Written by: Jon Kessler, Executive Contributor
Executive Contributors at Brainz Magazine are handpicked and invited to contribute because of their knowledge and valuable insight within their area of expertise.
When you need to fix something in our homes, you usually go to our toolbox or drawer to find the proper tool. Correct? If you need to tighten something, you might use a screwdriver or wrench. If you need to cut or trim something, you probably will use a saw. If you want to check the dimensions on something you most likely will use a tape measure or ruler.
Toolboxes come in all different sizes. Some of us have just a basic toolset. Some have cabinets or rooms with tools of all shapes and sizes. When it comes to being diagnosed with cancer, what can you fill your toolbox with so that you can thrive during your journey?
There is no one tool to help you along your journey. Rather it is a set of tools that include actions and mindsets. These allow you to prepare yourself for the ups and downs that you will encounter.
These are the things that you should fill your toolbox with
A: Actions to help you stay in control
B: Breathing and using it to control your emotions
C: Courage that you have used in the past
D: De-stressing throughout the day
E: Evaluating what you would like to do for yourself
F: Flexibility and being adaptable with what arises each day
G: Gathering with friend and family, not isolating
H: Handling life by turning over things to someone else
I: Imagining what your life will be like after cancer
J: Joining a support group
K: Keeping in the moment and not looking back with regrets
L: Living by doing things that you enjoy and make you feel good
M: Meditating as a way to center yourself and tape into your faith
N: Nurturing yourself by practicing self-care
O: Owning things about your cancer journey
P: Playing games or doing things to have fun
Q: Quashing the negative things that held you back in your past
R: Realizing a dream, you want to make come true during your journey
S: Searching for things that bring you joy in your life
T: Talking about what you are going through or feeling with someone
U: Understanding what your treatment plan will entail and how it will affect you
V: Validating your negative emotions and then moving on from them
W: Winning practices that will help you defeat cancer
X: X-Ing out the negative things in your life holding you down
Y: Yearning for things that make you feel normal and then doing them
Z: Zeroing an area in your life that you will reset after cancer
These are just some suggestions. I am planning a 5-week workshop with 5-6 people at a time starting in the spring. You will work on specific things for each letter to build your toolbox. If you want to learn more about the workshops, please email me at jon@cancercarecoaching.com and I will send you the details.
Jon Kessler, Executive Contributor Brainz Magazine
Jon Kessler is a Cancer Coach, a former patient himself who works with recently diagnosed patients. He works with them one-to-one, using his proprietary program to take them from fear of the unknown to life after cancer and writing the next chapter of their stories. His motto is "taking you from surviving to thriving". Jon also presents workshops to cancer organizations and support groups around the world. He also also been featured on a radio program on the island of Dominica. He is the founder and owner of Cancer Care Coaching, LLC.
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