Here is an article by Joanne Shuttleworth which appeared on the front page of the Guelph Mercury on March 9th 2010 – my 65th birthday.
I celebrated the publicity for my cancer prevention program called Start Here and Go Forward. I also celebrated the fact that I’m still alive and cancer free 23 years after having 3 types of cancer in 1987.
GUELPH -Lynn Roodbol was 41 when she learned she had breast cancer. Six months later she was also diagnosed with colon cancer and then skin cancer. All this a year after her husband had lost his job.
It was a devastating period and Roodbol said she felt helpless and hopeless as she became a pincushion for chemotherapy, at the beck and call of her doctors, and faced with the very real spectre of her death.
“I had myself in a pine box,” Roodbol said quietly. “I really thought I was going to die. But my husband coached me through it and I had a huge support system. And somewhere along the way something changed.
“The light went on for me and I stopped that downward spiral. I wanted to do anything I could to live again.”
Roodbol turns 65 next week — a number she never expected to reach in those dark days. She’s also a certified wellness coach in part from gratitude for the extra 20-plus years she’s been given. And part to help people who may be feeling as powerless as she had. Roodbol is leading a five-week workshop called Start Here and Go Forward, a program based on wellness coaching that will discuss healthy lifestyle choices, which help prevent cancer and reduce the risk of its recurrence.
It runs from Hospice Wellington’s temporary location on Woodlawn Road on Monday evenings, 7 to 8:30 p.m. from March 22 to April 19. Cost is free, but registration is required.
The methods she recommends are neither a surprise nor complicated and they can prevent other diseases besides cancer — eat a healthy diet, exercise regularly, get plenty of sleep and relaxation and learn to manage your stress.
“I’m not an expert, so if I can do it, anyone can,” she said. “But sometimes it’s difficult to see that on your own. A wellness coach will grab your hand and work beside you as you realize your goals.”
Roodbol said she was weighed down by negativity when she was diagnosed with all her cancers, and even when she began to recover she still didn’t feel well. She started to visit a therapist who helped her to leave negative feelings behind and focus on the positive.
“Therapy taught me to let go of anger and guilt. After all, I was an X-ray tech and I didn’t have a mammogram. I blamed myself. I was full of guilt. I had to learn to let it go,” she said.
It’s not as superficial as it may sound. Sometimes it takes a seminal event to put life in perspective. Sometimes an attitude adjustment is in order.
“Once you hear the ‘cancer’ word, you often don’t hear anything else,” said Erin McInnis, client services supervisor with Hospice Wellington. “And it’s easy to get lost in all the information. But life is about living, it’s about wellness. Lynn will challenge and inspire participants.
“At times like that, people are looking for things they can do to help themselves. Lynn will show them how.”
“If you spend your energy on wellness, it’s energy you don’t have to spend on being sick. And believe me, it’s so much more pleasant being healthy,” Roodbol said.
If you go:
WHAT: Start Here and Go Forward, a workshop based on wellness coaching that will discuss healthy lifestyle choices, which help people to prevent cancer and reduce the risk of recurrence of cancer.
WHEN: Monday evenings, 7 to 8:30 p.m. from Mar. 22 to April 19
WHERE: Hospice Wellington, 107 Woodlawn Rd. W.
COST: Free
This program is now full and I’m registering people for a new program starting on April 26 2010. Thank you for your interest!
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Sign in nowThank you, Lynn! If you could promote our blog in future entries, that would be fantastic. We’re always looking for new followers! Also, if you could give a quick “shout-out” about our January 12 networking meeting, I think it would be useful for many women. You can find more info here: http://lbbc.org/content/event/harnessing-the-emotional-roller-coaster-of-breast-cancer.asp?c=educational&t=participate&sn=networking
Great Michelle – no problem – I’ll put it out on Twitter as well. Best wishes, Lynn
Lynn Roodbol, MRT(R), CWC Certified Wellness Coach Phone: 519-837-2570 E-mail: coachlynn@sympatico.ca Blog: lynnroodbol.wordpress.com Website: http://www.cancerrecoverycoaching.com Helping to navigate the cancer recovery journey!
You know that was a fantastic post. I think I’ll write a blog post and link to it.
Thanks very much Jerrold – please do put up a link to this article – the more people that know about it the better!
Speaking of Cancer, there is a little known protein with Govt approval for treating and preventing cancer. For a short video, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ApppYada_wU.
Paul
http://www.Cellimmunity.com
The video is very interesting Paul.
It’s a complex issue for sure and there are many dimensions to a cancer diagnosis, but I’m glad to hear that your wife is well.
I believe in integrated medicine, in the mind body connection, and the power of healing yourself with whatever works for you, which includes the method you mention.
I hope that one day cancer will be like smallpox, a thing of the past.
Take care, Lynn
great share, great article, very usefull for me…thank you
- avid – mesothelioma resource
Hi ASEA plus RSM
Thanks for your comment.
No actually I don’t recommend supplements.
I do believe in healthy eating and good nutrition so people make food choices within these guidelines and eat things they enjoy.
Have a great day!
Lynn
Thanks for your comments Richard; it’s great to connect with you!
I agree about the cars – I was just thinking yesterday about preventive maintenance on a car compared to prevention of health problems.
Could it have to do with the fact that we pay lots of money for cars and we take our more valuable bodies for granted?
Hi Michelle
Thanks for letting me know about your fund raising – what an amazing achievement for everyone!
I’m sure your mother will benefit from all you have done – having someone like you to support her brings so much peace, love and healing.
You’ve done a great job to raise awareness in many people which hopefully they will remember and translate that knowledge into helping prevent breast cancer.
I believe the answer to breast cancer is in prevention so people don’t have to go through the tough times that your mother and many others have gone through.
Keep up the great work Michelle!
Thanks Ashley. Congratulations on your blog – you’re doing a great job of health promotion – keep up the good work!
I don’t seem to write blog entries as often as I used to but my position does not change; I totally agree with your perspective as well that health and wellness are products of the body, mind, and soul.
This often involves people making changes which are simple, but not easy, and why I believe that everyone does better when they work with a coach. Maybe wellness coaching is something you might like to do?
I’m a wellness coach, but I specialize in working with people who want to prevent cancer or the recurrence of cancer. So if you know of anyone who is working on recovering from cancer, I can help them to shorten the learning curve.
Hope to connect with you again soon Ashley!
Best wishes, Lynn