I would like to share Kathleen Prasad’s story about her cancer treatment and metta practice. This article is a great teaching that I have read many times. This is the kind of story that takes me deeper into my daily meditation practice and once again reveals how every one of us makes a difference in this world. Enjoy.
“I realized that no matter what was happening to my body, I could find peace, love, joy and strength in this moment. No matter what, in this moment my heart was perfect and shining bright. The more I could see this within myself, the more I could see it in others, and the brighter I could feel my metta practice shining.
– Kathleen Prasad
Check out more of Kathleen’s writings and website here – Animal Reiki Source.
Thank you, Kathleen.
Jeri Lawson has a full-time healing practice in the Temescal Area of Oakland, California. She is available for Healing Touch, Reiki, Distance Healings and Clarity Breathwork sessions Monday through Thursday, 10 am to 6 pm. 510-601-9632
In this blog I have written several posts on how practical and supportive Healing Touch sessions are for anyone going through Chemotherapy or Radiation, and how much relief my clients have had from the side effects of neuropathy, fatigue and body pain.
In my healing practice, I have also witnessed how supportive energetic sessions are for people after cancer.
Some cancer survivors appear to pick up their life right where they left off when they are finished with western cancer treatments. Other clients find they are disoriented and unsure about how to move forward. Friends and family expect them to be happy and grateful and instead they may feel lost or angry. Some people also start processing their fear, anger and grief after it’s all over and they feel it’s safe.
Here is a selection from “Life After Cancer” by Meghan Brennan describing her last day of cancer treatment:
“…I climbed into my car, put the keys in the ignition, and waited for the joy that was certain to follow — after so many disappointments, the day had finally arrived. I’d be able to walk unaided; I’d be able to breathe. Strangers would stop addressing me as “sir.”
Instead of joy, I spent the next 30 minutes crying effortlessly into my steering wheel. That was when I knew: I’d lost it. What person with even a shred of understanding would act this way? Who responds to the conclusion of an active fight against death with increasing levels of depression, anxiety and grief? Well… I did.”
Everyone who has had a cancer diagnosis has their own unique journey. When I had thyroid cancer, I had scheduled a surgery merely to have a cyst removed from my throat and discovered afterwards that I had also had thyroid cancer. (Interestingly, the cyst had nothing to do with the cancer.) I was extremely lucky and felt like I glided through the whole event. Support was everywhere, on every level. Compared to my migraines – which were extremely traumatizing and emotionally charged for me – cancer was a non event.
As a healer, I never assume to know what my client is feeling or going through. I just set my intention to hold the highest space possible and the energy meets my client were they are at.
Clients often find during a healing that when they fully relax, they connect with their own inner guidance and find a sense of what their next step is. Sometimes it’s a profound insight and sometimes that guidance is much more subtle. It might be about what to do that day — like call a friend for lunch or find a certain book to read. Yet that immediate next step connects them to the rest of their journey and is exactly what they needed to do at that moment. This is one example how Healing Touch sessions not only help with pain relief for the body, but can also help with the larger issue of how to regain one’s life after cancer.
Jeri Lawson is available for Healing Touch and Clarity Breathwork sessions Monday through Friday, 10am to 6pm, in the Temescal Area of Oakland, California.
This week’s post is a testimonial from one of my recent clients.
“Jeri was instrumental in helping me get through chemo and radiation when I was undergoing treatment for breast cancer. Her gentle healing touch helped me enormously with the side effects of treatment, and consequently I was able to carry on with almost all of my regular activities, including chasing around my three young children! I visited Jeri the evening after each chemo session, and once a week during my daily radiation. I felt exponentially better immediately after each session, and I truly believe that my successful completion of treatment was due in large part to Jeri’s help.”
To read more on this blog about how I support clients diagnosed with cancer using Healing Touch, check out these posts:
In my healing practice I have watched Healing Touch sessions make a remarkable and dramatic difference in the lives of my clients who were going through chemotherapy and radiation. Because of this, I would like to see every person with a cancer diagnosis have access to Healing Touch treatments.
That’s why I have been a volunteer at the Charlotte Maxwell Clinic in Oakland since 2008.
The Charlotte Maxwell Complementary Clinic (CMCC) is a state licensed primary care clinic and a community of healthcare practitioners dedicated to bringing low-income women alternative healthcare. Designed to work alongside the services of a primary care physician, CMCC is also a center where women with a cancer diagnosis can find consistent physical, emotional and spiritual support through healing modalities.
The Charlotte Maxwell Complementary Clinic was named after social worker Charlotte Maxwell, who died of ovarian cancer in 1988. Charlotte was an extraordinary woman who found that complementary therapies greatly enhanced the quality of her life, especially in the final months. Her healthcare practitioners were so inspired by her spirit that they founded The Charlotte Maxwell Clinic. They wanted to make acupuncture, energy work and other complementary modalities accessible to women who otherwise would not be able to afford them.
Navigating our healthcare system, even with insurance and a strong emotional and financial support system, can be overwhelming. Navigating our healthcare system without insurance can be devastating. At CMCC, it is so rewarding to see a women who looked fatigued and exhausted, walk out or her Healing Touch session with a smile on her face so much more relaxed.
At CMCC I have worked with women of all ages and diverse cultural backgrounds. I find it so exciting to work in a clinic where the value of complementary modalities is understood and put into action in the community. The Charlotte Maxwell Clinic is a working model of how people with cancer are benefiting from alternative medicine in our healthcare system.
Volunteering at CMCC is a rewarding experience. As a volunteer, I received a weekend of orientation and training, and was then scheduled for one shift a month with clients. I see three clients during my shift. I get there thirty minutes before my first client to look over the medical charts. Everything about the client is in the charts: when she was diagnosed, what kind of cancer she has or had, what Western treatments she is currently going through, and any contraindications. I can look at what modalities or treatments the client has had in the past and read the notes from those practitioners. If the woman doesn’t speak English, that is also in the file and the clinic usually provides a translator.
Sessions with clients are 50 minutes each. At the end of each shift all practitioners and staff support gather to check in. Check-ins have been extremely educational for me. I have learned so much more about cancer and the current Western medical therapies. By listening to the other practitioners, I have also learned the amazing benefits of other complementary modalities such as Acupuncture, Chinese Herbs, Jin Shin Jyutsu, Therapeutic Imagery, Feldenkrais and Western Herbs.
At the check-in, if circumstances warrant it, practitioners can write referrals for their clients to the CMCC staff. This could be for a woman who needs special preparation before an upcoming surgery or a client who needs special care due to an infection. Appropriate staff members will then call the client and make sure the client is taken care of.
The Charlotte Maxwell Clinic also has presentations and workshops for volunteers on each modality the clinic offers and lectures on topics such as “The Basics of the Biology of Cancer.” I attended two separate talks on chemotherapy by oncology nurses from the Bay Area that have been extremely helpful while working at the clinic and in my private practice.
Since volunteering at The Charlotte Maxwell Clinic I can picture how our healthcare system can integrate Healing Touch and other complementary modalities into our medical culture. It is inspiring to work in a community with so many caring and committed women coming together to help each other. Working at Charlotte Maxwell gives me the hope to believe we can change our healthcare system to a culture where everyone is cared for emotionally, physically and energetically.
The Charlotte Maxwell Clinic has an office in San Francisco and an office in Oakland, California. To find out more and to support the work of CMCC click here.
Jeri Lawson is a Healing Touch Practitioner and Clarity Breathworker in the Temescal Area of Oakland, California.
Many clients healing from cancer decide to do the radiation therapy that their doctor recommends. They also get x-rays, MRI and CT scans to monitor their healing progress, all of which affects the electromagnetic field around their body.
I have found that radiation affects the whole energy field of the body – from the head to the feet – even if the treatment was localized, such as on the chest for breast cancer or at the head for brain tumors. Like chemotherapy, radiation has its own particular ‘feel’ for me when I work in the energy field. I think of it as “disorganized” and “confused” energy. It does not flow smoothly like balanced and healthy energy does.
After “organizing” the client’s energy field with a Healing Touch session the aura feels thicker, stronger and the more energized to me. The client usually reports feeling more energy, less fatigue. They are able to be more present in their body and more mentally alert and relaxed. All of this supports healing and general well-being of the client.
I am able to use Healing Touch to help clients who experience itching and burning sensations on their skin due to ongoing radiation therapy. Healing Touch can help relieve skin discomfort. After the healing session, I like to show the client how to clear the radiated area themselves as part of their self-care routine. The radiated area will benefit greatly from being cleared several times a day right after radiation. Sometimes the discomfort will come back but with less intensity as the body continues to heal.
Please call with any questions or to schedule a healing. I would love to talk with you.
510-601-9632
Special thanks to Healing Touch Practitioner Suzanne Mittica for her insights and expertise on this post and the previous Chemotherapy post.
I would like to share Kathleen Prasad’s story about her cancer treatment and metta practice. This article is a great teaching that I have read many times. This is the kind of story that takes me deeper into my daily meditation practice and once again reveals how every one of us makes a difference in this world. Enjoy.
