30 things that helped me recover from cancer

I have a story to tell. Like everyone’s it is unique to me. One of the chapters in this story was the long hard recovery from cancer. Not the point where the chemo stops and you start trying to live a normal life again. I mean the next two to three years when you realised everything changed.

The euthoria of beating cancer soon subsides and the reality hits in. Every day for 18 months I had to sleep for 20 minutes when I got in from work, my confidence was shattered and to top it all off, I entered chemo with the body of a 25 year old, now, four years later I have the body of a 40 year old.

Gone are the days of sleeping just a few hours a night, eating what I like and drinking without severe consequences.

To avoid these consequences I made a list of 30 rules that I live by to try to try and recreate a healthy mind, body and soul.

1. I set goals, aims and objectives. Stop drifting, you almost died FFS
2. Make action plans and to-do lists and do them
3. Live everyday as if it’s your last, don’t waste time watching crap TV
4. Go to bed early, which is hard as I am a night owl
5. Wake up early, which is also hard
6. Meditate, I started during chemo, it helps clear the mind and clarify worry
7. Read, or take in audio books because….
8. You should never stop learning but…
9. Get the balance right between learning and living or learning and doing
10. Good films, box sets and comedy are good for the soul
11. Monotonous routine is bad for the soul (this include TV habits)
12. Coconut oil, cook with it and drink it
13. Ginger, cumin and hot water with a few drops of chili oil make an amazing drink and cleanses and gives your more energy
14. Stop eating Mcdonalds etc. I try to keep to one food treat a week and the taste is so much more intense as a result
15. Fast. One or two days a week. 24 hours without food is good for you
16. Walk. Get you 10,000 steps a way. A fat person can burn 500 calories a day doing that
17. Keep a journal, then highlight names, places, ideas and feelings
18. KARMA. Good Karma, Bad Karma
19. Exercise. 5KM in 25 minutes is my aim. We might be waiting a while….
20. Be polite and always help, just because life gives you a shitty hand doesn't give you an excuse to be bad
21. Remember your happiest times, try to make more
22. Have good, fun, stable people around you
23. Indulge in your friends, even when they are unreliable with you
24. Set firm boundaries, start with yourself and then others
25. Have less stuff, liquidate your clutter
26. Start planning for your retirement, For every £1 in retirement you need £25 saved away
27. Comfy shoes, I got sick of having saw feet
28. Draw, be creative. Adults can lose their creativity, it’s a really important skill
29. Drink black coffee, don’t waste time being sleepy or fat from drinking milky coffee

Every habit takes 3 months to change. I am still working hard on 4,5, 18, 19 and 20…. all advice welcome…

@danny_marten