100 Perks of Having Cancer: Plus 100 Health Tips for Surviving It (88 page)

of the “so-much-to-do-and-so-little-time” lifestyle many of us have adopted.

And it is often overlooked when people ask the question, “Why do I feel

like crap all the time?”

Contrary to what some think, sleeping isn’t a form of your body and

brain “turning off” or “resting.” Your brain remains quite active during this

time, with chemical reactions and processes occurring during sleep that

allow the brain to “reorganize” and “repair.” Growth hormone is manufac-

tured and secreted during sleep, and the amount gradually decreases as we

age, which is one of the reasons why infants and children sleep more than

adults. (Human growth hormone [HGH] is what the “beautiful people” are

injecting to stay younger looking. Maybe there is something to the term

beauty sleep
.)

Your brain undergoes a series of cycles during sleep. You must reach all

stages of these cycles 4 to 5 times during the night to get “healthful” sleep.

Perk #87: Cancer Gave Me a Cause

371

Disturbed or interrupted sleep does not seem to count. You may be in the

bed for eight hours with your eyes closed, but if you don’t reach the proper

cycles, it’s as if you didn’t sleep at all.

Poor sleep, or dozing, is just as bad for you as no sleep.

Sleeping isn’t a

When does it get to the point of “insomnia”?

waste of time.

There are two different kinds of insomnia or sleeplessness. If

It’s vital to your

you have trouble falling asleep (it takes more than thirty minutes

overall health.

to fall asleep) or have trouble staying asleep more than three

nights a week for over a month, it’s labeled “chronic insomnia.”

Sometimes there is a specific problem associated with the sleeplessness that

causes insomnia for just a short period of time, for example your dog died

or you lost your job. That’s called “acute” or “secondary insomnia.”

In more than 80 percent of people there is an identifiable cause for their

lack of sleep (secondary insomnia). Whether it’s drinking or eating too close

to bedtime, too much caffeine, or too much worry, once the problem is

identified and corrected, the restful nights return.

For the other near 20 percent of those suffering from insomnia, the sleep-

lessness is the primary problem and is its own disorder, which should be

treated with establishing lifestyle changes, cognitive behavioral therapy, or

medications and/or supplements. If you are among this crowd it’s important

to get help from your doctor or naturopath to get you on the right road to

dreamland. It may be discovered that you have sleep apnea or restless leg syn-

drome (involuntary movements and feelings in your legs that don’t allow you

to rest). You might not even know you have these two conditions, but they

can severely affect sleep patterns and have a negative impact on your health.

It’s so annoying when you can’t fall asleep, isn’t it? Here are some tips

that may help:

●
Set a routine:
Try to go to bed around the same time each night. Have

a bedtime routine that consists of getting dressed, bathroom stuff (peeing,

washing, brushing teeth, flossing), and some form of relaxing activity for

ten to fifteen minutes before you try to sleep like reading, listening to

music (preferably not heavy metal), or taking a warm bath. Put a few

drops of lavender essential oil (
Lavendula angustifolia,
a natural oil, not

fragrance oil) in the bathwater to help relieve stress.

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100 Perks of Having Cancer

●
Avoid alcohol, caffeine, and full meals
at least three hours before bed-

time. All these things block the ability of your brain to successfully cycle

through the REM stages.

●
No naps
after 3 PM.

●
Regular exercise is key.
Sorry, folks, but it’s true; at the very least, twenty

minutes, four times a week, but not within two hours of bedtime. (Please

note that twenty minutes a day four times a week is far less than you need

to build your immunity and lower your risk of cancer and other illnesses.)

●
Dark and cool should be the décor
for your bedroom. Think “cave.”

This includes turning off computers, TVs, and tablets, as the light in your

eyes suppresses the production of melatonin, which is your body’s own

natural sleeping pill.

●
Earplugs, a mask, or white noise machines
can help eliminate annoying

sounds, like your partner’s snoring or that neighbor’s damn dog.

●
Make a “to-do” list
before you go to bed so you’re not thinking about

what you need to remember for the next day.

●
Use your bed only for sleep
(and sex . . . but you can have sex in places

other than your bed . . . just to be clear). Don’t use your bed to hang out

and watch TV or catch up on work.

●
Get enough Vitamin B6
as you need this vitamin for the production of

melatonin. Some good sources of B6 are bell peppers, sunflower seeds,

spinach, shiitake mushrooms, and summer squash. Eat fresh because can-

ning reduces vitamin B6 by as much as 60 percent.

●
Meditation
can slow your thoughts down and prepare you for a restful

night. Meditation done on a regular basis reduces your overall stress level

and can lower your level of cortisol, one of the hormones that causes your

body to wake up.

So if you’re reading this in bed and it’s past your bedtime . . . go to sleep!

Your body will thank you for it.

Perk #88

Cancer Gave Me the

Courage to Step Outside

My Comfort Zone

A
ccording to the
Wall Street Journal,
public speaking is the number-one

fear of people in North America. Death is number two. In other words,

if you were going to a funeral, you would rather be the one in the coffin

than the person giving the eulogy. When I was invited to be guest speaker

at the Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation’s Provincial Annual Retreat, I

wasn’t sure that I would have the nerve to do it. While I had experience with

public speaking, my skills had gotten a little rusty in my time away from

work, and the thought of giving a speech to a group of 200 people ranked

right up there with bungee cord jumping and running with the bulls for me.

Given that cancer is my new cause, however, I could not pass up this

opportunity to spread my message of the benefits of facing cancer with a

survivor’s attitude. What better place to promote my cause than with a cap-

tive audience of women in various stages of their breast cancer journey?

Still, I wasn’t sure if I would be able to confront my public speaking

fear. When I was a child, my father taught me these words: “Do what you

fear and your fear will disappear.” There are few things in life scarier than

a cancer diagnosis. I reasoned that if I could face cancer head on, then I

could certainly take on this challenge. And so I did it! Sure, it was scary to

stand before that many people and talk about my cancer experience, but

not nearly as scary as hearing those three little words: “You have cancer.” If

my speech helped even one person, then it was worth it, and, besides, Dad

was right. Once I did it, the thought of speaking in public again didn’t scare

me nearly as much.

Do what you fear and your fear will disappear!

I 373 J

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100 Perks of Having Cancer

HEALTH TIP #88

Don’t Fear the Squash!

S
quaaaash! It’s fun to say, but as a kid I remember thinking,
I don’t think

I want to eat something that makes the same sound as a bug when I step on it.

Thank goodness for adulthood. Now I am mature enough to try new

foods and make wonderful recipes from them. The many varieties of squash

make for interesting choices.

Summer squash like zucchini, yellow summer “crooked neck” squash,

and butterstick (the sweetest damn summer variety there is) all have thin

skins. They need to be kept refrigerated or they will soften and “go bad” in

about a week or so. Don’t store them near gas-producing apples or pears in

the fridge or it will make the squash “go bad” quicker. Cucumbers are actu-

ally a part of the summer squash family.

Winter squash like acorn, butternut, or carnival tend to have thicker

skins and much harder flesh. Some varieties practically require a hammer

and chisel to cut them open. But once cooked, the flesh is dense, sweet, and

fluffy. The hard skin allows you to store a winter squash in any cool, dark

place (like your pantry box) for up to three months. When storing squash

with stems, leave the stem intact for the best flavor.

When discussing the benefits of squash here, it is assumed that the

squash is fresh, not canned, and it is not boiled, as these processes deplete

much of the valuable nutrition contained in these sweet

beauties.

Eating seasonal squash

The summer varieties in general are high in vitamin

supplies you with cancer-

C, potassium, vitamin B6, and fiber (if you’re eating the

fighting vitamins and a

organically grown skins like you should) and have no fat.

delicious colorful addition

Winter squash varieties are generally high in vitamin A,

to your diet.

vitamin C, calcium, thiamine, niacin, B6, iron, and potas-

sium, and also have no fat. Summer varieties are deli-

cious raw, and I like to slice these for use as “chips” in many dips I make

or to throw them into salads.

Winter varieties are
very
high in vitamin A, as are most orange-colored