Sand Dunes & Daisies

This is the last time. That’s what I told the Surgeon today. I’m sick of medical appointments and tired of being cut on, if I’m being honest. It takes a lot out of you, having to recover from such invasive procedures. It leaves you with lasting side effects and things that don’t go away.

When I found out this cancer was back again, I was pretty mad about it. Not happy that I had to deal with all this again. Missing work, not feeling well, and the time it takes away from my life and the things I really want to do. It overshadows so many of the daily decisions you make. So, I decided this time, I would do things MY way!

I think it was Dr. Phil who said, “If what you’re doing isn’t working, it’s time to do something different.” That is the honest truth too! So I started watching videos of regular people just like me and reading and learning about how they had healed themselves from this disease by eating whole, organic foods, juicing, making nutritious smoothies, using supplements and vitamins, acupunture, massage therapy, and POSITIVE THINKING…..that’s a big one there. I started following a naturopathic doctor and using his vitamins and supplements.

So I came up with a little mantra I say to myself everyday, many times: I AM HEALTHY, I AM WELL, AND I AM HEALED. How you speak to yourself matters. If I tell myself every day that I have cancer and that I am sick and I will never be rid of this disease…..guess what? That’s exactly what I am going to get. I am the only one in charge of my attitude towards this thing and I’ll be damned if I am going to let it take my joy – or my life! I made up my mind to stop eating processed foods. Have you ever read some of the boxes your food comes in?? If you’ll notice in the ingredients, down at the bottom – usually in small print, you’ll see: Genetically Modified food ingredients or Bioengineered food ingredients. I read this on PubMed (pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov): “The results of most studies with GM foods indicate that they may cause some common toxic effects such as hetatic, pancreatic, renal, or reproductive effects and may alter the hematological, biochemical, and immunologic parameters.” Wow. Yeah, that’s what I had been putting inside my body. For YEARS. And guess what happens? When you fill your body with crap – you will get exactly what you put into it. Simple as that.

I’ve realized that God gave us all that we need to stay healthy and well and live a full and productive life. He doesn’t want me to be sick! He wants me to live long and prosper! If you haven’t noticed, since the pandemic, a lot of people have gotten back to their roots and the natural ways of doing things…homesteading, gardening, making herbal remedies. Being self sufficient. Taking care of the temple God gave us.

So, that’s what I’m doing. No more bad habits. No more negativity. No more processed foods. More praise and worship music. More reading God’s word. More taking vitamins and supplements. More whole, organic vegetables. Less meat. And guess what has happened?? My antibodies have DECREASED from 722 to 631 in just this little bit of time! The two enlarged nodes in my neck have DECREASED in size. And I FEEL better. Did you hear that part??? I FEEL BETTER! I’m not depressed, I have a little more energy and my pain level has DECREASED! If that isn’t confirmation, I don’t know what is.

The Surgeon told me today to keep doing what I’ve been doing!! My white cell and red cell count is great and so are my platelets. The ONLY thing out of whack is my antibodies and they are coming down! He says he is 100% sure that this is metastaic papillary thyroid cancer and very slow growing. He even showed me a tiny spot in that same place on a PET scan taken YEARS ago. So, I have time. And so many don’t. And it breaks my heart honestly. Cancer really is a thief.

What does that mean for me? It means, I have put my surgery off for at least 6 months, with my Surgeon’s blessing. It means I can start an amazing new job on Monday morning and not have to take time away for a while. It means that I can focus on all the positive things happening in my life. When I go back in 4 months, we will do a CT scan and we’ll check on the size of things and my blood work….and if needed, we will schedule surgery for a few months later. But I’m feeling kinda blessed these days and who knows, maybe NOTHING will “glow” on this scan!

I AM HEALTHY. I AM WELL. I AM HEALED.

And I am blessed.