The old writer in me always has me looking for a title to begin any writing as a way of looking for that central theme… and for the last week or so…the “titles” that have been swirling through my brain are…”Re-calibrating Her Life” & “Fighting for Her Life”. Carol has been doing a lot of both. No one will be surprised by how bravely she’s doing it either; with grace, courage, intelligence, and such determination. I was fortunate to spend some good quality time with Carol this past week and I found myself asking internally, could I ever find the inner strength to do what Carol is doing- which in my view, is fighting this fight incredibly well and re-calibrating her life with such courage and strength.
First of all, as to the fighting part…..she’s taking very good care of herself. She’s eating amazingly well taking care to eat the healthiest, purest forms of food she can. She’s exercising every day with walks that have had her getting a little further each week. Some days are better than others of course and a good day is often followed by a day of more fatigue. Carol continues to experience some back pain and numbness in her legs which waxes & wanes. She is mindful to rest every day as she needs to.
Another way she is doing an amazing job of fighting the fight is by doing tons of research and being open to all kinds of treatment options and alternative approaches. She’s actively talking to people and reading books some of which have amazing stories of people’s phenomenal victories over this disease through adopting alternative treatment approaches. While remaining constant with the traditional treatment as prescribed by her oncologist through the Cancer Agency, she has begun to learn more about the Gerson natural treatment developed by Dr. Max Gerson which involves boosting the body’s immune system through diet and shifting the body’s environment from acidic (cancer promoting) to alkaline which cancers don’t like. Another step Carol has taken is to focus on stress-reduction strategies which include meditation, deep breathing and guided imagery exercises. She looked into a couple of different retreats and is attending a Callanish Society retreat which specializes in retreats for cancer patients and their families.
As to re-calibrating her life… fighting a fight like this one certainly involves having to re-calibrate one’s life and working on finding a new equilibrium of sorts- both in practical terms and emotionally. This undeniably involves dealing with a lot of letting go of what she feels she no longer needs or is not realistic for her now. Carol is cleaning closets as her energy permits and going through lots of old stuff. As you know, she’s lost some weight and therefore had to do a little shopping to get some new clothes that will fit better. Carol has shared how she (and her family) have all had to re-calibrate their lives to accommodate what is realistic at this point in time. For an active family such as the Daggitts, this has meant a real change in the pace of their lives and in the general activity level within their home; necessary of course, but as we can all imagine, a real process emotionally for all of them.
Carol asked that people know she still enjoys the calls and visits. They’ve really made a difference to her and although many of us are concerned about the energy consumption visiting requires, it also energizes her to see her friends so keep up those calls and visits please. She’s hoping to get up to their cabin in early July and is looking forward to Randy’s sisters coming down for a week also in July.
I’ve come to feel more connected to many of Carol’s friends and family, some of whom I do not personally know, but now feel a stronger bond. It feels so good knowing she’s not alone nor are we… I close with a deep breath- Thanks for reading~~~ SusanJ
