Green Living Magazine · page 43
Recoup Rejuvenate And Reclaim Your Life After Breast Cancer
October 2011 greenliving 41 ? D Feature W e all lead busy lives, oftentimes forgetting to care for our health. In our over-connected, over scheduled and ‘burning the candle at both ends’ lives, our physical and spiritual well-being takes a back seat. But to keep up the pace, our health has to be…well, healthy.
The lull between summer and the holiday rush is the perfect time to rejuvenate and revive your spirit by taking advantage of our great respite suggestions. In keeping with Breast Cancer Awareness month, I suggest you take time to be aware of your own health and don’t put it on the bottom of the to-do list. In the United States there are more than 2. 5 million breast cancer survivors, according to the American Cancer Society, and I know you have all earned a little “me-time,” far from the appointments, doctors, and treatments that consume your daily lives - and even if you’re blessed to be cancer-free, you’ve earned it too.
Step away from the emails, texts, stoves, mops and errands and put yourself at the top of your to-do list this month. re·ad·just Set or adjust (something) again: 2. Adjust or adapt to a changed environment or situation: “she wondered if she could ever become readjusted to this sort of life,” Webster’s Dictionary Meditation is one of many ways to readjust. The benefits of meditation are well-documented for improving individuals’ health and mental states, as well as reducing stress levels.
Recoup, Rejuvenate & Reclaim Your Life After Breast Cancer Navigating life after breast cancer is challenging and sometimes frightening without a guide or map. Sarah breast cancer survivor and owner of the Meditation Training & Retreat Co. , based in Sedona, AZ, offers self-discovery retreats and workshops in Sedona, and programs for meditation novices through her Everyday Meditation classes, in Phoenix. This dynamic and passionate teacher served as the education director for the Chopra Center for Wellness and began teaching meditation in the early helps breast cancer survivors answer a common question: “What am I supposed to be doing with my life?”
through her mediation classes and retreats. The Yoga of Writing: A Woman’s Meditation & Writing Retreat, is recommendation for survivors. This intimate three-day retreat guides women as they write, talk and listen. She teaches them how to quiet the mind and stay in the present moment.
“People don’t really pay attention to their lives,” said. “That’s why meditation is so important…is to be present.” For survivors struggling with their post-cancer identity, this is the perfect workshop. In a small, intimate group setting just for women, survivors are empowered to navigate and re-examine their lives, belief systems and roles.
“The deep listening that happens during the retreat is very powerful,” said. “Women learn to listen and trust their own voice.” The Yoga of Writing: A Women’s Meditation & Writing Retreat is March 16 - 18, 2012 in Sedona, AZ. Best New Restaurant 2011 Phoenix Magazine 901 n 4th street • phx • blissonfourth.
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Green Space. Amazing Atmosphere. downtown phoenix along Roosevelt row re·coup ,754 To regain (something lost) To regain (lost physical or mental resources), Webster’s Dictionary It is possible to regain the power of your inner spirit. If you need to nourish your spirit, there is a place in Sedona, AZ designed to help you tap into your faith and beliefs, and recoup your soul with personalized experiences.
Cancer survivor Gregory Drambour owns the spiritual retreat Sedona Sacred Journeys. Drambour is a shaman, someone who treats ailments or illness by mending the soul (much like an old-world psychotherapist) and has been leading workshops and healing retreats for over 22 years. Drambour’s retreats—which include a Cancer Survivors and Patient Retreat—and belief systems are cultivated from Native American modalities. He emphasizes the importance of working with individuals to help them learn how best to access their own inner wisdom.
The Sedona Sacred Journeys cancer retreats are personally tailored, ranging from three to five days, and most often include a “vortex” experience, for which Sedona is well-known. Vortexes are areas believed to be rich with highly concentrated spiritual energy which is a powerfully conducive to prayer, meditation and healing. As the environment interacts with a person’s inner self, an experiential moment is created, according to many. Learning to forgive and finding the gift in cancer is not an easy thing to do, but Drambour believes it’s an important step in order to recoup one’s spirit.
“Cancer survivors are a tough bunch,” he says. “But we’re in the same club. They can look in my face and see that I understand.” This month The Franciscan Renewal Center in Scottsdale, AZ, offers Being Present, Manifesting Presence: a Retreat for Women.
The retreat, held October 28 to 30, features Carol Whittaker, and Gloria Cuevas-Barnett for a weekend of prayer and rituals designed to awaken the heart and mind to the present moment. “Being present to ourselves puts us in the place where we can experience and respond to the grace that is always present and sustaining us,” notes the renewal center. Attendees will have opportunities to share their journey and faith in individual sessions. The experience promises to help women enjoy wholeness and personal freedom through prayer.
42 greenliving October 2011 Feautre re·claim To rescue from an undesirable state; also to restore to a previous natural state, Webster’s Dictionary / “I am woman, hear me roar.” - Helen Reddy. Reddy’s #1 Billboard song was the theme for the women’s liberation movement in the This anthem is still empowering women today, and breast cancer survivors can roar with the best of them. Now you have an anthem in your journey to reclaim your body — the very one that fought cancer, suffered treatments, and won.
Let your inner lioness out and let her rip it up on the gym floor. For some tough love and booty-kickin’ workouts (after a doctor’s release of course! ), head over to Results Only Fitness and Catalyst Training. Results Only does not hold your hand, babysit or gloss over the truth, but if you’re ready to demand your life and your body back, Results Only is a great option for you.
Owner and trainer Bobby Kelly guides you through workouts that challenge your body and mental stamina. Kelly’s enthusiasm and dedication to overall wellness is reflected in his approach to fitness, and he only accepts applicants he feels can benefit from their conditioning program. The gym is not like a typical personal training gym.
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