Mental, Emotional, and Spiritual Health
Cancer takes a toll on a person, physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually. Our mental, emotional, and spiritual health also plays a role in our physical health, and this is an area of healing that often gets overlooked when we are dealing with cancer or another serious diagnosis. We are so focused on healing physically, that we forget to take a look at what we might need to heal mentally, emotionally, and spiritually. Here, I will discuss things that I did to achieve and maintain my mental, emotional, and spiritual health throughout my journey and today, and I will explore their critical role in our overall health and wellbeing. I hope that you find advice and tools that will help you throughout your own journey and beyond.
Saying Goodbye
Loss seems to come hand in hand with cancer. We lose a lot personally – our hair, pieces of our physical body, our life before, who we were before – but of course, we also lose people. When I was diagnosed, I was lucky to discover a lot of support organisations. I...
Reflections On My 4-Year Cancerversary
My cancerversary always looms large in my mind as the day approaches. I usually get quite reflective and think a lot about the previous year, how I’ve changed, how my life has changed, and what role my cancer experience has played in those changes. This year felt...
“I Remember When…” Series: The Wound
I remember when…I was first diagnosed. I remember how terrified yet numb I felt. It’s such an odd emotional place to be in; odd, and no fun at all. I had no idea what to expect, and it was all I could do to follow their instructions and get to my car, get to the...
Fear-less: Part Two
In part one of this series, I talked about how fear plays a role in our experience after a cancer diagnosis and how our western medical system, though full of compassionate and caring doctors, often ends up disempowering us and increasing our feelings of fear as a...
Fear-less: Part One
Fear plays such a role in our lives. It influences our development as kids, it impacts how we behave in and perceive the world around us as adolescents, and it can prevent us from living the life we dream of as adults. Fear begins as a practical emotion. It helps to...