Healing Isn't a Destination, It's a Journey

The beginning of a new year is the perfect time to look around you and find your inspiration. Once you can accept that giving up is not an option, Tambre can help you find motivational sources to help you live with your cancer.

Almost everyone reaches a point at least once during the experience where you simply want to give up. It's normal to want cancer to be over, be easier, be cured, and be something someone else has to deal with. Cancer is a roller coaster ride of ups and downs...and too many downs can make you feel like you can't take anymore.

The reality is, you don't get to quit. You don't have the option to throw in the towel at cancer. So when it feels like you've been facing health challenges forever and want to give up, figure out how to make healing a journey.

Live With Your Eyes Open

Find inspiration in the things that surround you. No matter what you're going through, there is someone out there who has found a way through the hard times. And, chances are, those people left inspiration in the form of art. So read, watch, and listen.

Read
I've found great comfort in the writings of Viktor Frankl, particularly Man's Search for Meaning. Here is my favorite quote, which speaks to the heart of coaching. We cannot always change our circumstances, but we have the power to choose how we respond to them. "Everything can be taken from a man but one thing; the last of the human freedoms-to choose one's attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one's own way."

Watch

One of the most inspiring videos for me is Dr. Randy Pausch's The Last Lecture. Like Frankl, he believes in focusing on what you can do, not on what you can't do.

"We cannot change the cards we are dealt, just how we play the hand." ~ Randy Pausch.

Listen

Create a playlist of music that lifts you up and energizes you. Ask other survivors, fighters or supporters for suggestions. Click here for some suggestions from members of the IHadCancer community:

If you live with your eyes and ears open, chances are, you will be struck by inspiration. Then, keep that inspiration present at all times. Create a screensaver, or keep a post-it note with your favorite quotes nearby.

Healing Versus Cure

No one can be certain of the future. Consider creating a lifelong commitment to wellbeing - make it a journey instead of a destination. Take it day by day, step by step, and, when necessary, moment by moment. How might that impact the choices that you make?

Maybe you felt like quitting when you started to read this post. Congratulations on not giving up. Instead of throwing in the towel, you somehow got yourself connected on the internet to a powerful resource and picked up some inspiration. Taking small steps makes a big difference!

In the end, what matters most is that you find a path to create more peace and ease, and less stress, so you can improve the quality of your life.

I've shared some of my favorite motivational resources. Now, what are yours? Post them below. A song, video, quote or book that works for you may be just thing a fellow survivor needs to get through a hard moment or a tough day.