Cancer-proof
Whenever there's something just ... not quite right with my body, there's a part of my brain that cackles: "CANCER!!" Because - hey, guess what - this body betrayed me before, and if it can slip up on little ol' influenza, whose to say those immune cells are out there responsibly killing cancer?
Like. They. Should. Be.
{It's your job, cells. Can you please do it effectively?}
I know it's all a bit ridiculous. I feel like crap, yes; but this is the flu, not relapse. All this time laying in bed just reminds me what life was like only 4 short years ago. And how much I don't want to go back there.
I wish there was a recipe for cancer-proofing my body.
Maybe it would go something like:
***********
Cancer-proof Body
serves 1
The time
Whatever you've got. No more, no less.
The ingredients
{substitute what you were born with. we don't all start with 'good' ones, cancerwise ... }
Varied, unprocessed foods*
Clean water
Lots of exercise
*organic if you can
The process
1. Treat your body kindly. Like you treat whatever you treasure the most. Does your child get organic veggie purees? Do you treat your car to the special petrol? Do you walk your dog twice a day? Yep. You deserve the best, too.
2. Don't let guilt pervade your life. So ... when you don't treat your body kindly? {Missed a run? Ate too much? Feeling hungover ... on a Tuesday?} Don't punish yourself. Try again next time. Guilt just sucks up energy in your life that you could be using for other things. Like living.
The cost
Time. You spend it to gain it. Get it?
Of course I know there's no recipe for cancer-proofing myself ... no guarantees. But life isn't about guarantees ... it's about probabilities. Chances unfolding before me and you like flocks of origami birds. Opportunities to try, to fail, and try again.
And tomorrow I'm going to wake up, and {unlike today} I'll not do too much ... I'll just sit back and recover.
Happy weekend, friends,
Amanda xx
And tomorrow I'm going to wake up, and {unlike today} I'll not do too much ... I'll just sit back and recover.
Happy weekend, friends,
Amanda xx
My mother is a five year survivor of stage IV lung cancer and cancer is sprinkled throughout my family on both sides, so I live my life trying to cancer-proof my body. Like you said, there are no guarantees in life, but I sure want to do what I can to make the probabilities of cancer cells taking over less.
ReplyDeleteWhile I may live with a remote threat of cancer, I know it is nothing like what it must be like to have experienced it and have that threat be the result of a distinct memory. Reading this I am reminded of what it must feel like for my mom day after day. I'm so sorry you have to live in fear. But cheers to you for taking a proactive approach to preventing a relapse!
It is horrible that the "C thought" is always lurking. You ARE doing all the right things. You are spreading joy everyday also with your beautiful blogs. I am so happy when I see you have a new post up and I have been dreaming about making your soy free bread and have been scouring thrift stores for pots! There is so much good about you that I think that right now you have an invisible "anti-C" forcefield around you (you know the cell protecting kind that looks like a bubble and destroys bad cells within a 5 meter radius). So now you can just relax and remember that and you don't have to worry anymore. x
ReplyDeleteHa! I loved picturing my force field ... :) KA-POW!!
ReplyDelete