Purpose over Fear

https://www.hopehasarrived.com/10-things-i-like-about.../
I often go back to this blog I wrote as a guest writer and allow myself to remember 'my gots' - as I sit here today with another clear scan, I 'got' more time and a heck of a lot more to be thankful for.

10 Things I like About Having Had Cancer Despite the challenges of being diagnosed with melanoma, I experienced some major positives from my cancer journey. Seriously.

Oh my it’s been forever since I have posted on here. In a week I go in for my scan, what will be (hopefully) my second to last scan since being diagnosed with stage 3 melanoma in 2019. It has been a journey (it’s a marathon not a race). I still suffer from fear but I am so thankful for the path I chose for healing. Fear is a liar. It holds you back when you should take a leap. Fear is a liar, it steals your days when it consumes your mind. Fear is a liar, it tells you hope is not possible when it actually is. If you’re reading this and you’re feeling fear … kicks its ass because it’s a liar! My mind killed so many days during my journey because of fear. Days I’ll never get back. BUT because I wouldn’t let it completely take me out I also stood a chance to fight against cancer. I won’t claim victory… yet… but I do claim that fear is a liar.

Turn your 'nots' into 'gots'... an article I gues t wrote for that still holds true today!

10 Things I like About Having Had Cancer Despite the challenges of being diagnosed with melanoma, I experienced some major positives from my cancer journey. Seriously.

Today is the day. The day you listen to that voice in your head. The day that you pay attention to that aching in your gut. The day that you scratch that itch. Today, is the day that you take the courageous step to get that thing checked out, inquire about that thing that you have been thinking about, to take that step to do that thing you've always wanted to do. Today is the day, and this is the sign you were waiting for! What will you do TODAY to better your tomorrow?

This week I declined an offer that just didn't meet my needs, desires or goals. It was an offer to do something big and great and I fearlessly walked away from it. It didn't feel right. I"m holding out for something better, because I deserve better and SO DO YOU. So I hope this message finds you at just the right time in your life.

I have not posted in a while. I am sorry. I have been trying to not live the life where my story is just about cancer. In the last year two very dear friends have lost their lives to this disease and I have tried so desperately to distance myself from the 'story'. It is interesting how my thoughts have evolved. I do still fear the disease, but I also understand it and its emotional tentacles so much more now than I ever did before. When initially diagnosed the fear was immediate, emanate and superficial (meaning I could feel it at the skin level). Now, the fear is deep. BUT it is also more practical and just less... as I approach my first 6 month scan i find myself scanning my body like I have done since intially diagnosed for every bruise, bump, lump, and cough. Not because I think it will be a bad scan but because I am aware and interested in what is happening with my body.

More to come, but for today I pray that whatever you feel (physically or mentally) that you pause, take a deep breath and tell yourself and the universe that you are strong and your body noise is a sweet sound (not an alarming one) of what needs love, support and attention.

Girl dad, being awesome…

Who doesn’t want a deep healing hydrating face mask after a weekend of shopping, cookie selling and girl scouting!

Yep!!!!

ALS
Melanoma
Esophageal
MS
Brain tumor
Non small cell lung cancer

Whatever your cancer, this is the docuseries to watch!

Radically Changing Your Diet

Pivotal, please watch

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friends and family, please just watch... its a million dollar gift!

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One of the most prolific docuseries I watched through my journey.



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This journey is a crappy one but the more positive we hear the better the outcome. So here are my cancer lessons.

1. BE WILLING TO TRAVEL.. the further you are willing to go for your treatment the higher likely the success rate.
2. RIGHT NOW IS ABOUT YOU… invest your mind, body and spirit therapy, it is literally the only thing you have control of right now and it is INSTRUMENTAL in your outcome.
3. STOP LOOKING AT GOOGLE. It is a statistic and you are a human, your body will react, respond, rejuvenate according to your DNA and google does not know YOU.
4. For the love of God, meditate, visualize, and have mantras! You need this now more then ever! (again, what is in your control).
5. TELL YOUR FAMILY WHAT YOU NEED. A cancer diagnosis is the more prolific time of your life, and it is YOUR RIGHT to tell them what you need, don’t need, want and don’t want. YOU HAVE EVERY RIGHT TO BE SELFISH ON YOUR BEHALF.

At the end of the day, it is your body, and if you are not connected to the plan mentally and physically you are not taking the best care of yourself.

My journey…
I had a lump (it was visible)… it was not removed until 3 MONTHS after my diagnosis (soooo awful, I wanted to cut it out myself!)…. But the wait was worth it! I did immunotherapy pre-surgery, and post surgery. 9 months in total with surgery to be ‘cancer free’… I was willing to take a chance with a trial, I was willing to travel and I was willing to commit to the program. I have no idea if this will ensure my chances of survival are “guaranteed” but given the aggressiveness of the disease I do know I bought myself time and I would not have had that if I was not willing to travel, invest in my mind body and spirit healing, and advocate on my own behalf.

6 months…

The words I’ve been wanting to hear…

I had my 3 month dermatologist check up today. My wonderful doctor said “all clear we can now move to 6 months”… while this by no way means I’m “all clear” as I’m still scanning every 3 months, it is still a step in that direction. I’ll take today as a win. I’m a dermatology patient for life. I also learned that spray tanning (while a lot safer) is also not good for your skin. Sooooo guess I’m going b&p (blonde and pale) for life as well!

I got this… no matter what… I got this.

Tonight I lay in a hotel room in Rochester Minnesota prepping for another scan at the Mayo Clinic. Scanxiety is such a real and humbling thing, but I got this.

3 years almost to the day of when I first noticed chippy, the lump on my shoulder that refused to be ignored, I lie here having faced double digit pet scans, triple digit draws of blood and thousands of thoughts of fear. Stages of diagnosis, ultimatums of decisions, and unknowns I could have never known if the path I’d choose would work or not. But I knew 1 thing and 1 thing only. As a newly diagnosed cancer person I was going to Be. Aggressive. (Like the cheer id echoed as a 13 year old, be aggressive, b-e aggressive)… I’d choose to travel. Change my diet. Digest a life of focused breathing, meditation, and prayer.

Whatever happens tomorrow… I. Got. This.

Chippy - the name I gave to the tumor that grew on my shoulder... you know, like a 'chip on your shoulder'... Chippy was doing its best to nag me into change. When I decided to do a clinical trial to rid chippy from my life, my life started to change. Although it didn't happen all it once, it gained momentum after a thousand little changes. I have no lost 65 pounds, I have landed my dream job, I am cancer free and most importantly I have balance and health in my life.

What chip on your shoulder is keeping you from being your best possible version of you?

I want to help - as a Health and Wellness Coach I work with clients who are ready to make a change in their lives.





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65 pounds lost! Feeling great losing weight!

🙌 4 mile run and done 💪




Looking for a health and wellness coach? Let's talk!

Have you ever been scared of surgery?

I have found that the more forthright you are with your surgical prep team the better the outcome. How do I know?

My surgeries:
Ovarian cysts (4)
Appendix
Hysterectomy
Melanoma cancer
Hernias
Bariatric

Telling my nurses I’m scared, earns me both the appropriate pre surgical cocktail meds I need to relax and the mental compassion I need to go all in on my surgeries.

If ya got a surgery coming up and you’re scared just tell them how ya feel!



You got this! But if ya need a friend I’m yours!

At the start of my cancer journey I had lots of information coming my way. Stay with a local doctor, travel to another clinic, do a clinical trial, integrative medicine, holistic medicine... what vitamins to take, what not to eat... what helped me the most was taking control of my treatment plan. Advocating for myself and trusting my gut were key in my cancer recovery. As a health and wellness coach I help others become advocate for themselves. If you'd like to learn more message me.

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I AM
I am brave.
I am strong.
I am healthy.
I am cancer-FREE.

Mantras are a simple way to shape your day! What mantras do you use to stay focused or help calm anxiety?

Purpose over Fear now takes appointments on their Page.

Purpose over Fear updated their business hours.

Keep your skin safe!

http://purpose-over-fear.com/2022/05/02/may-you-be-safe-from-melanoma/

All things fear, hope, purpose or passion, please feel free to wander over to my web site and peruse some of the articles. I will be updating this site soon to include content on wellness.

https://purpose-over-fear.com/

A purpose driven journey with tidbits to inspire hope, strength, courage and fellowship We've all been told, “live your life to the fullest”; I am here to do just that. Purpose Over Fear serves as a vessel to project my passions, and clue in my loyal readers as to what inspires m…

What are you in control of, when FEAR seeks to overwhelm you?

http://purpose-over-fear.com/2022/04/18/i-am-not-a-victim-i-actually-am-in-control/

I am not a victim, I actually am in control

Without Hope. There is nothing. The needs of the patient come first. When I started my journey with the Mayo Clinic in 2019, I did not understand just how powerful Faith, Hope, and Science was – and how much those 3 words would impact me. In a place where doctors come to learn and collaborate, I will never forget the conversation I had with my doctor, who comes from California, about why he moved to Rochester....

http://purpose-over-fear.com/2022/04/08/faith-hope-science/

Faith, Hope, Science Without Hope. There is nothing. The needs of the patient come first. When I started my journey with the Mayo Clinic in 2019, I did not understand just how powerful Faith, Hope, and Science was – an…

This week I mourn the passing of two people who died too young from cancer. Both people had some similarities to my story so their passing is a hard reminder of my own journey. I need to release what is in my head so I am taking pen to paper. I have been writing for 3 years now about finding a purpose to overcome the fears....

http://purpose-over-fear.com/2022/03/03/fear/

fear. This week I mourn the passing of two people who died too young from cancer. Both people had some similarities to my story so their passing is a hard reminder of my own journey. I need to release wh…

Stage III BRAF wild type malignant melanoma

What does this mean? Its aggressive, and deadly. How in the heck do you fight this? With every tool possible…

It is why in 2019, when immunotherapy for melanoma was only about 4 years old, that I decided to do a clinical trial to fight for my own life. As my husband puts it “when we got that call on Friday the 13th you were delivered a death sentence” 3 years later we can have these conversations because today, I am NED – “No evidence of disease” – but I’m gonna call it like I see it CANCER FREE.

Does it mean I don’t have fear? Nope.
Does it mean I think it will never come back? Hell no.
Does it mean I have hope? Yep.
Does it mean I believe in my choices, faith, and care team? Hell yes.

Every 3 months I go back to the place that put the fear of death in me, but I also go back to the place where hope, faith and science put the promise of life in me.

Today, I am cancer free. Today I am.

I am sure of who I am.
I am sure of where I am going,
and I have faith in the process of life.

Repeat, until you believe.