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I AM HealingStrong
Discover how to transform the most challenging chapter of your life with Jim Mann's inspiring podcast. As a stage 4 cancer survivor, Jim interviews famous musical artists like Tasha Layton, Ellie Holcomb, Katy Nichole, and Tim Timmons, as well as health influencers who beat incurable diseases like depression and addiction. Through humor and a renewed sense of purpose, guests courageously share their stories of overcoming the toughest times and learning to trust God. Tune in to Jim's powerful podcast to find hope and inspiration.
I AM HealingStrong
114: Healing Through Grief, Spiritual Growth, and Alternative Cancer Treatments | Jennifer Reiner
Jennifer Reiner shares her journey from personal loss and grief to healing and faith. Her experiences, including her nursing career and battles with cancer, reveal the profound link between emotional trauma and physical health, emphasizing holistic healing.
• Exploring Jennifer's background in nursing and EMS
• Impact of 9/11 on her personal and professional life
• The transition to North Carolina and adjusting to change
• Coping with the deaths of her parents
• Shift from conventional cancer treatment to holistic practices
• Discovering her own cancer diagnosis during the pandemic
• Importance of faith and spirituality in the healing process
• Jennifer's desire to support others facing cancer struggles
• Embracing a holistic approach to health and wellness
• The emotional journey of grief and transformation
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So I thought I was doing all the right stuff, right Like we changed our whole lives. But that was the most. Even going through 9-11, which was hugely traumatic losing my dad was more traumatic. I was heartbroken, just like he was heartbroken about my mom. I mean, I was heartbroken about my mom passing, but I think I couldn't really deal with it because he immediately had cancer. So I immediately went into nurse mode instead of mourning you know what I mean because I didn't really get to fully mourn my mom. So then when my dad passed, it was like my world was crumbled. You know so, and a lot of things that I learned about cancer is usually it comes after some type of major you know life event or trauma or stress or something, and so I think that was.
Speaker 1:I was heartbroken and I think that's what it was.
Speaker 3:You're listening to the I Am Healing Strong podcast, a part of the Healing Strong organization, the number one network of holistic cancer support groups in the world. Each week we bring you stories of hope, real stories that will encourage you as you navigate your way on your own journey to health. Now here's your host stage four cancer thriver, jim Mann.
Speaker 2:Today talking with Jennifer Reiner in North Carolina, just one state up where I'm sitting. How you doing, Jennifer?
Speaker 1:I'm great thanks for asking how are you today?
Speaker 2:I'm all right, no, I'm doing great. I'm doing great. I like it because I'm analyzing myself as I get older, because I never think about things and I'm like man, I have all this energy when I first I get up like at five o'clock, you know just automatically, because I used to be in morning radio so I'd get up two for that. So I guess it kind of ruined my internal clock. But you know, I just I'll wake up by five at the latest and I have all this energy all the way up until 12 or two o'clock. And then all of a sudden I'm like gosh, when is bedtime coming? Which makes me feel like I'm an old guy, but I don't know what's going on there. I have to fix that. I need energy in the second part of the day also.
Speaker 1:I'm reversed. I'm opposite of you. I start getting my energy around two o'clock. I'm dragging all morning and then I'm like full of energy in the afternoon.
Speaker 2:That's my whole family. I'm like the chihuahua in the house and then all of a sudden the big dogs get up and then I'm down. I don't know.
Speaker 1:I thought maybe as a nurse you can give me some advice, but since you're the opposite, as a nurse, I worked many opposite schedules, so I'm probably not the best person to give you getting up early advice.
Speaker 2:So you're messed up too, then yeah pretty much Well, okay. Well, we've already touched on the fact that you are a nurse, but I was looking at some notes about your story. And, first of all, where'd you grow up?
Speaker 1:I actually grew up in New York City.
Speaker 2:Okay.
Speaker 1:I was born in Manhattan and then moved to Queens and pretty much I lived in Queens all through high school. I still worked in Manhattan, I worked in Brooklyn.
Speaker 2:Yeah, that actually sounds exciting to me. I love the big city, but then I also love the rural country and all that stuff. I'm pretty much like anything. I like to be at least near a city where I can enjoy that and then go home. How about that?
Speaker 1:Yeah, it was great when I was young but it took me a long time to get used to rural North Carolina Like that was a little rough. I wanted to go home every day for a long time.
Speaker 2:Yeah, but how do you feel about it now?
Speaker 1:Oh now I love it. Now I don't even want to like consider going to New York. The couple of times I've gone, you know, the last few times I've gone, I should say I'm like how did I live here? It's so dirty, it's so old, it's not you know it just doesn't look as attractive anymore.
Speaker 2:And Raleigh's big enough right.
Speaker 1:Yeah, raleigh's pretty big. I live outside Raleigh um little country town. But you know it's growing so much here that even the little country towns are becoming, you know, suburbia and crowded, and so less farms and cows now.
Speaker 2:Yeah, and we were discussing before we started this that you actually live in the listening area where I was on the radio. So I changed your life, didn't I?
Speaker 1:You did. I used to listen to his radio. I would drive 45 minutes to an hour to commute to work and same coming home. And I used to listen to his radio. I would drive 45 minutes to an hour to commute to work and same coming home, and I used to listen to that.
Speaker 2:Yeah, well, thanks for playing along. I know I personally didn't change your life, but hey, thanks a lot.
Speaker 1:No, listening to that was definitely um. It was very impactful.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I enjoyed it. I enjoyed being able to say dumb things and people thought it was great. I enjoyed it. I enjoyed being able to say dumb things and people thought it was great. So it was my gift to the world saying weird stuff. But anyway, that's a whole nother story. You were a paramedic. Is that what you went to school for? Is that what you wanted to do with your life? Or how'd you stumble across that?
Speaker 1:Well, I didn't intend to be a paramedic, it just kind of happened. I was in high school, you know, trying to figure out what to do after high school, and I worked in a bakery all through high school and all the EMS people would come in the paramedics, the EMTs, the police and whatever. And you know, we were talking about, as a senior, like what am I going to do when I graduate? And I said, well, you know, I really want to become a doctor. At that time I wanted to go to medical school. I was like, but you know, I came from, you know, a poor family, poor neighborhood, you know. And they were like, you know, so how? You know, what's your goal? Like, are you going to be able to pay for that working here? It's like, absolutely not, you know. So you know I had to talk about loans and whatever. And anyway they kind of introduced me to like these programs where you can work for agencies or hospitals or whatever and they pay for your college. Like at that time I never knew that existed. And so I went into EMS as a way to, you know, earn my way, like pay for college and to go to medical school.
Speaker 1:But then, after I finished four years of college, I was like I don't want to go to medical school, so that kind of changed. Yeah. So I went out into corporate America after college and I was like I miss taking care of patients, so much you know. And I was still working EMS. I always worked EMS. Even when I was working corporate America, they were like you're going to do what on your days off? And I'm like I'm going to go work in Brooklyn and pick up gunshot wounds and stuff. Yeah. So after I was in corporate America for a while, I missed it and I went back to be a nurse.
Speaker 2:It's in your heart to help people, right.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I missed patient care and I still love taking care of patients.
Speaker 2:Yeah, but then something kind of drastic happened in 2001, 9-11. You were right in the middle of all that, weren't you?
Speaker 1:Yeah, I worked down at Ground Zero. I wasn't there when the towers physically came down. I was married at the time and my husband was an EMS supervisor and for some reason, I don't know why, we must have fell asleep watching a movie or something. But we woke up to the news and the like. You know what was happening. And he had his radio on and you could hear the people screaming like you could hear our coworkers, you know like screaming, calling for help and and it was just heart wrenching and so obviously both of us were like we got to go, like we got to go help. That was just in our nature, you know. So we went down to work.
Speaker 1:You know we responded to go to work. They had the city closed at the time so you needed permission to get in. So we eventually, you know like I went over in an ambulance from my EMS base, you know, to the city across the bridge and and we were stationed, you know we went to triage, like stations for triage, and then we just rotated in and out to help with the recovery of patients and people. You know, if they found any deceased people or even the firemen, you know they were in the recovery recovery, we would have to take care of them. You know, if they were like dehydrated or, you know, injury or whatever, yeah, wow, that must have been devastating it was.
Speaker 1:It's something I I don't. I mean, I've never seen anything like this in my life. Like I grew up in the inner city. You, you, you hear news of wars and that kind of thing, but like you know, it's not like you don't know what it's like, you know.
Speaker 1:And then to go to the city that day and then those days after, and just it was like being in a war zone. I mean, that's really the only way I could describe it. I've never been to war, but that's what it looked like to me from like movies. It was, you know, army people with big guns and just a big cloud of smoke like you couldn't see very far and you know we had to wear these big giant respirators and we had to carry medications in case there was like a biological attack. So it was really like it was scary, but like so surreal. Yeah, wow motivated me to go indoors and work as a nurse.
Speaker 2:Yeah, so how much longer did you stay in the New York area at that time?
Speaker 1:After that, I should say Three more years, and then I moved to North Carolina in 2004. My parents retired early because you know, at that time after it happened, a lot of people in the field like my parent, my dad worked for the police, my mom worked for the police department, so they were all being able now to take early retirement. They were, I don't know. There was some kind of thing going on. So we all planned, like my husband and I said, we were going to move, my family planned. So we all just kind of planned to move to North Carolina. We all came here together so Did you already have family here?
Speaker 2:What drew you here?
Speaker 1:Well, I had a brother whose wife had family here. So they kind of moved here like I don't know 10 years or so before that, but we would come and visit you know. But we were all up there. But then when my parents were like we're going to retire early and we're going to go to North Carolina and be around the grandchildren, my other brother and I were like, if you go, I'll go. So we just kind of all came, so the whole family's here in North Carolina. Well, my parents have since passed away, but yeah, but we're still here, the kids and the grandkids.
Speaker 2:And that was probably culture shock, wasn't it?
Speaker 1:I told you I wanted to go home every day for at least six years. Like it took me a long time to adjust. But I did go to nursing school here and you know I started working and I did one of these like second degree programs where you agree to work for the hospital for five years and they paid for the whole program and so I was kind of stuck here. I was stuck here for at least five years. You know you had to finish five years, so that was that six years it took me to get used to being here.
Speaker 2:Well, welcome to the South.
Speaker 1:Well, I love it now. I don't think I could ever move back up north.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah, I mean, there's good things about it, of course, that I'm sure you miss every once in a while, while no, not really. That's funny. I grew up in Baltimore, not that far from New York, and I left in 81. Oh my goodness, that sounds so old and I have great fond memories and when I watch the Orioles play I just like I need to go back. But then it passes.
Speaker 1:I've gone back to see some like yankee games and hockey games and stuff and, um, you know, like broadway shows. But they have all that now here. You know, when I first moved here that stuff wasn't here, but now they have it here. You can go watch carolina hurricanes. You can, um, you know, see broadway south.
Speaker 2:So yeah, you brought it with you.
Speaker 1:No, it's nice you know the cultural stuff. I missed the food. You brought it with you. No, it's nice. You know the cultural stuff. I miss the food. Some of the food is still not here yet.
Speaker 2:Yeah, the pizza's better up there, isn't it?
Speaker 1:Pizza's amazing. I do miss pizza. We have some good ones now, though, some good New York pizza.
Speaker 2:All right enough. Talking about food, I haven't had lunch yet. I understand that, like your parents, your mom was first to pass away, right?
Speaker 1:Yeah, my mom passed. She was pretty young, but she had a liver problem. I don't know that they ever kind of figured out all that was involved. In that it wasn't cancer. My dad did pass on cancer. Yes, in that it wasn't cancer. Um, my dad did pass on cancer, um, so yeah, so that was my first introduction to cancer, um, so he was, I mean, he was young. Also, both my parents were in their early 60s, that's pretty young, that's very young you know to die um.
Speaker 1:So my brother actually cracked jokes like well, we're not gonna live very long, so you better enjoy life now like we can change things that's right um but yeah, so my, my dad did have cancer and he was um I mean, my mom was already gone was his best friend, so he really didn't, he, he didn't care about really staying alive, like I know that sounds, but like his best friend and his like other limb to his body like that's how close they were, you know was gone. So he really just wanted to see how he could make things better without doing chemo, radiation and all that stuff. So that was my first introduction to like natural healing, if that makes sense.
Speaker 2:Yeah, did. Did you like healing, if that makes sense?
Speaker 1:yeah, did did you like, uh, encourage him to do chemo, or I'm sure the doctors did so? I mean, like I said so I was in ems learning all this stuff from, like, the medical you know everything. And then, then, as a nurse, you know, and I took care of tons of cancer patients and we have to tell them to do their chemo, and you know and have to administer certain types of chemo type drugs. I mean, I worked in the emergency room but we still had, you know, that kind of care you know, it wasn't like every single patient, but it was there.
Speaker 1:So for me it was like, of course you're going to do chemo radiation. It was like a no brainer, like like why would you not do that, you know? So that was a big, a big paradigm shift for me, you know. But he asked me and he said you know, I really I'm asking you if you'll support me.
Speaker 1:Everyone told him he was crazy, you know, and I am daddy's girl, was so tight, like I mean I still miss my dad and cry like you know, we were so, so tight, so of course'm going to say yes, I'll support you. You know I couldn't understand, but then he taught me Well here. I thought I knew so much, but he taught me so much that I didn't know and just opened my eyes to like, wow, medicine does wonderful things. I worked in the emergency room. I think emergency medicine is fabulous. In this country we have the best emergency medicine but I think when it comes to chronic illness, there's a lot that still needs to be addressed or learned, or however you want to say it.
Speaker 2:How did your dad? Well, how was he introduced to the natural world, I should say.
Speaker 1:So my dad loved the Bible let's start with that. So he was very much in relationship with God and so he loved his Bible. But in that he also liked to debate the Bible with a lot of people. So he would have these meetings with all different types of religious people and he had met with the Seventh-day Adventists for a long time. Like he never converted, but he would, you know, listen and learn a lot from them. And he learned a lot about their diet and I think that was the first introduction to like healthy lifestyle stuff was when he was reading the Seventh-day Adventists stuff about the way they live. So I mean, I'm not a Seventh-day Adventist but what I know about them is they live a pretty healthy life, so they have like the longest life expectancy. I think it's the only blue zone right in this country is where the seven-day Adventists live.
Speaker 2:Yeah, wow, okay. Yeah, I was just wondering about that and you, being in the medical field, like you said, you said I mean, and that's how most people's mindset is, that's how we were all raised well, chemo, cancer, they go together, so you got to do that and it's hard to talk people out of that if that is their mindset. But then when you just stop and think about it, especially if you know the Bible, I mean there are diets in there. That's like God created all these herbs, these plants for a purpose. And there's so many nutrients, nutrient-dense, a lot of cancer-fighting nutrients in these things which I knew nothing about until I got my diagnosis. And now there's so much about it it's almost overwhelming. It's like, oh, it's just too much information, you know, give me something simple to start with.
Speaker 1:Right, and that can be kind of stressful too. I think is too much information, yeah.
Speaker 2:So what did your dad do? I mean, what kind of did he just do?
Speaker 1:one like a long night. So he didn't do a specific like I. I mean, he didn't know Chris Wark, we didn't know the Chris Wark stuff, but we did. I watched the Truth About Cancer with him. He found that and we watched it like over and over and over again and took notes and instituted a lot of the things that they said in there and then researched other things and it completely blew my mind. I mean, I'm being honest, I was like, wait a minute, why don't they say this? Like in the hospital? You know, like, why don't we talk about these things? It just completely blew my mind. And then, you know, like, telling him he should do chemo radiation.
Speaker 1:I started being more mindful now when I took care of cancer patients and I was like, well, this is why he doesn't want to do it. You know what I mean? Like I would see them and they would be so sick and so like, and they're doing all the treatments the doctor's telling them to do, but they look awful and they're super sick or they would get all these other opportunistic illnesses because they had no immune system. So it just made me, I don't know, I guess it opened up my eyes more. So when I saw them, I was able to register. Like wait a minute, this doesn't look like this is how it should be. But before that I thought that's just how it was. I didn't question it, I just thought that's how it was.
Speaker 1:So you pulled in common sense is what you're saying, pretty much I opened my eyes from the tunnel vision, you know because I only learned.
Speaker 1:I only learned you know the allopathic medicine way of things Because they don't teach you. You know, I guess I have two bachelor's degrees I didn't learn anything about. I had one class on nutrition and it was never about how to eat healthy, it was about the food pyramid, which is a joke. I mean, really, it's stuff like that and these rare diseases that you get, other than anemia. You know what I'm saying, Like scurvy and that kind of stuff. I mean, when am I going to use that? You know?
Speaker 1:but it would be nice to learn how to eat a good, well-balanced right and how important herbs and vitamins and vegetables and fruits and all that stuff is, but they don't teach that in school. That at least then they didn't. I don't know if they do now. I mean, I think maybe, think maybe more nowadays.
Speaker 2:Yeah, like I was telling you earlier, my daughter's studying to be a nurse and I forgot how it came up. But she was telling me that her professor is saying that the coffee enemas, that's crazy, that stuff doesn't work. And of course my daughter knows better. Fortunately she's an introvert, otherwise her hand will be up a lot when that came up. Just get through it and become a nurse.
Speaker 1:Well, that's the difference between the first time I went to college and college now. It was the first time I went to college. Now this is like 30 years ago. They really encouraged critical thinking and debate. In fact, I even wrote this paper that no one in the class agreed with and they made me read it to the class because it was like wonderful discussion, right. But the second time I went to college was like no, you just need to stay quiet and follow the agenda. Very different experience.
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Speaker 1:He's pretty much had a broken heart. He did. I really believe he died of a broken heart. Yeah, because he really. I mean, he didn't know how to live without my mom, like he really didn't. They were so old school Like he didn't even know how to cook anything.
Speaker 1:You know, he lived for himself very briefly after she passed and he was going to die because he was like not nutritious, like not eating. You know, going to die because he was like, not nutritious, like not eating, you know. And then, um, when he found out he had cancer, he was like so can you know, can you help me? I'd like to live together.
Speaker 1:And so we moved in together and one of the first things we did when we moved in together was we tossed all of our food and we started fresh, and we started with we filled the pantry from scratch, all organic, non-gmo you know, tried to eat as much like live food and so. So it was a switch for both of us, and I'm not a big cook. I'm nothing like my mom. My mom loved to cook, and so you know it was a big learning curve for both of us.
Speaker 1:We got his cancer to go. I mean his PSA was I have all the records to you. Still His PSA was up to 984 and we got it back down to four, which is normal.
Speaker 1:Yeah, and he had skin cancer lesions and they were gone. He had like a big tumor starting on his back here, like by the neck, and that was gone. Like a big tumor starting on his back here, like by the neck, and that was gone. But he still lost tons of weight because he wouldn't eat. He was heartbroken. I really believe he died of a broken heart.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah, that's true, that's how my dad went, but he was 96, so he was wearing out anyway. My mom died later but she had dementia so she didn't realize, realize he had died. But they got separated because he had to go into physical therapy because he fell too many times in their assistant living and I thought he's 96, you're not going to get him back to health for crying out loud.
Speaker 2:they have him, you know, lifting these little pink weights yeah like, yeah, yeah, get him back to where he's doing push-ups and then he can go back. Just let him be together for crying out loud. But he died because he was separated from her.
Speaker 1:They've been married 60 some years, so then you yourself get a diagnosis, right so I thought I was doing all the right stuff, right, like we changed our whole lives. But that was the most. Even going through 9-11, which was hugely traumatic, losing my dad was more traumatic. That that was. I was heartbroken, just like he was heartbroken about my mom. I mean, I was heartbroken about my mom passing, but I think I couldn't really deal with it because he immediately had cancer, right so I immediately went into nurse mode instead of mourning.
Speaker 1:You know what I mean. So, I didn't really get to fully mourn my mom. So then when my dad passed, it was like my world was crumbled. You know so and a lot of things that I learned about cancer is usually it comes after some type of major, you know, life event or trauma or stress or something, and so I think that was. You know, I was heartbroken and I think that's what it was. So it wasn't it wasn't long after it was actually during COVID that I found that I had cancer.
Speaker 2:Wow.
Speaker 1:Which that was scary to me because it was like it was like, well, wait a minute, cause I, I knew my dad didn't want to do chemo radiation and I was like, okay, I don't't want to do chemo radiation. And I was like, okay, I don't really want to do chemo radiation, but I still want the option, if it's right. You know what I mean. Like I wanted to talk to professionals but and then it was during COVID and if you didn't get shots and you didn't do whatever, no one was going to talk to you about anything yeah so, so that's even more crazy it's just complicated things, isn't it?
Speaker 1:Yeah. So I found a little tiny lump. It was like the size of a pea and, like I said, everybody was pushing you have to get vaccinated and I didn't want to get the vaccine. I really didn't want to get the vaccine because I didn't see any proof that it worked. You know, it's not that I'm anti-vax, you know, I'm not an anti-vaxxer, I just don't put that out there. I do think that there should be a little bit of a change in the schedule, but I don't think that they're all, like you know, evil and you should never do them. But COVID was a brand new vaccine and I was not comfortable just going, you know will nilly and getting it without any proof that it worked, you know. So I was really hesitant about that, but I did go do it. I cried my whole way there and I cried my whole way back home after getting it because I didn't want to do it, but I was going to lose my job.
Speaker 1:I was losing. I started losing my nursing licenses. At the time I was working at home because I had just been taking care of my dad. So I was working at home for a bit and my employer said you know, you have to get the shot. I'm like I work at home, why do I need the shot? But the states were going to take away our nursing licenses for not getting the shots, so I had to get the shot. Missing licenses for not getting the shots, so I had to get the shot. But I don't know, I don't have any proof or whatever. But it's funny because my little tiny P tumor was gigantic within three years. Wow.
Speaker 2:So what did you end up doing? Uh, to take care of that. I mean, I'm assuming you're better now.
Speaker 1:Yes, I'm better.
Speaker 1:I don't have cancer anymore, Praise God, I do not have cancer anymore. My margins were clear in my surgery. It wasn't in my lymph nodes, but when I first went to the doctor, I knew I had cancer because I had a lump and my skin was a different color. You just know that, like in healthcare. But when I went to the doctor, I was like, I'm pretty sure this is what it is. And she was like, well, we don't know unless you do all these tests. And I was like, well, I don't want to do all those tests.
Speaker 1:Because the one thing I did learn with my dad was, you know, you know biopsies, the research about biopsies, and then mammograms. And I was like, hold up, but they try to rush you. You know, like you have to do this right now. This is urgent. I'm like well, hold on a second, I'm not going to die tomorrow. I have a little time, let me look into this. You know.
Speaker 1:And and they were not happy with me the doctor was not happy with me. So at the time I also had some stuff going on with my back. So she this was a breast surgeon, a specific breast surgeon and she said well, you probably have it in your back as well. It's already in your lymph nodes. This is just from a physical exam, not like an ultrasound, nothing else, just physical exam. I can feel it in your lymph nodes, you have it in your breast and from your story that you're telling me, it sounds like it's in your spine too, because I was having some spinal symptoms and I was like, well, how do we know, what kind of tests do we do? And she insisted on a biopsy and insisted on a mammogram and I said I'm not going to do either one of those, I'm going to start with something less invasive. And she adamantly refused. I said, well, before you say it's in my spine, can we get like a CT scan of my spine, cause that's not really invasive, you know? And she refused to do the CT scan unless I did the mammogram and the the biopsy. I was like that's, that's wrong. So I exchanged words with her that I was very disappointed in her behavior and I thought it was really unprofessional and I said you know what? I'll find another doctor. I don't know where, but I'll find another doctor. So I left and I went on this journey.
Speaker 1:It took me a long time to find another doctor that wouldn't force me to do all those things just to like give me options or whatever. And that was really hard. I had a lot of people telling me that I was crazy. Like why would you not do it? You're so young, you can do chemo and radiation. And because that was her suggestion right off the bat, you need to do chemo, radiation and probably need to do a mastectomy. Like.
Speaker 1:And I was like, well, hold on, I got a little pea-sized lump. Like can't you just take out the lump? Like why do we got to do all this other stuff? And there was never a discussion of just taking out the lump, it was just a huge. We're doing all of this stuff right away.
Speaker 1:And I was like this is this is crazy. Like this didn't make sense to me. I was like, wait, hold on, shouldn't we like have more details? Maybe start slow, you know? At that point I just had my eyes open and was like no, this is a little crazy. And people told me that I was crazy because you know you're young and in America breast cancer is cured so easy and so fast with all of these things.
Speaker 1:But then again, like with my dad, I started paying attention to cancer patients at work. I started paying attention to my breast cancer patients and they were not doing well, they were not doing great, they were doing chemo, radiation and they were dying and they were awful and they were unhappy and they were having all kinds of complications and I was like, no, I can't do that. So I just prayed. Just pray, I'm just saying like for me. I was looking for answers.
Speaker 1:So I went to God. I mean, that's what I did. I said I don't know what to do. I'm young. Surely you know, if I do these things I probably have good odds. But you know, what do I do? So I went to God and I just prayed. And I prayed and I came across. You know, I watched all the Truth About Cancer series again and I came across Chris Wark with Square One. And then in Chris Wark Square One he talks about Healing Strong, and so I got involved with Healing Strong and I just started following the Chris Wark stuff. So I first started doing like his Square One coaching program. I paid for the coaching program and I did all the modules and Right.
Speaker 1:And then, after I started doing all those and I got all that down to a science, I started implementing his advanced protocols. Um, so I was doing, you know the big salad, the juicing, the um, you know the supplements. Uh, then I started doing soda, the soda products, like PMF therapy hallucinated water.
Speaker 1:I bought a sauna, I was doing sauna, I was doing all of these things. The truth is, I was getting better but I was getting worse. That sounds like an oxymoron. But the cancer was no longer. It wasn't in my back anymore. I wasn't having problems, it wasn't in my axilla anymore, it was just in the breast. But it was getting bigger. It was getting much larger in the breast and you know, I just kept going to God like, what else do I need to do?
Speaker 1:I mean, I'm doing all the things, you know, and it was hard to do all the things. It's not easy implementing all that stuff and I just had to spend more time with God. That's what it came down to. The long short of it is, it was like that spiritual tap on the shoulder and I, I, god, I just had to have a relationship with God because I the final part of my treatment plan was time with God. Honestly, I mean it was all along, but it was like was time with God. Honestly, I mean it was all along, but it was like intense time with God.
Speaker 1:So I took my sauna time as my daily devotional with God every day, 45 minutes every day in the sauna, and then you know, I would talk to him all day long. But that was time where I would go in there and I would cry and I would pray and I would talk to God, just pour out my heart and soul and pray for discernment. I mean, I've been praying for discernment my whole life, but I mean this time like serious discernment, because I have all these different things coming at me options, and what should I do and not do, and all these different protocols that people are doing and and doctors and doctors I work with telling me you know you're crazy, like why would you risk your life? You know just all of this. You know different information from all these directions and and in my sauna I got my answers and they were from God.
Speaker 1:And you know, I I never wanted to have surgery. I tried to avoid the surgery at all costs. I did all of the things to try to avoid surgery, to try to shrink the tumor but, like I said, it was. Every part of my body was healed, but it was in the breast and it was getting bigger and so I just got on my face and I prayed and I talked to God and you know, I never thought I could hear God talking to me, or like like I never thought I could feel an answer from God. But I finally was able to feel an answer.
Speaker 1:I don't know if that makes sense, like I don't hear a voice talking to me, I don't you know, but I could feel an answer when I pray. I don't you know, but I could feel an answer when I pray, even now, when I pray, like now, I don't make decisions, like I used to make decisions. You know, now if I want to do something, the first thing I do is I go to pray and I ask God, and now I can physically feel what I think he's telling me. Does that make sense? Yeah, people think that I'm crazy.
Speaker 2:Yeah, you probably are crazy.
Speaker 1:I think I just love God.
Speaker 2:I think you're telling us that God knows stuff.
Speaker 1:Yes, but we need to go to God. Well, for me, I needed to go to God. I really, you know, I don't look at the cancer as it was this horrible thing in my life. It was the greatest blessing of my life, which is the craziest thing to say right, it was the greatest blessing, because I never had this relationship that I have now with my Heavenly Father. I went to church, I always was a Christian, but I was always lukewarm. You know what I mean.
Speaker 1:I wasn't living the living, the life. You know I was.
Speaker 1:I was sinful, I had lots of sin in my life and it was during that, that journey, where I was like truly repenting for my sins, if that makes sense, you know and I said you know, if I've got to put my boobs on the altar, god, then I'm gonna put my boobs on the I know God, then I'm going to put my boobs on the. I know that sounds wacky, but but that's where I was, was like, is that what I need to do? Like you know, I'm a new woman at this point and so I knew I needed to have surgery, and so I prayed on a surgeon and I called up.
Speaker 1:there's a big health institution here which was not the one that I had gone to with the first lady. I called up this other institution and I said I'm looking for a breast cancer surgeon, but this is what I want. And I was very specific. I said I want a woman or a man, whoever. I want a person who is going to respect my wishes, who is going to do what I asked them to do, not what they demand that I do, like. Do what I asked them to do, not what they demand that I do, like.
Speaker 1:I really need them to appreciate my input in this and and do as little or as much as I want. You know, if I want to do it all, I want someone who's willing to do that. If I don't want to do any, then I want someone who's going to respect that. And they said, well, we'll have a meeting and we'll call you back. And there was like several days and they called me back and they had a recommendation for me and she was amazing and she did exactly that. I went in to see her. I told her everything. She didn't argue with me. She didn't say well, I would love to like the snarky first one. I want to see the research that you're reading. I was like well, I'd love to share it with you.
Speaker 2:I was like, wow, I'd love to share it with you.
Speaker 1:She didn't say anything. She said I'll do as much or as little as you want. It's your body and it's your decision, you know. And she asked me what were my goals? And I told her you know, I have a very young son. He doesn't have any family but me. I have to live Like.
Speaker 2:I have to live long enough to take care of him.
Speaker 1:She's like well, you need bigger goals than that. So I mean, she was a really wonderful lady. So she did the surgery and she even was surprised. She said before the surgery I'm going to have to tell you, you know, we recommend chemoradiation, that's, you know always what we recommend after. And then we always recommend estrogen blockers if it's an estrogen positive cancer, blah, blah, blah. You know the whole spiel. And then afterwards she said your margins are clear. I would recommend, because I have to, that you talk with the medical oncologist and just hear what they have to say. But I didn't have to do it, you know.
Speaker 2:Right. So yeah, yeah, I mean, of course their hands are tied, they have to, you know. So, yeah, yeah, I mean of course their hands are tied, they have to, you know, do the recommendations, but it's yeah to find one that will go with your wishes. That's a it's kind of a rare thing.
Speaker 1:That was huge, yeah, yeah, and I prayed for her the whole time. I prayed for her and I'm telling you god was involved the whole way because, um, you know, even even up to that point, she was like the tumor's so big we'll probably have to put a vacuum on your chest like a wound back.
Speaker 1:And I was like I don't want a wound like I freaked out, I freaked, I cried and prayed about the wound back um, and then you know she didn't have to do it and it was such an emotional experience and I think everyone around me saw this emotional experience, like I cried the whole way down the hall to the surgery and I prayed out loud and heard me.
Speaker 1:And as soon as they woke me up and told me there was no vacuum, I cried and prayed right there in front of everyone. So it's like you know, just happy prayers like thank you, god for listening, you know answering my happy prayers. Like thank you, god for listening, you know for answering my prayers.
Speaker 2:And yeah, wow, that's a great story. I like that one.
Speaker 1:That's good. It's all about, I mean, from where I'm taking from it now. So I'm healthy, I don't have cancer, but I have the best relationship with my Heavenly Father than I've ever had. And I wasn't in church, I actually stepped away from church. I didn't go to church, like like for months. You know, I was just with God, no influence from anyone else, just God and the Bible. And I read the Bible every day too. You know like, and you know had all these like new things that I learned from the same that I've read before that I like didn't understand.
Speaker 1:You know like yeah it's a living word, right? So like I just got all this new insight and knowledge all of a sudden, and it was, it was so, it was life-changing.
Speaker 2:I mean, it really was yeah, and now you're a group leader, right?
Speaker 1:yeah, so our group is on a break. We had a really large group and I think it became really stressful because it got so big and one of the things we're trying to do now in our healing journey is not be stressed. So, after the cancer is gone, it's like what do you do now? Now we try to live a healthy life, free of the things that cause the cancers.
Speaker 2:right to live a healthy life, you know, free of the things that cause the cancers, right?
Speaker 1:So I think, personally, I would rather, I think, do an in-person next time. So I think when I restart the group it'll be like local, in-person, because I think we just get better connection that way?
Speaker 2:Oh yeah, yeah, that's mine's totally in person. I can't stand Zoom myself, even though it's, you know, it's been a godsend during COVID especially, but still I just it drives me crazy the group got so big that it was really just doing like a lecture, which is not really what people need.
Speaker 1:You can watch lectures.
Speaker 2:Or get into relationships, yeah.
Speaker 1:Right. We need those relationships and those bonds with each other. And I think that's what started going away, and so people were not as happy with it.
Speaker 1:you know, so I think if I start back, it'll be in person, more intimate, and you know you can really support each other in person. You know, is that something I needed? Like I never juiced in my life, I needed to learn everything from scratch, like how do you cut these carrots, how do you get them in the juicer, like you know stuff like that, and that's the practical stuff that I think we need to learn. You know, hands-on, in person.
Speaker 2:Wow. Well, jennifer, that's a great story and I know the fact that you were involved with the 9-11 things I'm sure you were saying before that. Sure that had something to do with the cancer down the road, because there's so many people that were there and that situation where they developed cancer and so many stories where people passed away from that time.
Speaker 1:Yeah, most of the people that I worked with passed away from cancer, like my partners you know the ones who didn't die in the actual thing, friends, you know, yeah, a lot of them have passed away from, I think, the ones that I knew and were close to at that time have passed away from cancer. So I actually just filed with the victims um thing for the world trade center health plan. Um, because they, they I have an attorney that thinks that it was from, yeah, 9-11. You know the cancer because I have, I had genetic testing so I did the little swabby thing that they make and I have no genes for breast cancer.
Speaker 1:Um, I have no family that has breast cancer like zero women in the family on either side with breast cancer. I have no family that has breast cancer like zero women in the family on either side with breast cancer, ovarian cancer, any of those cancers. So it's really odd that I'm so young and got breast cancer.
Speaker 2:Well, good, well, I hope that goes well, and how's your son doing?
Speaker 1:He's great, he is an amazing kid. He's 13 and he can tell you how to juice, how to grow stuff.
Speaker 1:He never knew any of that either. He would help me, you know, wash the veggies and stuff. So he's a great kid. I'm truly blessed. I'm a single mom, so it's just him and I. So it was hard for him, you know, at first to hear what's going on, but he was encouraged, you know, and he would pray with me. We would spend lots of time, you know just. You know, just tell him we have to believe that God is going to make this happen, you know, yeah.
Speaker 2:And that's of course that speaks volumes to him to see his mom figure things out and be a fighter and overcome this, and so, yeah, that's excellent.
Speaker 1:Yeah, so it's funny because he did. I did bring him to church one day. I forgot why, but we went to church one day. I think they were having an event or something. So we went and he went to his little boys group and the teacher came to me later on and was like he said the most amazing prayer I've ever heard a child say, like, like it blew my mind and it just, you know, it just made my heart melt, because he's obviously listening and learning, right, you know. So I want him to have that too.
Speaker 2:Yeah. You know, well, jennifer, it was. It was great to meet you and your. Your story is fantastic. I like happy endings. They're always better.
Speaker 1:Me too yes.
Speaker 2:How can people get a hold of you if they want to find out more about your story? Or do you not want people to get a hold of you?
Speaker 1:Yeah, no, they could call me.
Speaker 2:Or is emailing better?
Speaker 1:Email is good too. They could email me in the healing strong email okay, and what is that? I don't remember what it is it's hscentral okay right healing strongcentralnc okay and c at gmailcom. That's it. So it's healing strongcentralnc at gmailcom okay oh, the other good thing is I also don't have a thyroid condition anymore, so all those things also fixed my thyroid.
Speaker 2:Wow.
Speaker 1:I went back to the doctor and. I said I need a refill on my thyroid medicine. She said, well, we haven't done your labs, let's check your labs. And she did my exam and she's like your thyroid's fine. What do you mean? So it fixed my thyroid in the process too, which is amazing.
Speaker 2:Wow, that's excellent. A little side benefit there, yeah.
Speaker 3:All right, Well, Jennifer thank you so much for sharing your story. Oh, thanks for wanting to hear it. You've been listening to the I Am Healing Strong podcast, a part of the Healing Strong organization. We hope you found encouragement in this episode, as well as the confidence to take control of your healing journey, knowing that God will guide you on this path.
Speaker 3:Healing Strong is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to connect, support and educate individuals facing cancer and other diseases through strategies that help to rebuild the body, renew the soul and refresh the spirit. It costs nothing to be a part of a local or online group. You can do that by going to our website at healingstrongorg and finding a group near you or an online group, or start your own, your choice. While you're there, take a look around at all the free resources. Though the resources and groups are free, we encourage you to join our membership program at 25 or $75 a month. This helps us to be able to reach more people with hope and encouragement, and that also comes with some extra perks as well. So check it out. If you enjoyed this podcast, please give us a five-star rating, leave an encouraging comment and help us spread the word. We'll see you next week with another story on the I Am Healing Strong podcast.
