So to refresh your memories, I've covered the first 3 ingredients thus far:
1) a great medical team
2) a great support system
3) faith in God (or whatever higher power you believe in)
and now,
4) a positive attitude.
Now I've always been a glass-half-full kind of gal. Where I got that attitude from I'm not really sure, but I know that I have always been driven by the example set by my parents, friends in high school who had lofty goals, and especially my Aunt...who (without children of her own) took all of her nieces and nephews under her wing to guide them, share special times with them, and loved them unconditionally with the utmost confidence.
So that fateful day when a hematologist/oncologist I had met just once, dropped that bomb on me so frankly and without any bedside manner whatsoever, told me I had Leukemia...I was as stunned as anyone else who had stood before me in the shoes of a patient receiving a similar diagnosis. The one thing I did not do that day, was ask "why me?" Thus began my journey with a positive attitude. Never mind that we were re-directed from the Mayo Clinic to the University of Nebraska Medial Center for treatment. Huh? we said...but isn't Mayo the "best?" Well, not for me it turns out....UNMC is a Leukemia/Lymphoma research facility and it just so happens that we had spent 8 1/2 years there back in the early 1990's as my husband's first military duty station. We still knew friends there...which was a blessing...and my husband could transfer bases...another blessing! All positive vibes...
Fast forward to the first days of my hospital stay (about 8 weeks) with our 3 children left behind in another state being cared for my friends (we were 1500 miles from our nearest relatives). Positivity had kicked in: I HAD to believe they were in good hands, so that I could focus on MY task at hand...to heal. My husband, Chris, was by my side 24/7. I had the best medical team I could ever hope for, and we had found my bone marrow donor. All positive outcomes...again, I was able to focus on getting well. Cards and letters and artwork from my students starting pouring in. My husband posted them on my walls and just to look at all the "get well," "thinking of you," and "we miss you" cards always lifted my spirits and attitude. Without those decorating my walls, my room would have been just a gloomy, grey hospital room with a view of a brick building outside my window.
The second time I was in the hospital, Chris was relieved by my Aunt Leslie for about 10 days. Now she is a big lover of "Life is Good" t-shirts, sweatshirts, PJs, and anything that bears that motto. The moment she entered my room for the very first time, she slapped a round, blue and green "Life is Good" magnet on my door. That turned out to be very symbolic...from then on, anyone who entered my room knew that they were entering a room where a positive thinking patient, who knew they were going to make it was fighting as hard as she could. I soon adopted "Life is Good" as my own motto. After all, there were so many other people on the floor, in the hospital, in the world, who were much worse off than I was.
Oh yea, I certainly did have my days where the tears would pour down my face, I didn't want to wake up or eat, or would nap most of the day. But as my friend and "Look Good Feel Better" consultant, Peg, reminded me. "It's OK to cry and be down...just allow yourself that 10-15 minute Pity Party, then count your blessings and come back with a smile." That was probably the best advice I received while I was in the hospital...and in life in general.
You see, if you have a "poor me," "I'm going to die," "there's no hope for me" attitude, you mind thinks it and your body feels the signals. A positive attitude is KEY to Survivorship....to meeting your goals, to achieving your dreams, and to anything in life that you want to accomplish.
I'll close now with a poem my best friend and Valedictorian from my High School Class read as part of her Commencement speech. It has stuck with me to this day, and I have it prominently placed where I can read it often.
A few books you might be interested in if you are in need of developing a strong, positive attitude. By the way, my bookcase wall has a whole shelve devoted to books like this. Enjoy!
"Don't Sweat the Small Stuff...and it's all small stuff" by Richard Carlson, PhD.
"Words to Lift Your Spirits" by Dale Brown
"Light from Many Lamps" edited by Lillian Eichler Watson
"50 Things that Really Matter" a Gift Book from Hallmark
"The Ultimate Pocket Positives" compiled by Maggie Pinkey
"Leaves of Gold" edited by Clyde Francis Lytle
