I spent most of today tweaking my blog so as to make it easier to navigate. I’m on unfamiliar territory here, but hats off to WordPress for making it much easier than I had anticipated, due in no small part to their little instructional videos (pleasantly narrated by a gentleman with an English accent). I have attempted to group posts by subject, with the broadest category being “Living with lung cancer”. That shall be the default position for those posts regarding day to day matters.
It was good to have some busy work today, as I am feeling too emotionally tapped out to have done anything more creative. I have been on edge regarding my next scan, which is tomorrow. My own anxiety has been increased by the fact that several of my friends and acquaintances have recently learned that their cancer has progressed. It’s that whole team mentality; hard not to feel that we’re all passengers on the same bus. Sadly, David’s mom joined that team last week; she has just been diagnosed with non-Hodgkins lymphoma. And then on Friday, a good friend was petting our dog Buddy and noticed that he had a large lump on his lower jaw. I took him to the vet this morning, and on Thursday he will have x-rays and a biopsy for what is quite possibly cancer.
At times, it is just so very difficult to stay positive.
To that end, I will take a cue from the title of todays blog. I have just about finished reading Anti Cancer, (click on the book title should you wish to go his his website) by David Servan-Schreiber. A number of people have recommended it to me, and I have to say it is an amazing book. The author, a survivor of brain cancer, also wears the hats of scientist and medical doctor. He has written an incredibly generous and easily understood account of steps each of us can take to build up our immune system and counteract the mechanisms of cancer. He does not propose that these techniques should replace traditional medicine, but rather go hand in hand with it. His methods include modification of diet, a regular exercise routine, as well as awareness of the mind-body connection. His is a very holistic approach, and there really is no down side to it: they are all healthy lifestyle choices, whether or not you have cancer.
life and breath: outliving lung cancer 