Why I Talk About Cancer
While I was taking my health coach training course, I was advised by the school not to work with cancer patients. At least not to work with them regarding their illness. I think their reasoning was that cancer is complicated, no one really understands why we have cancer or how to prevent its recurrence so it’s best to be safe and leave that to the medical establishment. Unfortunately, I think it’s also because cancer is a taboo subject on the internet where, out of fear of misinformation, only certain types of information are allowed. I’ve been sitting with this directive for a while, processing how it feels as a person who was previously diagnosed with cancer, to know that sometimes people are advised not to work with someone like me when I know how much I needed support and guidance. Especially during that critical period of choosing treatments and wondering what had caused this to happen in the first place. Cancer is a scary word. I feared it as a child from the moment I learned it existed. But I have cancer. I’ve had to sit with that, wondering what it means for my future, and I continue to wonder, even now that the most difficult decisions lie in the past.
The problem with leaving cancer patients to the medical system is that there’s not much support for them there either. If you’re one of the lucky ones who survives the initial diagnosis and treatment, then you are spit out the other end thinking maybe it’s all behind you. Am I to look at cancer prevention or is there something more for people who have been previously diagnosed and treated? Lifestyle and diet recommendations from the doctors are as varied as what you would find on an internet search and there’s no clear direction after you’ve completed the conventional treatments that are offered to you. In fact, I wasn’t sure if I was done having cancer after it was surgically removed and radiated or if I’ll always have cancer. I’ve wondered about it a lot but from what I know right now, once you have cancer you can’t “unhave” it. At least that seems to be the case for breast cancer.
It can feel isolating to have cancer and I imagine this is true for other illnesses too. At least a cancer diagnosis comes more easily than those with more mysterious conditions such as autoimmune disorders. But rarely does anyone claim to understand how or why these things have happened specifically to you. There is so much information to process but no clear pathways or solutions. And with cancer there is a sense of urgency to resolve it because we all know people die from cancer. The experience of any disease, whether chronic or urgently life-threatening, is so personal and isolating because it highlights the way in which we are utterly dependent on our own body to carry us through life. We don’t share that experience with anyone else. On the other hand, there is a silver lining, the initial diagnosis of something like cancer can bring everyone around and reveal the beautiful community that surrounds you. But once the emergency passes, it’s easy for everyone to forget about it, sometimes even yourself. That can be a blessing and an opportunity to heal our hearts but we also know that it’s not really gone, whatever caused it is still there and it would be unwise to ignore it.
Initially, I found that this awareness left me in a state of constant vigilance. Monitoring and evaluating all of my decisions based on how my actions would impact my health. When I look back over my life, I see how I am always seeking balance, even if sometimes it happens over long periods of time. These are like my own personal geologic eras. It appears to be my way of exploring both ends of a spectrum. And I’m currently calling on all of that wisdom now as I navigate my health after knowing I have cancer. Some of that wisdom told me that constant vigilance is unsustainable and in a very roundabout way, I’ve ended up on a discovery that returns me to my most core values. What is life really for? To me, it’s our relationships with both people and nature, our families and communities and the Earth, this beautiful, iron-cored, sunlit, water-covered planet that supports all life.
I’ve only cried a few times since all of this started but one of those times was on the day that I let myself feel the isolation that comes from everyone’s fear of cancer. The fear that causes people to recommend that even health coaches avoid supporting people who have cancer. It was on this day that I decided, yes, I will speak directly and openly about cancer. Each person’s experience of cancer is different and you are the decision-maker about your health care needs. What I’m most excited to share as a coach is what I’ve learned about how we can restore our health with simple, common sense lifestyle changes.
This information is not easy to find but these important lifestyle changes can support you in your recovery from cancer or in preventing it in the first place. This work is complementary to whatever other health care you are receiving from conventional, naturopathic, functional, or other medical providers you choose to work with and, I would argue, it’s also an essential piece toward reaching your health goals.
Working with a health coach is about examining your lifestyle and making sustainable changes. Through my research, coursework and experience with my own body, I’ve learned that there are really important things you can change about your modern lifestyle which we know are leading to diseases like cancer. And it’s not just about what you are eating or how much exercise you get, that is only part of the story of what your body needs to be healthy. It's not a magic bullet or snake oil. It takes time to heal and, weirdly, it’s a lot of work to make these simple changes. But that is why I am here, to support you to make those lifestyle changes that your body needs.
If you or someone you love has cancer, please connect with me. There are important things you can do improve your odds, feel hopeful, and enjoy your life again.