Even if you’re not sick, I strongly suggest that you start listening to your body/Inner Guide/Intuition today. Practice, practice, practice. This will help you tremendously for with practice, you’ll learn what your body needs. Whether you’re sick today or not, you’ll become far more skillful, and like me, you too will be able to skillfully navigate through the medical world and make better decisions for yourself.
I suggest finding a professional who’s been trained in the field of trauma because having a serious illness is traumatic. (For help in finding one (most are near me), see my suggestions below.) As strange as it sounds, I denied that I ever experienced any traumas for years! I KNEW NOTHING ABOUT TRAUMAS BUT I “WAS SURE” I’D NEVER HAD ONE. In hindsight, I can see that I simply wasn’t ready to confront this, so I refused for a long time. When young, I’d been taught that I had to be strong, and after I got seriously ill my family insisted I continue to be. (For example, my brother and I have never even discussed that I had a brain tumor, cancer or was ever was sick at all – due to his inability to emotionally cope and because he gets easily overwhelmed.) Consequently, for years I only focused on being happy and grateful and making sure I did everything I could to put all those around me for at ease. I didn’t want anyone to be uncomfortable because of my illness (like the members in my family obviously were). By focusing on their fears and discomfort, I did myself no favor. When symptoms from all my traumas began to appear, and I didn’t know what was going on. Increasing migraines and fatigue and a mistrust of others kept me withdrawn and anxious for years. Only when I felt safe would I go out in public. I thought of myself as a failure for not being strong enough, so finally I went to counseling. My counselor, Alexis, a trauma specialist, gently pointed that my behavior and fears were quintessential behaviors of someone who’d been traumatized. But I’d had no idea. Facing this and freeing these constrictions from my body has been liberating!
In addition to weekly counseling, using the Kiloby Inquiries to help me overcome trauma has been extremely beneficial. So much so that I’m now a certified facilitator because KI made me aware of subtle but damaging ways trauma and my false beliefs had been restricting myself and my life. Working with Kiloby facilitators combined with the work I do with Alexis has become extremely effective.
In 2011, I overcame breast cancer in just five months using a natural protocol developed by the late Bill Henderson, author of the book titled Cancer Free. I’d been told I had to get a mastectomy within a month, or I could possibly die from the cancer. Is the protocol I used for everyone? Absolutely not for we all are individuals and what’s good for me may not be good for you. But whether you decide to use conventional treatment or use a natural remedy, know that we practically always have choices, and we have time to decide. Research, like I did, to find the best treatment (for you for there are many ways of treating cancer, for example.)
For those of you who live locally I highly recommend a doctor who’s been a Godsend to me – Dr. Jaime Lee, who practices in Groton, CT. To those of you who live elsewhere no matter what kind of treatment you choose to treat cancer, please make an appointment with any doctor who practices natural medicine. Even if you are having chemotherapy or radiation, for example, she’ll suggest ways that will not only make you more comfortable but will support your body to heal more efficiently. Also, know that I get a thermography test every year from Dr. Lee which shows if there’s any sign of cancer SEVEN years before conventional tests do, giving plenty of time to treat the disease. If everyone got this test annually, I have been told that NO ONE WOULD EVER HAVE TO DIE OF CANCER (and the same thing with Alzheimer’s and all diseases because there would be plenty of time to treat them. I highly recommend to all that you get this test. And if you don’t live nearby, you can call Dr. Lee to find a doctor that is near to you.
I have also found Kripalu yoga to be invaluable. I now am taking classes three times a week on Zoom with Priscilla Humphrey, who wrote: When facing an unexpected diagnosis, fear and a deep stress have a way of slowly taking hold of your mind, emotions and then the body. We all need tools for self-care to get through challenging times. We need something that really helps. YOGA. BREATHWORK. MEDITATION are here for YOU. Each of these gentle healing practices can become a comfort that reduces your stress, lowers your fatigue, lifts your spirit, cleanses your lymphatic system, calms your nervous system, quiets your mind and is emotionally relaxing. It will also help with joint pain, strength and flexibility. Yoga will teach you how to be with whatever you’re facing with more ease, confidence and self-love. Yoga, breath work and meditation helped me on my own healing path. I now teach a combination of Kripalu yoga, Energy Medicine, Yin Yoga, Mindfulness Meditation and Relaxation. Having support as you heal is essential. Each week I offer yoga classes online that can be accessed from your home. You can find my class schedule here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/priscillayoga/ and the Zoom link to easily access all classes I teach that are offered on a donation basis. You can reach me by email at priscillayoga@aol.com or by phone or text at 860-608-3731.
Alexis Heitman, MA, LMHC, LCDP is a certified AEDP therapist who practices psychotherapy in Rhode Island. AEDP is a model of therapy that is both relational and experiential. By working experientially with trauma, loss and pain in the context of a supportive therapeutic relationship, AEDP helps to transform human suffering. Recognizing that we are all wired for healing, it seeks to foster this innate capacity for growth and transformation. To help you find a therapist here is the AEDP Therapist Directory which “has roots in and resonances with many disciplines — among them interpersonal neurobiology, attachment theory, emotion theory and affective neuroscience, body-focused approaches, and last but not least, transformational studies.”
Lynn Fraser is the founder of the Stillpoint Method of Healing Trauma. She has 22 years of experience teaching meditation to thousands of students around the world, and specializes in holding safe, trusted spaces for people healing trauma. Lynn is a senior meditation teacher in the Himalayan Tradition of Yoga Meditation and a Certified Facilitator of the Kiloby Inquiries, a somatic mindfulness method of healing. She is the founder of and interviewer for the Radical Recovery Summit, an online exploration of addiction recovery with a diverse group of thought leaders and innovators in the field, including Gabor Maté, Rick Hanson, Resmaa Menakem, Irene Lyon and James S Gordon. I cannot speak highly enough about her!
Join Lynn and her group (to which I am a faithful and grateful member) live every day at 8AM Eastern for a free, online guided relaxation practice on Zoom: http://zoom.us/j/645904638. Password: 397228. “Lynn’s the real deal.” Dr. Rick Hanson, neuropsychologist and author of the best-selling book Resilient, How to Grow an Unshakable Core of Calm, Strength and Happiness. “Lynn has experienced a profound recognition of present moment awareness and embodies it naturally.” Scott Kiloby, founder Kiloby Center for Recovery, the first mindfulness based addiction recovery center in the US.