Humor (www.aath.org). Klein’s books include:
The Healing Power of Humor, The Courage to Laugh, The Change-Your-Life Quote Book, ParentLaughs, TeacherLaughs, and Worklaughs. His workshops and keynote presentations show audience nationwide how to find humor in their not-so-funny stuff.
For more information about his presentations and books go to allenklein.com allenklein.com

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Tags: cancer patient, colon cancer, healing, prostate cancer

Prostate cancer is cancer that grows in the prostate gland. At an advanced age, the risks of surgery for prostate cancer or other more radical treatments may actually be worse than the disease itself. Detected in its earliest stages, prostate cancer can be effectively treated and cured.

About one man in six will be diagnosed with prostate cancer during his lifetime, but only one man in 34 will die of the disease. The main job of the prostate gland is to make seminal fluid, the milky substance that transports sperm. Men, who are younger than 40 years old, are rarely ever diagnosed with prostate cancer.

Additional symptoms that may be associated with this disease are bone pain or tenderness, and abdominal pain. One symptom is the need to urinate frequently, especially at night. Another prostate cancer symptom is difficulty starting urination or holding back urine. One of the most common symptoms is the inability to urinate at all.

If prostate cancer is caught in its earliest stages, most men will not experience any symptoms.

A number of tests may be done to confirm a diagnosis of prostate cancer. The prostate-specific antigen (PSA) test measures the PSA enzyme in your blood for abnormalities. The decision about whether or not to pursue a PSA test should be based on a discussion between you and your doctor.

A urinalysis may indicate if there is blood in the urine. Urine or prostatic fluid cytology may reveal unusual cells. There is a newer test called AMACR that is more sensitive than the PSA test for determining the presence of prostate cancer.

Hormone manipulation is mainly used as a treatment to relieve symptoms in men whose cancer has spread. The approaches to treatment include: waiting to see whether the cancer is growing slowly and not causing any symptoms. Whether radiation is as good as removing the prostate is definitely debatable and the decision about which to choose, if any, can be difficult for some men.

Radiation therapy to the prostate gland is either external or internal, both of which use high-energy rays to kill cancer cells and shrink tumors. Some drugs with numerous side effects are being used to treat advanced prostate cancer, blocking the production of testosterone, called chemical castration; it has the same result as surgical removal of the testes. Treatment options can vary based on the stage of the tumor.

Most men simply want the best treatment they can get but what’s important is picking the best treatment for you. Be aware that some men choose natural treatment options and forgo any surgery, radiation or chemotherapy. Recent improvements in surgical procedures have made complications occur less often.

Medicines can be used to adjust the levels of testosterone; called hormonal manipulation. Medications can have many side effects, including hot flashes and loss of sexual desire. Since prostate tumors require testosterone to grow, reducing the testosterone level is used to prevent further growth and spread of the cancer.

Thoroughly discuss your treatment options and concerns with your doctor and other health professionals; it never hurts to get a second or even third opinion or more if necessary. What you can do now is begin to understand what your treatment options are and where you’re going to begin.

It’s important to get as informed as possible and read all the newest books, ebooks and research available. With the advent of PSA testing, most prostate cancers are found before they cause any symptoms. The outcome of prostate cancer varies greatly; mostly because the disease is found in older men who may have a variety of other complicating diseases or conditions, like cardiac or respiratory disease, or disabilities that immobilize or greatly decrease their activity level.

For more information on

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Tags: chemotherapy, prostate cancer