Cancer Tips For the Newly Diagnosed

People often contact me when a loved one is diagnosed with cancer. It's such a frightful time initially, most people simple don't know what to do, and just step in line with whatever the doctor tells them. I have put together a list of tips that should be helpful to newly diagnosed patients, regardless of the method of treatment you chose to go through.

1. Your cancer did not appear overnight. That's right, you did not wake up one day and have cancer, it's been slowly growing in your system for years, YEARS, before you or your doctor discovered it. What does this mean? It means that there is no need to rush into a treatment plan. While you might not want to wait months or years, you have a few weeks to explore your options, get multiple opinions and do some resesearch before diving into a plan. Your doctor will likely attempt to immediately drag you into the chemo room, but hold fast little cancer patient. Take some time to discover what treatment options feel right for you. 
2. Get more than one opinion. I've talked to people who had one oncologist insist they needed a port, another both chemo and raditation and another wanted to try localized chemo treatments, no port, all for the SAME cancer. It's also important to realize you will be working very closely with this person, so having an oncologist that is supportive and informative is very important. And if you are interested in incorporating holistic methods, or going holistic all the way, see a Naturopath as well. In fact, if you have more than one in your area, shop them too. They will also likely have different treatment suggestions. 
3. Read this blog entry: What Your Oncologist Never Told You About Cancer before letting them cut into you.
4. Before starting chemotherapy, read Chris Beat Cancer's excellent blog entry: Why I Didn't Do Chemo. Great source of information.
5. Chemo and radiation are extremely hard on the body and can make you feel very sick. Ginger is great tool for battling the nausea. You can get them as chewable tablets, buy fresh ginger or pills. Personally when my stomach is upset I think slowly chewing the pills helps a lot. I have a friend that swears by this for enduring chemo treatments. Also, chemo can cause a lot of nerve pain and damage. Acupuncture is a great tool for healing this. Set up your appointments directly after your chemo treatment, therefore you won't be spending the night in agonizing pain. 
6. Become a nutrition expert. It's so important to support your body during cancer treatments. Cancer feeds on an acidic state and loves sugar. Green smoothies are an easy way to get started. Check out Victoria Boutenko's book "Green for Life" and the "Green Smoothie Revolution." Crazy Sexy Cancer chica Kris Carr recently released a wonderful book called "Crazy Sexy Diet." This book gives you a step by step process for transforming your diet. She's a kickass cancer warrior and I highly recommend all of her books. 
7. Shake Your Booty. I realize that fatigue is a big issue for a lot of cancer patients, but the more you move your body, the better you will feel and the faster you will heal. Your lymphatic system does not have it's own pump, it only moves when you move. When it gets sluggish, toxins can re-enter the bloodstream, making you feel sick. One of the best ways for cancer patients to exercise is the rebounder. This mini-trampoline is fun and easy and 10 minutes on it is worth 30 minutes of walking. It gets the lymph pumping and for those with little energy, do 5 minutes multiple times a day. Keep that lymph moving. Yoga is also a great tool. It helps with your breathing, flexibility, stress levels, etc. 
8. Detox, Detox, Detox. It's so important to move those toxins out of your body. If they don't come out, they will just be recycled back into your bloodstream, yikes! Dry Skin Brushing, neti pot, enema's, parasite cleanse, colonics; these are all great tools. Read more about them on my blog entry: Detox Your World
9. Not every treatment works the same on everyone. I have tried many different treatments during my cancer journey and some have had amazing results, and others not so much. However, some of the things that didn't work for me did wonders for others. Each person is different and the best way is to do something, and get frequent blood tests to see if the treatment is having an effect. Holistic remedies can be expensive, so there is no point wasting money on something that is having no affect. Also, if it's not having an affect, you definitely want to find something new that will benefit you.
10. Read other cancer blogs. Here is a list of wonderful blogs that are written by people healing themselves from cancer: Chris Beat Cancer, Polly's Path to Health and Happiness, Crazy Sexy Life Blog, The Wellness Warrior, and Walkstrong.
11. Take Care of Your Emotional Health. I believe that cancer is an imbalance not only of the physical body, but the emotional and spiritual as well. Plus, a lot of emotions can come up when diagnosed. Healing modalities such as EFT (emotional freedom technique), Reiki, meditation, affirmations, etc. can be a great help. Louise Hay is a wonderful woman who healed her cancer using daily affirmations. She has a great book called "You Can Heal Your Life" that I highly recommend. 
12. Read this blog post: Let Your Ladies Hang Free: Why I Stopped Wearing a Bra.
13. Educate Yourself. Read anything and everything you can on healing. There are a ton of resources out there and more coming out all the time. I've created an Amazon module at the bottom of this post with my recommendations of cancer healing books. Check it out!
14. Get social. People who are not going through cancer treatments are often sympathetic, but don't always understand everything we are going through. Crazy Sexy Life is a social networking site run by Kris Carr that has over 23,000 members, all healing from cancer. Many of these people are combining converntional medicines with holistic rememdies. There are many "Groovy Groups" for supporting people going through cleanses, specific cancers, people new to yoga and meditation, recipes, etc. Great resource for support. 
15. Buy This DVD. Cancer is Curable Now. An amazing look at the cancer industry and how you can heal now, without chemo or radiation. Watch it before you decide on a treatment plan.
16. Read the incredible story of Jane VanBenthusen, who healed herself from cervical cancer after being told there was no cure. Read her story here: Jane VanBenthusen

This is really a starter guide. Dive into this, then if you have further questions or want more information, feel free to email me or leave a comment on this blog post. I wish you the best in your cancer journey. Click here to read about my personal cancer journey.