how being a cancer survivor chaged my outlook on life
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- čas přidán 5. 06. 2024
- After having cancer (Wilms tumor for everyone curious) as a kid, I am happy to be living a good and healthy life now. But even if being a cancer survivor has more to do with my past than my present, this part of my story does impact my life. So how has my outlook on life changed after surviving cancer?
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My sister died in a freak accident when she was 18 and I was 14, and that had a very similar effect on me. I haven't lived like other people since. We never know how long we've got.
Wow, so..., thank you very much first of all for this sharing, I particularly appreciated the sincerity and transparency with which you spoke to us and described your moods.
I can understand very well when you talk about not trusting your body, it's the same for me at the moment and I think it will be a constant in my life.
I've been trying, lately, to do some specific meditations to perceive my body as intelligent and capable of self-healing..
The experience of cancer in my life has swept away many people who were scared at the time, many relationships that I decided to cut because they had now turned into dead branches.
The disease also gave me the meaning of life, something that had eluded me so perceptually clearly until then.
As a cancer survivor (Stage IV Non Hodgkins Lymphoma LDBC), I understand completely where you're coming from. It's been almost a decades since, but even non-specific symptoms here and there, disturb me.
It always lìngers like an ugly shadow in the back of my mind.
Thank you for sharing this video. My father passed away in 2000 at the age of 68. I feel it’s important to make the best of our lives because as you said we don’t know what is ahead of us.
Thanks for talking about your journey. When I was fifty I got an illness that I wouldn’t wish on my worst enemy yet it was also a blessing. It gave me a chance to get off the hamster wheel and review what I’d been taught and realised so much was lies. I’ve healed what I can and learned to live other changes. Finding gratitude for the smallest of things is healing.
My nephew is a survivor, and I know how nerve wracking for your parents it must have been. Support Jacobs Heart, a free service to families in the US. Your channel is priceless.
Hi Lia! As a childhood cancer survivor myself, every single word, you said and thought, are exactly what I have. With only difference is that I have complications after my treatments and I still see oncologist every 3 months. After 23 year after being NED. I almost made peace with a fact that I won’t see myself getting old. And somewhat it is liberating. I am not agonising over the fact if I ll grow old. I admitted to myself that I won’t . And if I go actually live till old age, that will be a nice surprise for me.
Thank you for sharing a very personal story. I luckily havent experienced any ill health but I have a very similar outlook on life due to family members passing away at young ages. Life is for enjoying and not to be taken for granted. Wishing you and your family a happy and healthy life 🩷
I’ve never had something as major as this, but when I was 27 I had an incident that really changed my life. It was the same year that my mom was briefly hospitalized for a heart scare, my brother almost drowned, and my dad was killed… so I was already in a very strange headspace. My appendix burst and, without emergency surgery, there’s a high chance I would have died. Without modern medicine I wouldn’t be here and it really put some things in perspective for me. I often forget these days since it was so long ago, but at the time it felt like that he entire world had shifted. Thanks for sharing
my cousin, only 9 months older than me, got breast cancer at 30 yrs old. it doesn't run in our family and she doesn't have the gene, so it was quite a shock. but I've seen how it has changed her in many good ways too. she's always been a positive example to me and I love her dearly, but how it has opened her up even more and being intentional, she has such a young family too, and had she not had them so close together she would not have her four beautiful kids. true blessings.
Hi Lia. I’m also a cancer survivor, early breast cancer, 6 years ago. I spent most of 2018 having surgery, chemotherapy and radiation treatment. Everything you talked about resonated with me. I live with the fear that it may come back. I had my kids late in life so they’re still young , 22 yrs and 17 yrs. When you’re a parent, you worry more because you want to stick around as long as possible for your kids. Like you, I try to enjoy the little things in life and live as simple a life as possible. ❤️
Dear Lia, Thank you so much for sharing. I've shared your video with our cancer group (Cancer Community Clubhouse in Reno, Nv. USA). We have a Young Adult cancer group that meets regularly, and your video speaks to a lot of the subjects that come up. I just wanted you to know how much your words mean. And when our group hears that someone their age, who is in Germany is struggling with the same issues that they have in the USA, it is even more powerful. It is so helpful for survivors to hear from their peers, because while cancer survivors of any age can relate to the struggles and fears of treatments and after, and all of those questions that keep coming back, but we still need that next level of commonality. I'm a 67-year-old Ovarian Cancer survivor., I relate to all cancer survivors, but my perspective is still through the perspective of my age. Even so, I still learned from you. Thank you again, for being so brave and sharing your story.
In a very different event, i was given up for adoption (too long a story for here) but i definitely have always had trust/abandonment/low self esteem issues. Major events do affect us our whole lives. Love you video😘
Oh, I can totally see that, it's a very different thing but also a major life event that happened to you, someone else was in control, it doesn't necessarily make your life miserable now but just changes the way you see the world!
Thank you so much for sharing. I totally get where you are coming from and how you feel. I survived breast cancer 2 times and it did change me so much but now that it's back again and stage 4 I feel like my whole life is about that. I crave some normalcy so much. I am angry this time but incredibly grateful for insurance and medical help as well as family and friends support. I am questioning my faith right now which has been hard. I feel like a totally different person too and can never trust my body which is so scary. Much love to you and your family. I love your videos! ❤
Your depth of emotion on this really comes through, as does your wisdom. Thank you.
Dear Lia, I am also a cancer survivor. Diagnosed just last year at 38 yrs old, stage 1 breast cancer, finished treatment 6 months ago. I can relate to everything you said, and on top I would add 2 more aspects, in relationship with each other I think : 1. The survivor’s guilt - it is real and it’s something I struggle with ; 2. Losing religious sense, and any faith in higher things - it happened to me during treatment and left me a bit unsure of the purpose of my existence in the end of it all.
i never knew you had cancer, and i have watched you for years
Oh ja, Krankheiten und dramatische Lebensereignisse prägen das eigene Leben so sehr. Du hast es sehr gut formuliert wie sich das auf die eigene Sicht aufs Leben auswirkt. Ich selbst hatte eine chronisch kranke Mutter, die starb als ich 19 war. Es war daher immer schon in mir, dass ich nichts aufschieben will und auch was mir wirklich wichtig im Leben ist. Inzwischen hab ich leider selber die Erfahrung wie es ist mit einer chronischen Erkrankung zu leben und musste mich nach mehreren heftigen Erkrankungszeiten wieder ins Leben zurück kämpfen. Ich fühle die täglichen Einschränkungen durch meine Erkrankung, aber auch das Bewusstsein, dass es jeden Tag noch schlechter oder sogar vorbei sein könnte.
Have my last planned treatment coming up on the first of May (my own stem cells back in me after a high dose of chemo'), and I know what you mean, I've lost a lot of self belief in my body (due to complications of the cancer type and what my first tumour did) and how that'll be when I get back to work. Mine is a chronic cancer, so it's not if, but when it returns, but what I was reminded of first when I got my diagnosis was the Taoist story of the Farmer and his horse. Cancer is going to be a "maybe", that I've decided.
What a very emotional and thought provoking video; your words really made me think ❤
Thank you for sharing. As a student of Buddhism understanding impermanence, including our own impermanence, is a part of the path to freedom.
Thank you for sharing your unique story and perspective, Lia. As a person who lives with chronic illness, I consider it just part of who I am at this point. I have accepted that it can affect my lifespan, and have made enjoyment of the present moment a priority. I am grateful for the medical community here in Canada, because I can get the treatment I need to stay healthy and happy. I do think I tend to worry more than my peers if something is "off." Different scenarios will go through my mind, because that has been the reality before. But I also more readily access health care providers than most people to quell these concerns. I use the systems in place, trust them, and feel good about being proactive. Great video, Lia!
Thank you Lia for being so open and vulnerable. Your videos always make me stop and think. I have never had a mayor illness, but as I grow older I realize more and more that I cannot take my body and this life for granted ❤
Hello Lia, i had blood cancer when I was 27 (I am 46 now) and I recognise the living in the present. Mostly I feel very at peace and freaking happy, because I experience this life and make delilaberate choiches on how to live it. What I notice is that I still have (trivial) problems like everybody else, but in the end there is always this powerfull force: the feeling and thought that I survived!That I can walk around, sit in the sun, enjoy nature, enjoy food, a nice cup of coffee, go to work, read a book etc etc. To be lucky enough to not be in pain and to be fortunate enough to be around and to love my family and friends. Just what most people would call the basic and simple things in life. I extremely appreciatie these so called normal things because for many they are not normal at all.
I can totally understand why you are not o.k to sacrifice your now for your future - So important to appreciate the here and now
Thank you for making this video, I have a very similar outlook on life. I really enjoy your content ❤
As a cancer survivor I related to a lot of what you spoke on. Thank you and take good care. ✨
Thank you for sharing your story Lia 🙂
Thank you so much for this video, Lia. I’ve had multiple times in my life where something potentially (or actually) life-threatening was caught accidentally while I was being screened for something else, and I got lucky to access medical care before it was too late. In both cases, I didn’t have any recognizable symptoms that would have alerted me to it, so it really was an accident that I found out. I relate 100% to what you said about not being able to trust your body and feeling like your body betrayed you and could do so again and you have no way of predicting. For me this has led to hypervigilance of any symptoms and putting way more effort into my health and safety than anyone I know, and it has felt isolating when other people don’t understand and tend to judge me for it, even when they know my history.
You are the first person I’ve heard express a similar feeling and it feels deeply validating, so thank you! I love your positive reframe of nothing is guaranteed so I better live a full life now. That is such a great outlook that I can learn from. Another good lesson for me to learn is not to judge other people for NOT putting as much effort into their health or being as safety-conscious. If you haven’t had a near death experience, your mortality is not going to feel as real and ever present. And even if it does, you may respond with a seize the moment attitude rather than a fear and control based one. People are different and we shouldn’t judge others based on our own life experiences and temperaments. Thank you so much for sharing your story and starting this dialog. I’m so grateful you survived and got the care you needed!
Lia, this was such a beautiful and inspiring video…thank you for sharing!
Lia, I loved hearing this reflection from you. While I am grateful that I have not had a life-threatening medical condition, I have struggled with quality-of-life-threatening medical issues since I was a young teen. Like you, I became aware of my body as something that can fail me much younger than most people do. It changes us and sets us apart. I want to learn to love and trust my body despite its difficulties, to make the most of this life, and to reconcile with the inevitability of death. Much love to you.
I love listening to your thoughts and experiences. Thank you for sharing your wisdom with us!
Wow, I appreciated this chat and your honesty about your reality. None of us knows what is in store for us but being present in the present is a good place to start.🐇
Dear Lia, thank you so much for sharing!
Yes .helping comunity is very importent👍🌸
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Thank you for your perspective!
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Did your own history never make you anxious for your son beyond "normal" parental care/responsibility?
A little bit... Sometimes I feel as a parent there will always be SOMETHING hard and difficult with your kid (medically) because when I look around me so many kids require some kind of help at one point so I am kind of prepared... But also, there is no guarantee it's just going to be one thing... I think at the moment I feel fine and not too anxious but I just hope it stays that way 😊
I believe, from a spiritual perspective that cancer and diseases in general are a test of your faith in God. You pass the test as long as you keep the faith.
I think that is a dangerous belief and wrong. Because it means if you are sick it's your own fault. Or at least that getting better depends in faith and if you mean it's just about the faith, no matter if you survive then it's at least a very narrow view of religion and dictates how we should live and feel and think about our lives. And I think it's important that we all get a chance to make our own decisions about treatment, if we like it, if we hate it, if we think there is a "plan" or if it's just bad luck etc...
@@ecofriendlia Sorry, I should have mentioned this is my belief based on Christian doctrine. Passing the test does not always mean surviving the disease but it guarantees eternal life after your death. Some kind of belief on God, especially a loving God like that of the Christian faith may be what you need to get out of your own head.
I realized after my answer that your comment was just your personal belief, so I am sorry too for the harsh tone. And while I think it is absolutely ok to have whatever belief helps you I don't like the suggestion for me, because that goes against everything I believe...
@@ecofriendlia Against everything you believe? Are you sure about that?
@@user-zv6mk2uq9b How don't you see that your comment is really insensitive?