Breast Cancer Survivor Support

Women’s Cancer Resource Center 25th Anniversary Gala at Yoshi’s!

admin — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 15:01:49 +0000

An evening of dining and jazz, featuring the lush and vibrant vocals of Linda Tillery with Nicolas Beard and Friends.

February 6th, 2012

Yoshi’s Oakland

510 Embarcadero West

Jack London Square

Select ticket pricing available. For more information contact Pat Bregant at WCRC (510)601-4040 x105

Come, have a ball AND support the important services of the Women’s Cancer Resource Center. See you there!!!

Moving on after Breast Cancer

admin — Tue, 17 May 2011 22:56:46 +0000

I remember that right after finishing treatment for breast cancer there was still a feeling of waiting for the other shoe to drop. It’s all still so fresh and frightening. And it feels difficult and strange to step back into life because life has changed forever. But then after months and then, fortunately, years, life goes on and things happen and the clock just keeps on ticking. We move on….

We still have check-ups and tests and sometimes these can still be anxious moments. Certainly we all breathe freer when we fail those tests! I know I sure do. It’s hard to let go but it’s possible to take care and keep eyes open without living in a state of anxiety.

So…hang in there, keep breathin’ and fallin’ forward.

MAMMOGRAM

admin — Sat, 05 Feb 2011 18:38:17 +0000

Mammogram

by Jo McDougall

“They’re benign,” the radiologist says,

pointing to the specks on the x ray

that look like dust motes

stopped cold in their dance.

His words take my spine like flame.

I suddenly love

the radiologist, the nurse, my paper gown,

the vapid print on the dressing room wall.

I pull on my radiant clothes.

I step out into the Hanging Gardens, the Taj Mahal,

the Niagara Falls of the parking lot.

My Yahoo Article!

admin — Fri, 21 Jan 2011 03:05:55 +0000

I was recently interviewed by Yahoo on the subject of breast cancer survivorship.

Here’s the link.

http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/6164416/self care for breast cancer survivors.html?cat=5

A Thought

admin — Thu, 15 Jul 2010 23:17:15 +0000

“Consider yourself blessed.

These stones that break your bones

will build the alter of your love.”

by Lynn Park

Integrative Health Care with Amy Matecki and Alex Feng

admin — Thu, 15 Jul 2010 23:14:22 +0000

“Health is more than the absence of illness. It is a process of maintaining a sense of balance between your physical, emotional and spiritual self. Dealing with a cancer diagnosis, disease process and treatment options can be overwhelming.”

Dr. Amy Matecki, MD, MSTCM and Alex Feng, PhD, LAc presented their vision of integrated health care for those diagnosed with cancer as well as for those who are cancer survivors at the Markstein Cancer Center in Oakland, California. Both are involved at the Comprehensive Cancer Center at Alta Bates Summit/Herrick campus in Berkeley, California. They spoke to the benefits of Acupuncture and Qigong in combination with chemotherapy as well as radiation treatment. This program is only at its beginning stages and I will continue to post the news regarding this very important innovation at the cancer center.

Another vital component of Integral Medicine is attention to the emotional and spiritual elements of the cancer diagnosis…and survival. I believe we can no longer separate the body from the mind and the heart when we address healing at any deep level. Attention to our whole being is essential.

Authenticity

admin — Sat, 03 Apr 2010 00:57:26 +0000

Recently I’ve been struggling with wanting to be authentic about how I am feeling and, yet, not wanting to whine and complain about how I am feeling. My sense is that many of us feel this way after we have had cancer. Perhaps some years have passed and we have moved on with our lives…as have others. So when people ask…”How are you?”…well, the response feels complicated.

I’m not saying that I have the answer to this. I do, however, feel like I have identified my dilema. I want to be authentic yet I do not want to list out my ailments and concerns. We’ll see how this evolves.

“The I in illness is isolation, and the crucial letters in wellness are we.”

admin — Sun, 21 Feb 2010 20:36:14 +0000

Connection with others who share a similar situation can create a sense of belonging. It’s scary and lonely to deal with illness all alone. And we can also feel very alone when we are done with treatment. Friends and family may not be as attentive as they were, people’s lives naturally move on, we move on. Yet concerns linger and the need to begin to integrate your experience is important.

Find others to talk with, to listen to, to play and explore with. You can join a group. Attend a workshop that is dealing with the themes that survivors live with in their lives.

You don’t have to do this all by yourself.

“Seeing into darkness is clarity. Knowing how to yield is strength.”

admin — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 16:46:32 +0000

Quote by Lao Tse

Moving forward after treatment for breast cancer can feel really confusing. On the one hand, you’re glad it’s over. On the other hand, it can feel tough because the intense focus of treatment is gone and there’s an empty space inside of you that can fill up with all kinds of scarey thoughts and horror stories. Oftentimes the people around you want you to be ok and celebrate. So how come it doesn’t feel like a celebration? Instead you may feel a pressure to reach the “new normal” that is talked about or to quickly find some deeper meaning to the whole ordeal.

I think that it is really important to yield to your own experience, to validate what you have gone through and what you are going through now. It’s not wrong to be afraid of impending check-ups and there’s nothing shameful about worrying whether the treatment actually worked. Accepting our experience and holding it with kindness allows us to find our own clarity. Give yourself the gift of time and space. Take a breath.