One of the best moments in the world, is the day that a patient is told that they have no more detectable cancer. Feelings of elation, that all of the hard work of healing has finally come to fruition, are so well deserved. It is a cause for celebration, a time to enjoy with all of the people who have supported your healing journey, but most importantly, a time when you can give yourself a huge pat on the back for all that you have achieved through perseverance and dedication. What next? Whilst it is incredible to be able to get rid of cancer – we must remember that cancer was part of a bigger journey. A metabolic state that our body adapted in order to restore homeostasis. This is the point we need to realise that returning to the way we lived our lives pre-diagnosis and treatment, is not the answer. It is likely that if we do, our cancer will return once more. There is a lot of self-reflection required during cancer treatment, as we try to establish the root causes of this disease. Sometimes they are very obvious – smoking and an unhealthy diet are probably the two most obvious. Other times, the causes can be more evasive – high levels of stress and anxiety, toxic environments at home or at work, relationship difficulties to name a few. It is important to note, that once we have identified these causes, they must be remedied in order to avoid becoming unwell again. Generally, there are a number of things that we can do to alter our lifestyles in order to prevent cancer’s return. Here are some changes that you can make:
1.Diet Eat a plant based diet rich in leafy green foods. Try to eat raw food as much as possible – a good guide is 80% raw and 20% cooked food. Keep your carbohydrate intake to minimal amounts – remembering that sugar feeds cancer. Try to have at least one day per week of water or green juice fasting, to give your digestive system a much deserved break, and allow all of your cells to heal and repair. Life is about balance, and there will always be times where we cannot do things ‘perfectly.’ Sometimes thinking of your body like a bank account can help in this regard – what you take out, must go back in. So, after a night of eating the wrong things, perhaps having a little too much alcohol – spend the next day water fasting to rebalance things.
2.Meditation Meditate every day! 20 minutes in the morning is all it takes to start the day with a fresh and calm mind, stabilise your central nervous system and regulate your emotions. Breathing and meditating is a time where you are able to listen to the innate wisdom and intuition you have within yourself. Taking the time to do this every day will allow you to be more present to what is happening in your body, and pick up on things before they become problematic.
3.Stress & Anxiety Removing yourself from or changing your relationships to reduce the amount of toxic stress and anxiety in your life is an incredibly important part of healing. Cancer most certainly changes our perspective on life, amd using these lessons to manage our own reactions and behaviours towards stressful people and situations is a critical part of healing.
4.Regular Monitoring and Testing Whilst we truly believe that obsessing over cancer is an excellent way to manifest it back into your life, we are very strict about our patients doing regular diagnostics, to ensure that if anything does come back – we can catch it early enough to treat it. Most of our patients do monthly CBC blood tests, and we also ask that in the first year they do PET/CT scans every 3 months, followed by every 6 months in the following few years. That sounds like a lot of radiation you might say? It is true – but having high dose Vitamin C immediately afterward can help to negate the effects. Knowing what is happening in your body at all times is an excellent way of catching things before they get out of control.
Happy healing! Please contact us if you would like some more tips on maintaining a cancer free life.
