Complementary Care
Coleen was very inquisitive and curious by nature and fascinated with things that would be considered outside the mainstream of life. She was an insatiable reader and had a huge appetite for knowledge and information. Coleen was not the type of person to take things lying down, especially with her cancer treatments. She wrestled with the concept of alternative treatments vs traditional and eventually settled on traditional treatment with a heavy supplement of complementary care.Coleen’s complementary care included yoga, massage, reiki, meditation, acupuncture, reading, journaling, vitamins, herbs, prayer, and many more. To her way of thinking, anything she could do to raise her energy levels and create positive thoughts was a weapon in her defense. She constantly strove to be healthy, eat well and take care of her body. And she encouraged others to do the same. That’s one of the many things that fall into the “unfair” column in her death. There are so many people who are the opposite of her in self-care and proactive health habits and yet she was the one to die.
One of Coleen’s unique complementary cares was her friend Jillian whom she would see every month or so. Jillian’s skills are diverse and very different and Coleen was very comfortable with her. Jillian’s business card says “specializing in advanced energy techniques, herbs, vitamins and aromatherapy.” These were all very relevant and dear to Coleen and her healing. Perhaps the biggest benefit was the two of them talking about how Coleen was feeling and how she could keep positives flowing. The two of them were of like minds and interests. I was always excited when Coleen told me that she had an appointment with Jillian because she felt so much better after seeing her. We called Jillian Coleen’s “secret weapon.”
Not everyone can have a Jillian as part of their healing team, but there are plenty of complementary cares available to choose from. And plenty of holistic options to be found. I have myself received the benefits of massage, reiki and yoga and they have helped me tremendously with my healing and grief process. Are any of these going to cure someone with breast cancer mets? Nope. Are they going to improve quality of life and enhance each day? Are they going to raise self-esteem and positive energies?Absolutely.
There is no doubt in my mind that Coleen benefited from her complementary cares and she would want to share that information with others. In her metastatic support group, she encouraged the girls to try reiki, yoga and meditation and who knows what else. Coleen was always one to spread the word. When she found something good, she wanted other people to know about it, too. Except her recipes. Those were her secrets.
Here are some references for Complementary Care:
Susan Komen website has a nice listing of complementary therapies
