Alternatives That Can Help

This blog is later than I had hoped for, but life intervenes, and then I decided to change the topic. I realized recently after a series of “coincidences” (I quote that because anyone who knows me, knows I don’t believe there are any coincidences in the world – everything happens for a reason, you just have to listen carefully) going on around me, that I needed to share another aspect of what was an integral part of my healing process after going through the looking glass.

I have mentioned my wonderful medical doctors and I know I made my feelings clear that I am here today because of them. However, what I neglected to mention was the alternative healing processes that I used in conjunction with my blue ribbon conventional treatments, which were Massage, Reiki, and Body Talk.

A few weeks ago, I attended the Lung Cancer Conference at Penn. I was asked to speak, and one of the topics they wanted the panel to address was, “what did we do that helped us get through the difficult process of cancer treatment.” I casually mentioned that Massage and Reiki were an integral part of that process for me. Shortly after, I heard from the Reiki Representative that was there, Kimberly Fleisher from The Reiki School and Clinic, saying she was glad I had mentioned it and had such a wonderful experience with it. Then yesterday in speaking with my wonderful masseuse, certified Reiki Master, and certified Body Talk practitioner Barb Friling ([email protected]) or (www.bridgesofhealing.com) a light switched on in my head. I needed to expound on how important these alternative therapies were for me in getting to the place I am now in my recovery process, because it might help someone who is going through treatment at this moment. Massage was absolutely crucial for me and still is. Once I added Reiki and Body Talk (and took a level-one Reiki course) I started to soar.

Ok, for those of you who don’t know what I am talking about let me give a general explanation of each therapy. I know I don’t need to explain massage. However, what I will say is you really need to find a masseuse who is the right fit for you. Barb Friling is a god of massage. She has hands that are made of gold and silver and dipped in diamonds. This I know because I have had so many massages in my life both before and after cancer that I couldn’t possibly count. She knows every muscle, tendon and part of the body and she can work out the pain and “kinks” like no one I’ve ever met, which leads me to Reiki.

The basic definition of Reiki is “a healing tool for self care”. It is gentle and calming and can assist with any path or personal healing journey. It gently aligns the body with Universal Life Force energy that surrounds us all the time, flows through you 24/7 and is always available in the palm of your hand.” Body Talk is about “the body’s communication system to, from and within itself. It is a complete system that works with the body’s innate ability to heal itself.” Barb led me through all of this with expertise and true caring.

Alright, for you skeptics who are thinking, “ah yeah, right, mumbo jumbo” all I can say is I know it sounds that way, but nothing could be farther from the truth. IT WORKS, and when you try it, you will be amazed. Now I am in no way saying to do this without standard medical care. What I am saying is that joining the two together gave me the complete process I needed to heal. The benefits are something I really can’t explain. I just know I needed to tell people it is out there for them. It was truly the other half of my recovery process and something that helped make me whole again.