I started tearing up as I started to write this…
Honestly, for so many reasons.
I have truly been honored to be a physician to many women on various journeys through breast cancer and they have touched my heart so deeply with their love, courage and resilience.
Some have made me cry with empathy and a rare few others have made me so angry I wanted to scream!
I want to share some of their stories with you today.
But first, you may be wondering — why did I want to scream?
I believe it’s best if I give you an example of a client. Let’s call her Kay.
Kay was 50 and had been coming to my office for routine gyn care — but she was a stressed-out, irritable mess!
She was:
- A single mom,
- Solo provider for the family,
- Running a business,
- Managing multiple employees,
- Left with no time for herself,
- Dealing with a horrible relationship with her ex-husband…
(Kind of sounding a bit like my history now that I think about it! Maybe it sounds like yours or someone you know?)
I knew Kay was on a fast track to destruction. So I tried to convince her to schedule in some self-care and TLC.
I stressed that her high sugar, high inflammatory comfort food diet exacerbated her being stressed out and angry. And that so did her lack of self-care, good targeted nutrition and exercise. I explained that these were a road to destruction.
I managed to convince her to come exercise with me (which she did once). She wasn’t ready to make the necessary changes and the time for herself that we all vitally need (I know, I’ve been guilty too). We’d had several appointments to review the functional tests and the hormones and there were many red flags.
I finally asked her:
“Why do you come and do all these tests when you don’t take any of my advice?”
Then the wake-up call came when I diagnosed breast cancer.
It was traumatic for her and I wanted to scream! So many warning signs and intervention points neglected, I was so frustrated… and I can’t imagine how she felt.
I’ll never forget, she said:
“Tell me what you want me to do now, I am ready to listen.”
“What happened to Kay, she’s so incredibly nice now?” It was true, she was smiling and looked healthier, even though… she had cancer.
Looking back, I believe the only time she had peace and quiet was during her waiting time in the exam rooms.
It’s not about living a life free of cancer or any other chronic disease.
It’s really about living your life with each day, starting today, in it’s fullest:
- Being loved and loving
- Having smiles and tears
- Laughing spontaneously
- Giving and receiving
- Learning and teaching
One of the most inspirational stories I can share with you is that of Mary Ann.
Mary Ann expressed to me that the past few years is the first time in her life that she really has known what it feels like to be alive!
She used to live depressed, fatigued and did not care about her life.
Now, she laughs more, lives more, smiles more, and inspires me to tears.
Dr. Carlene says:
“Dr. Cabeca, I can’t thank you enough. You have truly healed me. I have not felt like I was free from cancer since 1990, the day of my first diagnosis. Today I claim my health and I no longer look for or wait on it to come back. No one would ever believe I had ever been that sick!”
With these stories I hope to inspire you to take another step further in your health.
I’d love to hear your success stories – if you don’t want to share publicly, I’d love to hear it personally – just send me a note to team@drannacabeca.com and my staff will forward it to me.
