In 1999, as a full-time working wife and mother and recent owner of “this old house,” I was diagnosed with breast cancer. It started out as a little bleep on the screen of my life with a Stage 0 diagnosis and quickly moved to further discoveries of invasive cancer that finally got my attention. The next two years would bring enormous change in body, mind, spirit and life to the point that I would need a telescope to look back at the former me. And this, my friends, is a good thing.
Prior to this diagnosis, I was in an unhappy marriage, feeling overwhelmed by the beautiful but needy house we bought, while wishing I could spend more time with our young son instead of rushing to and from a train to my full-time job in the city, where I dashed about all day. I felt that there was never enough of me to go around, which meant I gave very little to myself. At a deeper level, I knew that things weren’t working, but just kept trying to dance as fast as I could and look to the next day for better results. I viewed myself as a failure.
Five surgeries, six months of chemo and six weeks of radiation put me through the wringer, yet during the span of 20 months from the first surgery to the last, my love and gratitude for life and a belief in the possibilities for a wonderful life were ignited in me. A few years after recovery, this led me to begin writing Thank You, Cancer which remained in an old laptop for many years. It was after losing a job in 2014 that I asked a friend to free it from the old laptop. It was about two-thirds of the way done, and now I had even more insights. After receiving my certification as a transformational life coach, writing a few articles about my experience and starting to speak to local audiences, it was confirmed that my message could help many. Not just cancer survivors, but really, anyone who has been hit by a stunning adversity, whether disease, divorce, loss of a loved one, etc.
In addition to a few “dark night of the soul” moments, my tale shares odd humor, grace, synchronicity and romance, not only with a young Frenchman but with myself. I fell in love with me and my life, and I’d love to help you feel this way about yours.
Adversity of any kind is never meant to keep us in the do-loop of the story. As we become interested in healing and growing, there are gems of wisdom and inspiration we can harvest to build a life we’d really love.
As things now stand, the book is due out in September of 2016. I’ll be using this site to publish excerpts and updates on its birth. I’ll be setting up a link to pre-order copies. I would love your support! In addition, we’ll have a blog site where you can gather insights from myself and others who have left adversity behind for a wonderful life they love.
ThankYouCancer.com is a place to come for loving support and encouragement, and is a continuous work-in-progress. I would love your suggestions and feedback! And if I can be of service to you as a speaker or a coach, it would be my pleasure to discuss the opportunity.
My very best to you!
Susan