Sharing and Retreating...

I recently had the privilege of  sharing my story and leading a discussion at a cancer center.  I was invited by the Terry, the chaplain there.  She is an amazing woman who is so dedicated to all survivors.  The event I attended is held each year and the majority of the attendees are graduates of a program called Finding Your New Normal.   It is an eight session program for cancer survivors who have completed treatment that addresses many issues including spiritual and emotional wellness,  nutrition, exercise,  and self-care.  The discussion lasted for almost 2 hours and approximately 40 survivors attended.  I shared the strategies that I have found helpful i to reclaim joy in my life.

What a great group of survivors!  An observation I made early on in the discussion was how “ready” these participants were to discuss the real issues of living with cancer.  The group was very diversified and the participants had many different types of cancer, some had experienced treatment once and were in remission, several will be in treatment for some time, young and older, and different faith beliefs.  However, the common denominator was that the members of the group had spent a lot of time reflecting on what and how they needed to move forward in their lives and had prioritized how they chose to live it.   Needless to say, I was inspired and so thankful to meet these amazing survivors and look forward to keeping in touch.

One of the strategies I discussed was the emotional comfort (and fun ) I have experienced by attending retreats.   We talked about what to look for in a retreat and how they are not all the same.  (If you are interested in more on this, leave a comment and I will do a post). In fact, several survivors are scheduled  to attend one very soon.  Many of the women in the group have followed up and asked me to share some of the ones I have enjoyed.  So, here you go:

• Escape   http://bagit4u.org/escape-2012
• Wind River Cancer Wellness and Retreats    http://www.windriverservices.org
• Women Beyond Cancer    http://womenbeyondcancer.org
• Stowe Weekend of Hope  http://www.stowehope.org
• Camp Mak-a-Dream   www.campdream.org
• Smith Center for Healing and Arts   http://www.smithcenter.org

Patsy

• Posted in: Retreats