Lise N. Alschuler - The Definitive Guide to Thriving After Cancer: A Five-Step Integrative Plan to Reduce the Risk of Recurrence and Build Lifelong Health

Copyright 2011, 2013 by Lise N. Alschuler and Karolyn A. Gazella

All rights reserved.

Published in the United States by Ten Speed Press, an imprint of the Crown Publishing Group, a division of Random House LLC, a Penguin Random House Company, New York.

www.crownpublishing.com

www.tenspeed.com

Ten Speed Press and the Ten Speed Press colophon are registered trademarks of Random House LLC.

A previous edition of this work was published in the United States as Five to Thrive: Your Cutting-edge Cancer Prevention Plan by Active Interest Media, Inc.,

El Segundo, California, in 2011.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Alschuler, Lise.

[Five to thrive]

The definitive guide to thriving after cancer : a five-step integrative plan to reduce the risk of recurrence and build lifelong health / Lise N. Alschuler, ND, FABNO and Karolyn A. Gazella. Revised edition.

pages cm

Revision of: Five to thrive. El Segundo, California : Active Interest, 2011. (eBook) 1. CancerDiet therapy. 2. CancerPrevention. I. Gazella, Karolyn A. II.Title.

RC271.D52A43 2013

616.9940654dc23

2013014557

Trade Paperback ISBN: 978-1-60774-564-8
ebook ISBN: 978-1-60774-565-5

Design by Chloe Rawlins

v3.1

When we think of the many Thrivers we have met along our journey, our hearts expand. We are both humbled and exhilarated by their influence on our work. To all of the Thrivers whose paths we have crossed, thank you; and to all of the Thrivers we have not yet met, we cant wait to meet you!

We have an intensely deep and personal connection to this illness. We are both cancer survivors and we have each lost a parent to cancer. In addition, we have a combined total of more than forty years in the natural health industry, focusing on patient education and patient care, with much of that time devoted to the investigation, practice, and advocacy of integrative cancer care. We have written this book specifically for people like uspeople who want to proactively reduce their risk of a cancer recurrence. In talking with other survivors, we have found that people want straight answers and clear direction. People who have witnessed family members and friends go through this illness are motivated to avoid cancer and are seeking specific prevention strategies. This book answers that incredible need. The Five to Thrive Plan will not only reduce your risk of cancer, but it will also provide a blueprint for living a vibrantly healthy life.

The goal of this book is to help you create a path toward a deep-seated wellness that stays with you to your very last breath. That may sound lofty, but we will settle for nothing less. Before we ever wrote one word of our first book, The Definitive Guide to Cancer, we created a guiding vision and mission. Since then, we have begun every presentation and book with these statements:

Our Vision. An integrative approach to cancer prevention and treatment can positively transform the health of those affected by this disease.

Our Mission. By educating people about lifestyle-based, integrative, and scientifically sound health promotion strategies, we create deeper and more widespread wellness.

Developing the Five to Thrive Plan was a natural extension of our lifes work toward the fulfillment of our vision and mission.

The inspiration for this second edition featuring the Five to Thrive Plan came from the readers of the first edition. We heard many stories of readers who were inspired anew to lead healthier lives. They told us how they shared our book with their book clubs and set up self-help groups. Some readers used our book as a part of their wellness coaching. From their feedback, we saw the opportunity to make the Five to Thrive Plan even easier to follow. This second edition is a call to action that is even more clear and concise. We are deeply grateful for the feedback that we have received, and we are honored to offer this new updated and improved edition.

We developed the Five to Thrive Plan with these goals in mind:

Simple

Practical

Sustainable

Backed by science, and

Effective

As cancer survivors, we created this plan for ourselves and our loved ones, but we have always wanted this plan to be yours. A plan that you can individualize, customize, and mold into your own personal version of thriving. At the end of each chapter, you will find a Thrive Thought as well as some simple next steps. Think of these as steppingstones, with each stone bringing you one step closer to exuberant and vital wellness.

A cancer diagnosis delivers a breathtaking blow to body, mind, and spirit. It also comes with a huge dose of distraction as you are hurled into the world of cancer treatment. But what happens when the last round of treatment is completed, the doctor visits are few and far between, and the tests have all been taken? What then? We hear that question a lot. With a pat on the back and a sincere good luck, people with a past diagnosis of cancer often feel unarmed as they move into their new life as a cancer survivor. They sense they are ill equipped to reduce their risk of recurrenceand yet the thought of having cancer again looms large. The reality that they are at a higher risk of getting cancer again is daunting.

Cancer is not something we want to think about, but even if we try to shove it back to the dark recesses of the mind, it is still there, niggling. Periodically, our fear thunders into our awareness, sending us into swirling panic. This can happen when we experience a new body ache, a day of unusual tiredness, or a stubborn mental block. It can crop up if we know someone in treatment, or even when we celebrate the anniversary of our diagnosis or our own treatment. At times, it can seem that we are dancing on ice, doing our best to avoid falling through, but without a clear sense of where the ice is thin and where the ice will hold us.

But in an ironic twist of truth, this illnessand the fear it evokescan teach us how to embrace life, to meet it head on, and to live with vitality. The experience of confronting cancer can teach us how to reduce the risk of it returning. It can be a bridge to deeper and greater health. It is the Trojan horse for the real message of thriving. This call for vital living inspired us to write The Definitive Guide to Thriving After Cancer. During our many public presentations across the country, we have met hundreds of people who share more than the bond of cancerthey share the inspiring drive to triumph over adversity and fight not only for themselves but also for the people they love. As survivors of cancer ourselves, we have learned a lot from these courageous people. We have also heard their pleas for trustworthy guidance.

This book is a culmination of wisdom gleaned from our own experiences (both personal and clinical), the accounts of others who have walked with cancer on various levels, and a careful distilling of the available research and scientific literature. But most of all, this book is a lesson in thriving, with a clear picture of what that looks like and how to get there. Thriving is the perfect antidote to fearand the key ingredient to living an exuberant life.