I left work for the last day before surgery last week. I sent out a reminder to my fellow chiefs to remind them I would be out next week and that I would keep my work cell phone nearby if anything urgent arose. I heard complete crickets. It’s incredible how much of our entire self we pour into our careers, and how little they can pour back into us. I made a decision to tuck my work cell away for the next week and focus on healing.
For weeks I have kept myself busy, checking off all the boxes on the path to surgery, planning, cleaning, organizing and sucking down endless protein shakes as directed. When I finally stopped on Friday, it was like I had been pulling a slinky and the tail end finally caught up and smacked me in the back of the head. I felt emotionally drained and physically tired, despite following a healthier protocol these past months than I had in years. All my thoughts spiraled around how much this has changed my life, our lives. I worry about how my kids are dealing with this, how my parents are dealing with this, and how I will feel post treatment as everything is put into a different perspective. My head was pounding from the tension, and I struggled to sleep that night. Sometimes these days come out of nowhere, and I can only focus on waking up the next day and telling myself it’s all going to be just fine.
I continue to do a lot of research, trying to understand how this happened and how I can prevent it from happening again. I recently got deep into the book Chris Beat Cancer. I read everything with an attempt to collect knowledge. Although some of this book contradicts other things I have read, I try to tie together commonalities on research, data, and recommendations. I think regardless of the source, it’s clear that the body, in its optimal state, is meant to be well. I felt I lived a relatively healthy life, but every choice we make impacts our body, both physically and mentally. It’s not just the foods we consume, but the relationships and priorities we choose. It can take decades to build up to a diseased state, but the good thing is, you can turn this around in months. When you find this pesky thing exists in your body, you become almost hyper aware of everything you feel. This is what drives us to enact change.
This book talks about variety of factors that contribute not only to the “”C” word, but also overall sickness. The data is fascinating and will make you think about things you had never considered. I would never advise anyone to strictly follow this protocol without any level of medical treatment. That is purely a personal choice. It worked for Chris, but there is always some level of risk. However, I feel combining these suggestions with any medical options you personally choose with your doctor only helps the battle. These things aren’t hard either. Upping your intake of fruits and vegetables is doable. Adding natural supplements and teas is doable. Getting more rest and eliminating stress is something we can consciously do to some degree. These things also can’t be a short-term solution only while you are “sick”. In order to completely heal your body. These are long-term lifestyle changes. I plan to wrap a bow on this permanently. I highly recommend this book to anyone battling some type of chronic illness or issue. It’s so educational!
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