Mind-Body Health and Healing. Andrew Goliszek

Mind-Body Health and Healing - Andrew  Goliszek


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dozen types of cancers, including colon, kidney, esophagus, and thyroid, among others. For cancer cells that spring up suddenly without a known cause, maintaining a healthy immune system is the best way to make sure that they are detected, attacked, and eliminated. If researchers have learned anything it’s that even a disease like cancer is much more easily overcome when we use the mind-body connection to help fight it. The techniques found throughout the rest of the book will help you do just that.

      More than twenty years ago, an article published by the American Cancer Society asked the question, is there a cancer-prone personality? At the time, results were inconclusive and researchers needed much more information before they could put the debate to rest. Since then, studies have shown that there may indeed be a link between behavior and personality and the onset of and recovery from cancer. We know that emotions such as depression, anger, and hostility make us more prone to illness and disease; and it’s been shown that positive attitudes such as hope, optimism, and happiness strengthen our immune system and protect us from disease. Recent studies point to two personality types that seem to make us either cancer-prone or cancer-resistant.7

       CANCER-PRONE PERSONALITY TYPES

       • Represses both positive and negative emotions.

       • Shows anger, resentment, or hostility toward others.

       • Takes on extra duties and responsibilities, even when they cause stress.

       • Reacts adversely to and does not cope well with life changes.

       • Is negative or pessimistic.

       • Becomes easily depressed or has feelings of hopelessness.

       • Has few friends or social networks.

       • Worries often and excessively about others.

       • Feels the need for approval and to please others.

       CANCER-RESISTANT PERSONALITY TYPES

       • Expresses emotions in a positive and constructive way.

       • Controls anger and resolves anger issues positively.

       • Knows when to say no.

       • Copes well with stress and feels in control of situations.

       • Is optimistic and hopeful.

       • Does not become easily depressed.

       • Seeks out and maintains social support networks.

       • Does not worry excessively.

       • Likes to please, but does not seek approval as an emotional crutch.

      As with everything else, there are always exceptions: some of the most optimistic and positive among us will get cancer, and some of the angriest and most hostile will live to be 100, cancer-free. Importantly, when a cancer patient is told that his or her disease is terminal, those who adopt cancer-resistant traits tend to live longer because their newly acquired behaviors will automatically boost immunity.

      Mind-body techniques such as meditation, autosuggestion, visualization, and relaxation exercises can have a positive effect on cancer treatment. A patient’s coping style and recovery strategy are critical factors in five-year survival rates. Mortality is typically reduced for those who have a social support network compared with those who are socially isolated. Patients who establish a recovery program that includes stress management and relaxation techniques have fewer relapses.

      A group of researchers at Stanford University found that patients with metastatic breast cancer had a higher quality of life, less pain, and lived at least two years longer if they belonged to a support group, even if they were anxious and depressed about their disease. Their results showed that social support acts as a stress buffer. The patients with cortisol fluctuations had shorter survival times and poorer quality of life, while those who had good family ties and ongoing social support networks had lower cortisol levels and longer survival rates.8

      There’s a lesson to be learned from all this mounting evidence. By strengthening and conditioning the mind part of the mind-body connection, we can extend life and optimize the chances of recovery.

      A common complaint about cancer treatment is “The cure is worse than the disease.” Cancer treatments like surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation can be painful and debilitating, both physically and emotionally. The subsequent stress reactions lead to depressed immune function, which then lowers survival rates. A friend of mine who had a rare type of cancer and was undergoing chemotherapy once told me that his treatment was so bad that he felt like just giving up. To him, it seemed as if the treatment was making his disease even worse.

      Because cancer treatment can be so stressful in itself and lead to depressed immunity, it’s important to keep active and maintain as healthy a lifestyle as possible. Good nutrition is an important part of cancer treatment. Eating the right kinds of foods before, during, and after treatment will go a long way in helping you tolerate the treatment and eventual recovery. According to the American Cancer Society, you need to consume enough nutrients to meet the following goals:

       1. Prevent or reverse nutritional deficiencies;

       2. Decrease the side effects of the cancer or the treatment; and

       3. Maximize the quality of life.

      While a healthy diet is always important, it’s especially important for people with cancer because it will provide the reserves and strengthen the immune defenses needed to cope with the effects of treatment.

      Patients suffering from the physical side effects of chemotherapy and the emotional stress of having cancer will invariably have even lowered immune responses. That’s because any kind of stress causes release of cortisol, which blocks the production of natural killer (NK) cells that attack cancer. While recovering from cancer treatment, the last thing a person may want to think about is exercise. But studies have shown that exercise is one of the key factors in improving the quality of life in cancer patients. One study published in 1997 showed that 70 percent of cancer patients experience fatigue during therapy or after surgery and 30 percent of cancer survivors report a loss of energy following treatment, both significant contributors to a decreased quality of life in cancer patients. A subsequent study done in 1998 showed that patients who participated in outpatient wellness programs consisting of aerobic exercise, strength training, flexibility, and relaxation had a 43 percent increase in strength and a 50 percent increase in endurance than those who did not participate.9

      Both studies linked the benefits of physical activity to a decrease in emotional stress. Many studies since then have corroborated those findings and further concluded that stress management strategies during and after treatment play a vital role in a patient’s overall success rate.

      From the moment we’re born we begin to die. Sounds depressing, but the fact is that we begin the aging process at birth and become more susceptible to disease at middle age and especially as we reach sixty years old and beyond. Many diseases normally kept in check by a young, healthy immune system are more likely to overcome a body that can no longer keep up. Chronic diseases disproportionately affect older adults and are associated with disability and diminished quality of life. According to the 2007 US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Report, CDC’s Disaster Planning Goal: Protect Vulnerable Older Adults, 80 percent of adults over sixty have at least one chronic condition, and 50 percent have at least two.

      Some researchers have found that an accumulation of stress over time and age increases the body’s production of


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