cancer
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Read more »Going through cancer treatment is rough on everyone. It’s twice as hard if you don’t have support to cope with the physical and emotional side effects. And during a global pandemic? That’s just icing on a layer cake of stress.
So, we’re delighted that the Charlotte Maxwell Clinic (CMC) in Oakland, Calif., adopted Health Journeys’ guided imagery at a tough time when it couldn’t offer services in person and when stress was at an all-time high. And we’re absolutely thrilled that they plan to keep using our audios now that they’ve reopened.
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Posted: October 11, 2021Categories: Update from Health Journeys
Read more »As we continue focusing on keeping ourselves and our loved ones healthy and well, this seasonal change into fall seems to have come surprisingly fast. It is amazing how quickly time seems to pass by when we are so consumed in just making our day-to-day work. For me recently, a significant part of that fleeting time has been concentrated on supporting my mom with a new medical diagnosis… breast cancer.
The news came as a complete surprise to her and to us, her family. But even so, witnessing how she has managed every aspect of the cancer label has been inspiring: the series of chemotherapy treatments, and the myriad physical and mental changes that have come with the diagnosis... not because she has made it all look easy, but because she has faced them with deep reflection, authenticity, and humor.
Intent on helping herself deal with this big life change and optimize the efforts of her medical team, my mom, a nurse of 55+ years, asked me for tools that might support her with the cancer treatments and help her feel good inside.
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Read more »MD Anderson’s Department of Palliative, Rehabilitation and Integrative Medicine recently evaluated the impact of 4 different integrative, mind-body therapies on the symptom distress of cancer patients and their caregivers.
They looked at guided meditation, yoga, massage therapy, & acupuncture.
These were preliminary studies that got patient and caregiver feedback - not fancy randomized, controlled studies – but the data yielded meaningful results on standard measurement instruments, and with high population sizes.
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Posted: February 16, 2021Categories: Update from Health Journeys
Read more »Has it really been 30 years since we got this mind-body audio adventure rolling? I’ve been reminiscing about our very humble beginnings. And making what eventually became the first Health Journeys cassette tape.
Sometime around 1986-7, a woman I’m going to call Bonnie booked an appointment with my psychotherapy practice. She was looking for help with fighting stage 4 breast cancer and gearing up for chemotherapy.
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Posted: October 22, 2020Categories: Partner Spotlight
Read more »In our mission to bring health and mental health resources to those most in need, Health Journeys works together with a variety of partners to make sure our guided imagery is easily accessible, targeted to specific, relevant health concerns, and fits the needs and budget of each organization.
Today, we’re putting a spotlight on Wings of Hope Cancer Support Center. Wings of Hope offers support and guidance for those battling cancer at all stages of their illness, and help to families and friends coping with cancer in their lives, serving Omaha Metro and Southwest Iowa, free of charge. -
Read more »MD Anderson’s Department of Palliative, Rehabilitation and Integrative Medicine recently evaluated the impact of 4 different integrative, mind-body therapies on the symptom distress of cancer patients and their caregivers.
They looked at guided meditation, yoga, massage therapy, & acupuncture.
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Read more »The questions and comments keep rolling in. It’s always good to get them, because they make clear what we haven’t been explaining well, or point out something we’ve articulated too flippantly, or highlight an important issue that was omitted in an answer… in other words, they set us straight and keep us on track. So thank you all for all of it.
Here are a few recent Q and A’s. No scoldings in this batch, but some great issues raised… on cancer, panic attacks, psoriasis, and our new app…
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Posted: December 03, 2018Categories: Ask Belleruth
Read more »Dear Belleruth:
I have been on the cancer journey for over 18 months now trying to do everything right and just got some terrible news. I have been crushed, confused, stressed. I decided to try an alternative medicine immunotherapy and my naturopath recommended your guided visualization. I need something that will help me overcome this stress, relax, and boost my immunity. Can you make a recommendation?
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Read more »Dear BR,
I have been listening to a particular meditation/guided imagery CD for several months and wanted to try another. I found yours "Meditation to Help You Fight Cancer" - I have a breast cancer recurrence and ordered a copy. Unfortunately, I find I can't concentrate on it. My mind keeps wandering away; that doesn't happen with the other CD. I have tried to determine what is the problem; and the best I can come up with is the music is too upbeat to be relaxing for me, and there aren't enough pauses, or they aren't long enough. It's also true that the music is too loud and overpowers the voice. Part of the spoken message also speaks of "creating energy" when, in fact, what I want is to relax and be calm, not more energized.
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Read more »Hello again. My son Aaron found Emily McDowell’s Empathy Cards online and showed them to me. They’re to send to people with cancer. I read a few, and it immediately hit me: there’s been a sea change in attitudes about cancer.
