Surviving the Loss of a Partner - Life Changing on Every Level

“I have breast cancer.”  Tears were welling up in Sandy’s eyes as she shared the doctor’s diagnosis.  I felt the warmth of tears as well but with it came an instant firm resolve that we would beat this monster. 

This journey is never one we take alone.  It affects our loved ones deeply.  As we began our five-year journey of surgery, chemo, radiation, and severe pain, Sandy never complained. 

Our journey was one of hope, followed by disappointments.  An emotional roller coaster each time cancer raised its ugly head, each time more aggressively than the last.  I tried to be strong but felt helpless.  Alone, I cried and prayed that God would show me a way to help Sandy, to allow me to bear some of her burdens.  All I was able to manage was to make her as comfortable as possible and to be there for her. I watched her brave battle as cancer slowly and radically gained the upper hand.  I never lost hope; praying and believing for a miracle.

And then.....she was Gone

And then…. she was gone.  Gone.  The battle was lost encountering a new one of extreme pain from that loss.  It seemed even more unbearable.  In a trance-like state, I progressed through the arrangements finding some comfort in fulfilling her last wishes.

Do You Have Health for Your Time Tomorrow?

I live in a world of miracles.  Every.  Single. Day.  Do you have any idea what that feels like?







Now many of you will nod and agree that life, in itself, is a daily miracle.  But I am one of those fortunate people who gets to experience outstanding miracles on a regular basis.  I get to be the recipient of hugs and I mean, really big tight hugs....when I have been able to give someone hope who has lost hope.

I am a health coach.  I have been one for thirty-five years.  I am also a symptomologist.  A WHAT?  I assess a client's symptoms and determine what nutrients they are missing in their diet that is causing distress.  So what in the world does that mean?

TAKE TIME FOR YOUR HEALTH TODAY

SO.......

YOU HAVE HEALTH FOR YOUR TIME TOMORROW

If Only You Had Not Made That Mistake, Then What?

This is a Secret Subject Swap blogging challenge.  Each month a group of bloggers is given a secret challenge to interpret in their own way.  The challenges are just that -- to make you step out of your comfort zone and share your thoughts about that subject in a new way.

My challenge this month gripped my heart.  It would take a book to be able to answer it but then again, that is why I wrote my memoir.  Battered Hope was written about so many traumas in my own life so other people would be able to relate to me on a variety of levels.   

Here is the question posed to me this month and my answer is in the form of other questions:

Has there ever been a time in your life where, in the heat of the moment, you would have literally sold your soul for a different outcome if it was an actual possibility and not just a phrase?

Do You Know One Key to Getting Through a Rough Day, Month, Year?

How do you deal with drama in your life?  Do you respond calmly and with patience?  Or do you fret and bite your nails not knowing what the outcome will be?

My hubby and I are in the middle of four major changes in our lives. Decisions have to be made. And there are some that are out of our control. There are days when it is difficult to stay focused and positive - not knowing which direction life will take. You hope for the best outcome and it certainly tries and tires your patience thermometer.  Some days you are up and optimistic and other days you wonder if you are going to make it if things don't work out. Sound familiar?

I am fortunate to have a husband who stays rational and even-keeled on the days I struggle and vice versa - it works both ways.


One of the best ways I suggest dealing with the pressures you may encounter in any given day is to remind yourself of all the good in your life.  When we voice what we are grateful for, it brings the needed balance.

What Chance Do You Have of Surviving?

Your first line of defense against disease is NUTRITION - not medications!  Every time I see yet another television commercial promoting a drug, I get a little more nauseated by the lie that is being perpetrated on the general public.  This is especially disheartening when it involves our youth, a drug-induced generation.

If it is true that no drug can replace nutrients, then why are we so quick to swallow a pill when we have a cold or flu? Why don't we use natural methods to curb allergies?  Why don't we use nutrition to ward off disease and yes, even find a cure?

As I have written in a series of articles on the World's Biggest Con Job, we are sold a lie by Big Pharma that drugs can heal and/or restore.  Between the lack of education we are offered and our own fears, we buy that lie......hook, line and sinker.

In the mid-1970s I was diagnosed with ovarian cancer and given less than two years to live. I knew next to nothing about nutrition, but I knew that if I had a hysterectomy or if I died without having the surgery the specialist said I must have......then WHAT CHANCE DID I HAVE -- of living?  Or having a baby?

You Are Going to Die - Now What?

When we hear the word 'cancer' something happens to us. It may feel like we got kicked in the stomach or our heart skips a beat. We react in fear whenever someone we care about receives that diagnosis.

That happened to me decades ago.  The doctor told me that the only possibility I would have of living more than a year would be to have a total hysterectomy.  Although I was very sick and struggling with a lot of pain and discomfort, I knew in my heart that I was born to be a mom and that couldn't happen if I didn't have the working parts.

As a young woman who had zero knowledge about cancer and no idea what I could possibly do to win this battle, I told my doctor "No, I won't accept that.  I am going to walk in here pregnant one day."

At that point, the doctor got extremely angry and almost spit at me when he shouted, "Then, lady, go home.....suffer....and die!"

A Tribute to my Daughter - Happy Mother's Day

I wish I had words to describe my love and admiration for my daughter. I try -- but come up short. I have watched her survive much trauma in her young life and she never complains. She was a little girl when her father was in a serious car accident, leaving him disabled. She did everything she could to help me, encourage me and make me laugh. She was strong and a wealth of support for her mom. She has lost friends to cancer and suicide but is always the first one to console those around her.  She has lost much and endured immeasurable pain.  She is always first to offer a helping hand.  She lost her brother when he chose to walk away from our family four years ago and broke our hearts.

My daughter on the left.  Her daughter on the right.

I now watch her as a young mother and am overcome with emotion as she is a pillar of strength. She was born to be a mother. Almost losing her little son at birth, she stayed strong in her faith and he survived miraculously. But before he was a year old he contracted a very rare bacterial infection, had to undergo surgery only a handful have ever survived.  Shortly thereafter, the load was almost unbearable when she lost her second baby in utereo, yet she managed to be a source of strength for her family. Then her little girl had to fight an uphill battle to come into the world.

I watch her raise her children with a love and strength only a mother who has endured much heartache could comprehend. I consistently hear comments from friends, associates and even strangers who say they rarely see such incredible, polite, kind and gentle children. They have a mom who teaches them beyond their years.  Even though her son is only four years old, he has learned how to respect his parents, teachers, and peers.  He adores his baby sister, never tires of taking care of her and helps his mom in any way he is capable. 

When I need a friend.  When I need advice.  She has a unique perception and ability to see situations with resolution.  Every. Time.

She is my rock.

It is the strong women, the ones who give of themselves until they have nothing left to give – these are the women we need to applaud.  These are the women we need to rally around and cheer, returning the strength and love they so freely give to others. 

My beloved daughter – a mother who stands head and shoulders above – in any crowd.  

My Cancer Diagnosis was the Best Thing that Ever Happened To Me

When the doctor said "You have two choices, hysterectomy or death,"  it made me angry.  I was only in my twenties and wanted children.  I certainly could not have them if I had the surgery or was DEAD!  Something inside of me rose up and I replied, "Doctor,  I will not accept that diagnosis.  I...WILL....WALK...IN...HERE...PREGNANT....ONE....DAY."  

The doctor rose up from his chair and pointed his finger in my face, "Then, lady, GO HOME. SUFFER.  AND DIE!"

Motivated like never before, within three weeks my life took an abrupt turn and I discovered answers to healthy living. Fourteen years later I walked into his office.....pregnant.  As a certified health coach and symptomologist, I have spent the last four decades guiding people to optimum health -- including helping hundreds of women get pregnant when there was no hope.

Have you ever thought about what it would feel like to wake up feeling great every day?  To feel rested?  To feel healthy?  To feel energized?



















What would you give to feel that way every single day?  Maybe you already do and if you do, you are one in a million.  Many people wake up tired, achy or just a bit 'off.'  They shuffle to the kitchen for their first cup to get them through the morning.

What would it be like to have an energy level greater than people half your age?  And that energy being true energy -- not from a cup of coffee or energy booster of some type.

Breezing through Menopause