Embracing The Positives Of Cancer

I am lucky I am very in-tune with my body, so when I started to notice some changes, I knew that something was amiss. I very quickly followed through on what needed to be done to sort this 'problem' out. I remember waiting to have the diagnostic surgery, wondering what they would find, how I would react, & how my loved ones would cope.

I recall thinking to myself, I shouldn't be thinking like this, it's not a good vibe, this isn't who I am. But if I'm perfectly honest, I already knew what the diagnosis was going to be. When I actually heard the words coming out of the surgeon's mouth the whole world stopped. I couldn't breathe. I remember my husband saying 'Take a breath Don, take a breath'. It was horrible, my worst nightmare.

The next couple of weeks were a whir of tests, doctors appointments, procedures, and then treatment. That first day of treatment was the absolute worst. Pulling into the carpark of the ICON centre, I suddenly and completely understood the overwhelming feeling of being completely out of control with my emotions... my first, and what I hoped would be my last panic attack. And so it began.

I have always prided myself with a positive attitude, something I believe was a true gift from my father. And the weird thing is, I decided this situation would be a positive experience as well. Once the initial shock was dealt with, I chose to look at what the positives were for me having a cancer diagnosis. There were many. And it was how I chose to deal with it.

I immersed myself in an extremely strong and vigilant self-care routine and spiritual practice. I developed morning and evening rituals that became like a life-line for me. Everyday I used meditation, visualisation, affirmations, and journaling. I became super conscious of how I communicated with myself and others. I worked hard to keep my self talk in check and not allow my ego to take hold. This became the empowering force for me as I transcended the progressive regimes of chemotherapy and radiation. I had some really rough days where I was angry, sad, and... well, pissed off big time. But on the whole I remained positive and accepting. I was determined to be the exception to the rule of what I was told would happen. And I was. I felt proud of myself for choosing this path.

I don't need to go into the details of what transpired, but know that the commitment and consistency of the practices I embraced on a whole new level, were my absolute saving grace, along with the support and love of my beautiful family and friends. The treatment I had was certainly not pleasant, and the side effects also not pleasant. But all that I did from day one, certainly made a huge difference to how things could have been.

The point of sharing this, is that we all have a choice of how we look at things. We can choose to look from the perspective of doom and gloom, and the experience will be difficult, or we can choose to take the good with the bad and flip the experience completely. I never want to go through this again, and gratefully have been given the all clear now. But I also know that without this experience, I would have taken much, much longer to get to where I am on an emotional and spiritual level. I would not have mastered the things that I did. I would not have seen or taken the opportunities I discovered, and that presented as a result of this experience... something I have come to refer to as my 'special assignment in life'.

For me, that is the bonus of my cancer. I embraced it, made 'friends' with it, forgave it, then kicked it in the butt. A very empowering cycle to say the least.

So next times things are amiss, if you're not happy with the way life is playing out, or you're feeling overwhelmed and defeated, sit down and take a really close look at what is truly going on for you. What opportunity is this situation giving you? What one small thing can you take as a positive? And believe me there is a positive in EVERY situation. Sit with what comes up, work through the emotions, all million of them that seem to appear, and then choose how you are going to be.