Friday, April 5th marks 2 years cancer-free for me! It is nothing short of a miracle. For a while, I could barely go six months without another tumour popping up. Being cancer-free is an amazing thing to celebrate! I cannot help but smile as I write this.
Two years ago, I
made a choice to lose my left arm and part of my left shoulder in order to remove a very aggressive bone cancer. I have not regretted this choice for one minute because I
am alive. Yes, I am alive. In the past 2 years, I have done a couple road trips
to California in a Honda Civic with my youngest son and been blessed to watch
him play a few basketball games. I have seen my oldest son graduate from
university, fall in love, get married, and go off to pursue a doctor of
chiropractic degree. I have also really enjoyed a few adventures with my
husband including visiting Ottawa for the first time. I personally have received and mastered the use of my
shoulder/arm/hand gift from heaven prosthetic. I have started writing my book
and also applied and been accepted to the University of Calgary Masters of
Education program. I will be going back to school!! Life has been so good to
me. I certainly have learned to trust that God has a plan for me and to just
go with it. If any worry crosses my mind, I hand it over to God. He loves me
and as the Creator of the universe can handle things way better than I can.
My
journey was 7 years of 6 reoccurrences, more than 100 chemo treatments, more
radiation than any human being should ever have, 8 surgeries including a fourth-quarter dissection, 3 times I have been told, "You are done" and yet to the amazement of
my doctors, I am alive.
I tell the doctors, "God wants me alive". He has a plan for me and so I continue to speak by invitation and write my story. This journey was not just mine. It was a journey that encompasses everyone who knows and loves me. I am so grateful and filled with love for everyone who supported me through this trial.
I tell the doctors, "God wants me alive". He has a plan for me and so I continue to speak by invitation and write my story. This journey was not just mine. It was a journey that encompasses everyone who knows and loves me. I am so grateful and filled with love for everyone who supported me through this trial.
When
people ask me for advice, I will bluntly say ‘Do not listen to anything your
doctor tells you when it comes to your timeline’. No one can predict the future except God. And “...What is
impossible with man, is possible with God” (Luke 18:27). I put my faith in God.
Later
this month, I will be returning to see a young doctor who told me in January,
“No one is alive who has been what you have been through. I do not know what to
do with you .... there is no protocol ... I need to scan you more .... I need
to see you more.”
At our next appointment, I am going to tell him, "No ... I am 2 years cancer free, I do not need to be scanned more than once a year and after the next one let’s go to one scan every two years".
I will tell him about the message I had from an angel in November 2016 who distinctly told me, "You will have cancer one more time then you will be ok". I have had cancer one more time and now I can be OK. If there is a list of who one should believe, I am sure angels are on the list. I am also going to give him a copy of a medical article on hope written by another one of my doctors because he has a responsibility, if he continues in his profession, to instill hope in his patients and not scare the pants off them them with statistics. I certainly am an individual and am very happy to not fit onto their graph.
At our next appointment, I am going to tell him, "No ... I am 2 years cancer free, I do not need to be scanned more than once a year and after the next one let’s go to one scan every two years".
I will tell him about the message I had from an angel in November 2016 who distinctly told me, "You will have cancer one more time then you will be ok". I have had cancer one more time and now I can be OK. If there is a list of who one should believe, I am sure angels are on the list. I am also going to give him a copy of a medical article on hope written by another one of my doctors because he has a responsibility, if he continues in his profession, to instill hope in his patients and not scare the pants off them them with statistics. I certainly am an individual and am very happy to not fit onto their graph.
One
important thing that I have learned about cancer survival or even living a good life is that it is all about
supporting our immune system so that our bodies can do what they do best.
How does one support their immune system?
How does one support their immune system?
- Ask God to daily fill you with the Holy Spirit ... the peace and joy of heaven greatly outweighs anything that is here on earth
- Control your thoughts ... focus on gratitude and spending your energy on being healthy and stay away from victim mode
- Stick with your herd ... surround yourself with love and support
- Find things that work for you to be healthy and be happy. ... diet ... exercise... sleep ... supplements... alternative therapies (infrared sauna, chiropractic, acupuncture, massage, etc.)
- If you are doing anything that you know damages the immune system ... stop it!
Life
is too short for too many and we all need to embrace each day. I continue to
love and live each day ... I am on a gratitude high. Life is good! God is
good! May we all find joy on
our journey.
