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#1. Recognize you have a life threatening disease.
Facing the
truth is a necessary ingredient to starting on the road to successfully fighting
it. The fact that it is not as bad as you imagined it would be, that you feel
too good, or whatever, do not deny it. That would get in your way. Never look
back. Apply all your energies to conquering it.
#2. Make a commitment to do everything in your power to fight.
The
most difficult single decision you will have to make is to make the commitment
to fight. Once this is done, everything is simple. If it could possibly help,
you do it. If it could possibly hurt, you don't. It makes no difference how
pleasant, how convenient or how comfortable.
#3. Get a qualified independent second opinion.
Cancer is an
extremely complex disease. Often there is only one chance to successfully simply
you doubt or have less faith in your physician. It is your life and you are
entitled to be certain.
#4. Realize that knowledge is your greatest asset.
The more you
know about your disease, the better you are able to be a team with your
physicians and help yourself fight the cancer. In old days people were not told
they had cancer. Today it is said that doctors don't beat cancer. Patients beat
cancer with the help of their doctors.
#5. Have complete confidence in your doctors.
Once you find a
qualified doctor in whom you have faith who believes he can successfully treat
you, trust this doctor and follow his advice to the letter. Do not doubt and do
not continue searching. Use all your energy in fighting cancer and do exactly as
this doctor recommends.
#6. Understand and believe in the treatments you receive.
Forget
everything you have heard about cancer treatments. You are an individual and a
unique person. Your cancer is not like any one else's. Understand what each part
of your treatment is supposed to do and how it works. Help that treatment by
visualizing it doing its job.
#7. Seek and accept support.
This is a time in your life to be
selfish. Let others who want to help you do it. When you have recovered, you can
repay them. Join or create a support group. It has been clinically demonstrated
that cancer patients who join in a support group do better than those who don't.
#8. Plan for the times you will be depressed.
Everything about
cancer is very depressing including the diagnosis, the treatments and the
disease itself. Expect down days and plan things that cheer you up to do at the
times you will be depressed.
#9. Maintain a strong desire to live.
Life can be beautiful. Have
a reason for living. Whether it is children to play with, work yet to be
accomplished, trips to be taken or just to read tomorrow's newspaper and see
what happens, a strong desire to live will help in the successful outcome of
cancer treatments.
#10. Enjoy each day. Live one day at a time.
Do not look back at
yesterday or worry about tomorrow. Today is all that counts. Enjoy it and be
grateful you have it. If you are taking unpleasant treatments, remember, you are
doing this voluntarily because you want a chance to continue living. Savor the
flavor of today and each night be grateful you had the wonderful experience of
that day.
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