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Breast CancerWellnessM A G A Z I N EEmpowering MIND BODY SPIRIT“Stay positive,cancer is not anautomatic deathsentence.”–Dara Richardson-Heron, MDHappinessIS Essentialfor HealingAffordable Super FoodsHappy Mom’s Day!Making IntegrativeMedicine a RealityWitnessing CompassionYour entarymplim ue 4.95 C oIssVolume 4, Issue 1Spring 2009NON-PROFIT PRSTSTANDARDUSPOSTAGEPAIDPERMIT 205BOLINGBROOK, IL
contentsSpring 2009Breast cancer patients know that Medi’s sheer andcomfortable lymphedema products make a positivedifference in how they look and feel.Now, we’re adding another positive benefit intoevery package by donating a portion of the proceedsto The Breast Cancer Research Foundation .* Lookbetter, feel better and help us change the future ofbreast cancer. positively pink.Ask your doctor today about Mediven Ready-Made Lymphedema Products andour Sheer & Soft Compression Stockings.MEDIUSA.COM 800-633-6334* 1.00 of each purchase will be donated to The Breast Cancer Research Foundation ON OUR COVERDara Richardson-Heron MDSurviving & Thriving24-27Even as a young child,Dara Richardson-Heronwas determined to make adifference for others whenshe grew up. She initiallythought she wanted to be apediatrician to help childrenstay well but later learnedthat her skills were bettersuited to becoming a generalInternist because it was “toopainful to see sick children”.As an adult, she let herdesires, passions, education,and life’s experiences lead hertoward her current life’s work.Today, Dara is the CEO of theSusan G Komen for the Cure Affiliate for the Greater NewYork City area.28F E AT U R E SHappiness IS Essentialfor Healing 5Research is finding that when we are happier,even in the midst of our challenges, weare more resilient, we are able to bounceback more quickly, and we are able to dealwith the challenges at hand in a morecreative and effective way. So not only is itpossible to be happy for no reason in themidst of an experience of breast cancer,it is actually better for your health.HAPPY MOM’S DAY! 20-21Aromatherapy: An EffectiveComplementary Treatmentfor Breast Cancer 22In ancient times pure essential oils wereconsidered more valuable than gold. The useof plants is the oldest form of healing, andthe medicinal properties of plants have beenrecorded in the oldest historical writings.SURVIVING AND THRIVING24 Meet Dara Richardson-Heron28 Cancer: A Doorway to My SoulD E PA RT M E N TSPUBLISHER’S LETTER 4MAKING INTEGRATIVE MEDICINEA REALITY FOR YOU 9”Integrative medicine” is a buzz word today,raising hopes and visions among many of us.PLANT ESTROGENS: GOOD OR EVIL 12SUPER FOODS THAT YOU CAN’TAFFORD TO MISS OUT ON 14In today’s tough economy, it takes a prettynutrition-savvy cancer survivor to serve uphealthy, cancer-fighting foods that don’tbreak the bank. Dr. Dalzell shows us how.GIRL TALK FOR SURVIVORS 16PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT 18Ann Leach shares tools foryour self-care toolbox.GOING GLOBAL 19AMOENA FOR ME 32THE JOURNEY TO BREASTCANCER WELLNESS 33Are there areas in your life thatcould benefit from change?WITNESSING COMPASSION 35PINK PAGES DIRECTORY 372Breast Cancer Wellness Magazinewww.breastcancerwellness.org3
publisher’s letterHappiness ISEssential for HealingDear Friends,During these historically unusualwonder if the financial sky is fallingand if real quality health care foreveryone will ever be a real possibility,if health care will be affordable,if it will only be for the elite, whatconditions it will contain, and if itwill be filled with red tape and fineprint. As the world tries to find its newlike, don’t we?), ONE thing remains,and it always remains, that what wevalue most becomes instantly clearwhen faced with life’s most difficultchallenges. And what we value most isn’t even a thing.Behind every great moment in healing history is the essence of compassion.In my personal breast cancer wellness journey, it was compassion that got methrough everything. Whether it was the compassionate care of my medical team,or the quiet steady strength from my husband, compassion remains one of thegreatest driving forces in life. Behind every great medical discovery, behind everyperson that works or volunteers for the cause, behind every nonprofit, behindevery nurse, doctor, and oncologist, behind every caregiver lies compassion it isthe power that transcends the most difficult of human experiences.What is so miraculous about the laws of compassion is that it doesn’t matter ifSPRING 2009Volume 4, Issue 1PUBLISHERBevery Votebeverly@breastcancerwellness.orgDIRECTOR OF SALESBonnie ax 417.581.3498ART DIRECTORStacie L. we are the recipient or the giver of compassion, both the giver and the recipientCompassion is unconditional. Compassion heals. Behind every great leader,The Breast Cancer WellnessMagazineP.O. Box 2040Lebanon, MO 65536behind every great movement in history lies compassion. Compassion is thebreastcancerwellness.orgbenefit. Even those that vicariously watch compassion in action receivebenefit. Compassion is contagious, soothes all fears, does not discriminate,and is absolutely free. Compassion doesn’t take an act of Congress to initiate.essence of who we are.My prayer and invitation is for each of us to experience healing and wellness andcompassion to the fullest.Wellness Blessings,Beverly VotePublisher / Editor16 year breast cancer survivor4Breast Cancer Wellness Magazineby Beverly Vote, PublisherThis joy I have - the world didn’t give it, the world can’t take it away.times that we are going through, wenormalcy (we know what that feelsBCWFEATURE kTo order your individual free subscription,go to www.breastcancerwellnesss.orgor see page 33 to subscribe.Perhaps you have seen MarciShimoff on the national television talkshows including the Today Show andMontel Williams Show. Perhaps youhave seen her in the internationalmovie, The Secret, as one of the featuredteachers on the Law of Attraction.Most likely you have read one or moreof her six co-authored Chicken Soupfor the Soul series. But Marci is alsoa happiness expert, and author of theNew York Times Bestseller Happy for NoReason, 7 Steps to Being Happy fromthe Inside Out. She shares with us whyraising our happiness level is essentialfor those facing the challenges of breastcancer.Marci, why did you become involved inthe worldwide mission of awareness andwellness for breast cancer?Marci: I don’t know of anyone thathasn’t been touched in some way bybreast cancer, whether it is our friend,relative, or colleague. This issue isvery close to me and I want to lend asmuch support as I can. I live in MarinCounty, California which has oneof the highest percentages of breastcancer in America. But it really cameclosest to home when my best friendwas diagnosed with breast cancer atage 34, went through treatment, andhad four and half years with a cleanbill of health, until the cancer returnedand she passed a few months later atage 39. We grew up together since Iwas 9 and shared three decades ofbeing best friends. We had planned tobe old women together.Marci ShimoffAs a Happiness Expert, do you think it ispossible for a breast cancer survivor toraise her level of happiness?Marci: I know it’s possible. What Italk about in Happy for No Reason andwhat I want to encourage breast cancerpatients to do is find an inner stateof peace and well-being that doesn’tdepend upon your circumstances.That doesn’t mean you are walkingaround 24/7 with a silly grin on yourface or living in some Pollyanna state ofdenial. What it means is that you havea backdrop of peace and well-being thatyou carry with you no matter what is–Shirley Caesar, gospel singergoing on, that sense of peace and wellbeing remains with you.Research is finding that when weare happier, even in the midst of ourchallenges, we are more resilient, weare able to bounce back more quickly,and we are able to deal with thechallenges at hand in a more creativeand effective way. So not only is itpossible to be happy for no reason inthe midst of an experience of breastcancer, it is actually better for yourhealth.I want to explain something aboutour happiness set point. This isimportant information. We each havea happiness set point. Many of usare familiar with a weight set point,where your weight hovers aroundthe same weight range unless youchange something consciously tochange your habits. The same is trueof our happiness. No matter what ishappening outside of ourselves, nomatter if it is good or bad, we will tendto hover around the same happinessset point or range - unless we dosomething consciously to change it.Here are two examples: People whohave won the lottery, within a year ofwinning, they have returned to theiroriginal happiness set point. Winningthe lottery didn’t make them anyhappier, but the opposite was alsotrue of paraplegics, people who havebecome paraplegic within a year havereturned to their original happinesslevel. So this happiness set point isthe key and that’s what we can raise tobecome happier. uTo receive issues for your event, supportgroup, or waiting room, please emailbeverly@breastcancerwellness.orgPublished quarterly for Breast Cancer Wellness. Reader discretionis advised. Publisher of The Breast Cancer Wellness Magazine doesnot endorse or promote any product or service of advertisers ofthis publication nor does it verify the accuracy of any claims madein the advertisements or articles. This magazine is not intendedto replace the care and advice of expert medical professionals. Allrights reserved. Reproductions of any information appearing inthis publication in whole or in part cannot be made without theexpress written permission of the publisher.www.breastcancerwellness.org5
k BCWFEATUREOur set point is 50% genetic–that’sthe piece you are born with, the other50% is learned–that’s your habitsand that is something that you canconsciously raise.So even in the midst of breastcancer, unless you do somethingconsciously different, you will stay atthe same happiness set point. WhatI am suggesting and recommendingis that you raise your happiness setpoint and you will be so much betterequipped to deal with the challenges ofbreast cancer.How do you define happiness?Marci: Most people would definehappiness as what I call happy forgood reason. They gather all of thecircumstances in their life that theythink will make them happy and whatmakes their life look perfect, then theythink they can be happy.That is a flimsy foundation onwhich to base one’s happiness. Ofcourse, things do happen that don’t goour way, we do have challenges thatcome up. Yet, real happiness and truehappiness and lasting happiness, Ibelieve, comes from an inner state ofpeace and well-being and that is whatmakes us feel happy for no reason. Itis a happiness that doesn’t dependupon our circumstances and that typeof authentic happiness is what we allare really yearning for.with just one of the habits. Find ahappiness buddy, like you would anexercise buddy, and begin together.For example, one of the happinesshabits is to express gratitude daily.Research shows that just keepinga little gratitude journal where youwrite down 5 things a day that you aregrateful for. Within a month of doingthis one little exercise, you will haveraised your happiness level.I am talking about very simplethings that you can do. There are atotal of 21 happiness habits and theyhave to do letting love lead in yourlife, letting go of negative thoughtsand how this makes the cells in yourWhat are the benefits of being happy forno reason?Marci: Happy people are 1/3less likely to get sick, they live onaverage 9 years longer, they havebetter relationships, they are moresuccessful, and they make almost amillion dollars more over the course oftheir lifetime.How would you recommend for awoman, her family members or caregivers to increase their level of happiness iffacing breast cancer?Marci: What we have found isthere are 21 main happiness habitsthat any one can practice to raise theirhappiness level and it doesn’t matterwhere you are starting and it doesn’tmatter what challenges you are facing.These 21 happiness habits deal withthe mind, the body, the heart, the soul,our relationships, and our sense ofpurpose in life.*What I suggest is that people start6body happy. In some indigenouscultures from around the world, whenpeople become unhappy, they wouldbe sent to their local medicine man ormedicine woman, sometimes called ashaman. The shaman would ask theunhappy person four questions:1. When did you stop singing?2. When did you stop dancing ormoving your body?3. When did you stop sharingstories or sharing with others?4. When did you stop taking timefor silence?What research has found is thatwhen people are unhappy, it is becausethey stopped one or more of these fouringredients. I suggest that people doa little bit of these four things everyday. Singing, I really mean singing!in your shower, in your car, it doesn’tmatter. Start singing! It helps thebreath, it helps the lungs, it helps thejoy level. Moving your body – get yourenergy moving whether it is turning onthe music and dancing or taking a nicewalk in nature, it doesn’t matter, justget your energy circulating. Sharingwith others–sharing your storieswith others, talking with others connecting with people in your life,including making new acquaintancesand taking time to share your life.This helps create oxytosis, which isone of the happiness chemicals inthe body. Take some time each day insilence, meditate, prayer, walking innature. It doesn’t matter how you takeyour silence, just take some time to goinward every day.There is a story in Happy for NoReason about a man named LesterLevonson who created The SedonaMethod. Lester was given thediagnosis that he was going to die ina few short weeks. He decided to justgo home and do some serious soulsearching. He created what he thoughtwas the ultimate tool for personalgrowth, a way of letting go of all innerlimitations, whic
our Sheer & Soft Compression Stockings. MEDIUSA.COM 800-633-6334 * * 1.00 of each purchase will be donated to The Breast Cancer Research Foundation contents. 4 Breast Cancer Wellness Magazine During these historically unusual times that we are going through, we wonder if the financial sky is falling and if real quality health care for everyone will ever be a real possibility, if health .
