Books of Hope
Becoming engrossed in a good book improves the reader's ability to put themselves in another person's shoes and flex the imagination in a way that is similar to visualization techniques. In this way, good books on healing can support an optimistic mindset of hope and further enhance a positive mind-body connection. Here are some of our favorite books to inspire you during your healing journey.
As with any type of full wellness support, it is important to fully research and form your own opinion on utilizing any treatments suggested in these books in partnership with a qualified healthcare professional.
Full Disclosure: Connect4Hope has an affiliate marketing relationship with Amazon.com.
By Linda E. Carlson, Ph.D., R.Psych. and Michael Speca, Psy.D., R.Psych.
Rather than regret the past and worry about the future, mindfulness helps you live to your utmost potential in the present moment - the only moment that is guaranteed to any of us.
How can you use mindfulness to help cope with cancer? Mindfulness-Based Cancer Recovery (MBCR) answers this question while guiding you through the creation of your own MBCR program at home. It explains the relationship between stress and cancer, how to use mindfulness to better manage common cancer-related symptoms, treatment side effects and the fear and anxiety that so often accompany a cancer diagnosis.
MBCR began as an in-person program at the Tom Baker Cancer Centre in Calgary, Canada to help patients cope with the daily stresses occurring during a cancer diagnosis, treatments and remission. These include uncertainty about the future, disruptions to daily routines and relationships, loss of control, fears of physical symptoms or functional losses resulting from the disease or its treatment. Research continues to show that the program leads to significant reductions in stress, anxiety, depression, sleep difficulties, fatigue, pain and fear of cancer recurrence and improvements in behavioral and cognitive coping, emotional stability and quality of life. By making the program available in book format, Linda Carlson and Michael Speca have enabled their program to reach even more cancer patients, giving them the gift of present moment awareness and quality of life that otherwise may have gone missing since their cancer diagnosis.
By Suzanne Somers
In 2009, breast cancer survivor Suzanne Somers wrote this incredible resource documenting her in-depth interviews with 13 doctors and other experts on alternative and complementary cancer treatments. These are courageous pioneers who think outside the box, and as a result, are helping to cure people with terminal, stage IV cancer diagnoses. While their protocols differ, the interviews share the commonality of providing hope, the message that every cancer patient IS in control of his own health and the knowledge that multiple healing options exist. In addition, the sampling of testimonials from survivors are incredibly rewarding and will give hope to anyone with cancer.
What we like:
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This book is full of very technical information, referencing many scientific studies published in well-respected medical journals.
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While each practitioner’s treatment modality is different, each is also having tremendous success in helping people heal. If one treatment doesn’t work, another one may. The key is to not give up.
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The list of practitioners, clinics and other resources, most of which still exist today (nine years after the book was first published), is worth just as much as the content of the interviews for anyone dealing with cancer and looking for personalized healing guidance.
By Rebecca Katz with Mat Edelson
The Cancer Fighting Kitchen provides hope and inspiration in a unique way. This gem of a cookbook includes 111 delicious recipes containing a wide range of mostly plant-based, antioxidant-rich, anti-inflammatory whole foods to help create a nutrient-rich bodily environment in which cancer (and other diseases) cannot thrive. In addition, it is a wealth of information on using “food as medicine” to promote systemic healing. The features we love the most are:
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The Cancer-Fighting Tool Kit with suggestions for optimizing nutrition; and
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The Culinary Pharmacy providing the detailed cancer-fighting properties of the powerhouse foods included in all the recipes.
With this information at your fingertips, you can make any recipe in this book and know how the ingredients are helping your body to heal as you eat. Not only is this good for your body, it's great for your mind and maintaining a positive mind-body connection focused on empowerment and hope.
