CDC Symptom Diary Card

Tuesday, October 18, 2016

Be The Light


Do you sometimes feel like this?  Doing something other than the intended activity???  In this clip I thought I was taking a selfie...ha!

I was up all night with never ending flushes of hot flashes and night sweats.  I am not sick, that I know of.  Today it has been one hot flash after another, after another, after another.  My ears won't stop ringing, I am exhausted beyond measure. I can't get comfortable in my own skin today.  Not sure what is going on.  I had an infusion of Rituxan and IVIG in the last few weeks, maybe that is it? 

I can't focus. So I write in my blog hoping that it will help.

When I feel like I do today I rely on prayer and reflecting on my retreat experiences, along with looking through photos of happy times with loved ones.  I don't have the energy to walk outside today.

This little clip was taken at a retreat center near Carroll, IA. I drove Sr. Anne Marie back home from our retreat for women with cancer. She had injured her back. It was an honor. Tiring indeed, but well worth it because I had precious 1:1 time with our Sister in Mary. I knew that she would bring along an abundance of protection for us with her guardian angels.

My mind and heart wander frequently to the memories of our retreat because those times nurtured my spirit and replenished hope for my future, no matter how it is revealed.

Please say a prayer for all those suffering with pain and angst from cancer or any other chronic condition, for those people are in need of light. 

Be the light.

God Bless you!

Visit Sr. Anne Marie's retreat:





Sunday, October 16, 2016

A Prayer For Peace In Time Of Sickness


A Prayer For Peace In Time Of Sickness 


O Lord, Jesus Christ, Divine Healer, 
grant me peace of mind 
and perfect trust in You 
in my time of distress. 
Give me control over my fears. 
Grant that I may be cooperative 
and patient with Your Will, 
trusting that You will restore me to full health.



Amen


Tuesday, October 04, 2016

Reflections On Our Retreat

Reflections On Our Retreat:

The richness of this past retreat for women with cancer cannot be expressed or summarized in just one post.  

I walked away feeling so much lighter as we had released some of our spiritual and emotional baggage!

This retreat is: A Place of God's Love and our Blessed Mother's Love

A space of quiet calm where God’s voice can be felt and heard.
A place to see old friends and feel their hope and courage.
Where one newly diagnosed woman was being comforted by her sisters and the Lord, through the intercession of our Blessed Mother.
Where a woman who feels she is coming to the peak of her life on earth says she is now ready for the angels, after being in chemo for 6 years straight.
Where women who are NED living with the scars of cancer are seeking solace. 
Where women who are in treatment now wait scan results with greater peace and strength knowing there are no bad outcomes because our ultimate destiny is with the Lord.

Part One:

We are immortal!  This sinks in as I calm down from the tediousness of traveling to Corpus Christi.  The first night we gather for dinner, talk a little amongst ourselves, to get oriented to this place of peace. I call it my "oasis of hope".  It was wonderful to see familiar faces and to see new faces.  We take a deep breath of relief knowing that for the next 3.5 days we get to "Be with God" without interruption.  We will get to know our Blessed Mother and learn about how she helps us to reach our Lord, especially in times of sorrow and pain.  

Our first talk with Sr. Anne Marie is powerful, a gentle yet striking reminder that living on earth is not the endpoint of our lives. Our immortality is the foundation upon which the remainder of the retreat rests.  What matters to God is not our jobs, our income, our fashion, our hair, our cars, our clutter…..what matters to God and matters to each other is HOW WE LOVE.  How we love effects the manner in which we enter into our immortality.

How I interpret this:
Our baggage and emotions can and do interfere with how we love.  Releasing baggage frees us to live and Love greatly.

Before I go to bed and upon awakening in the morning and during the day I check myself:  How did I love today?  When I interact with family how did I love?  When I speak to my doctors and nurses, how did I love?  When I go to the store and greet my neighbor, how did I love?  These things matter and the energy we give is the energy we receive.  This effects our health, our pain and our outlook on our lives.  I am choosing to Love as much as possible.  I have not always been this way, especially when I was angry about my diagnosis. 

Ask yourself: How did I love today?  That is my question to you for now.  

Peace and Blessings,

Servivorgirl