A Faithful Perception of Breast Cancer
by Linda Cardoso • Huntington Station

Just like an old record skipping at your favorite part in a song, so it seemed that my life started skipping when I was diagnosed with breast cancer. I remember waking up in the recovery room at the hospital and seeing the surgeon standing over me wearing a concerned and apprehensive look on his face. He calmly explained

that my lumpectomy was positive and that I did in fact have breast cancer. I swallowed hard. That was when I started to hear a skip in the record: You have breast cancer, you have breast cancer…

I am a 41-year old woman with a 3-year old son and a husband who depends on me to be Superwoman everyday. I was not ready to deal with the word "cancer" or its ramifications. I decided not to allow this disease to debilitate me, but inevitably the worry and angst of this new reality seeped into the deepest crevices of my being. I knew it was imperative to somehow attain a positive focus in order to cope with the shape of things to come, but how? My mind was over busy imagining my son growing up without his Mommy, wondering how he would handle losing me. I envisioned my husband entering into a deep state of depression while juggling school, work and single parenthood. I was locked in a mental war with my circumstance and the world around me.

Sometimes the anticipation of an uncertain situation is more threatening than the reality of the events themselves. The events that unfolded during my experience with breast cancer were, collectively, extreme. Being diagnosed with a stage two carcinoma in my left breast led me through a series of four operations prior to receiving six rounds of TAC chemotherapy. In persevering through this ordeal, I eventually came to the conclusion that good and bad things happen to all of us and there is no reason why I should have been spared this burden. Life consists of many trials that can inspire us to achieve victory even when we are facing the worst of adversities. The lessons we can teach others through the capture of our own fall can reveal true resolution and oneness with ourselves and the universe.

Each painful chapter of suffering in my experience with breast cancer led me to a heightened awareness of my inner strength. Dealing with cancer can wreak havoc on every facet of your being, so I had to find a way to turn that around. Incorporating a daily practice of meditative prayer supported by yoga and various forms of alternative therapies opened up a spiritual pathway for me. I was empowered through the development of a greater consciousness of acceptance. The panic-stricken desperation I felt early on started to dissipate into a deeper connection to my True Self– the Self that has the ability to rise above complexities that can suffocate our humanity. Cancer has the tendency to rob you of any feeling of control, but a renewal of strong faith blessed me with monumental help in healing my spirit, mind and body.

Just as the wind causes a tree to bend in many directions, we must be willing to bend with life, moving and absorbing change according to the conditions presented to us. Enlightenment brought me to a place within my soul where I could finally breathe calmly. My faith in a Higher Power ultimately changed my mental and physical perception of coping with breast cancer. Developing a faithful perception was instrumental in allowing me to wave a white flag at the demons that were troubling me during the initial phases of my diagnosis.

In hindsight, I appreciate the determination I developed in dealing with this episode of my life. I never before knew that I embodied such substance within my core– but it was there all the time, as if in hibernation. Faith, spiritual enlightenment and fortitude to confront fear– the attainment of knowledge offered me a true awakening of the soul. Cancer forced me to live a more gracious and thoughtful life– a life that is more inclined toward peacefulness, compassion and understanding. It made me realize that each day is a gift to be completely thankful for. What each of us does with that gift can only be realized through each individual’s special calling. It is my hope that this article will inspire any of you afflicted by life’s hardships to open the door on all possibilities in the spirit of attaining a faithful perception.

Linda is a marketing professional and also a freelance writer, lyricist, songwriter, wife and mother. cardosolinda@hotmail.com.