My son once wrote an essay in high school that began with, “My mom sets the table with forks, knives, spoons and carrots.” That’s true. In fact, placing a colorful variety of fruits and vegetables on the table before the meal is one of the healing strategies that I started after I was diagnosed with cancer eight years ago. 

I was thirty-eight years old and had three school age kids when the oncologist broke the news that I had breast cancer. I went from feeling very healthy to being incredibly sick from the toxic treatments. When I finished my last session of chemotherapy, I asked my oncologist what was next, and he encouraged me to get back to work. I was bald, frail, tired and in pain. Like many women, my job is stressful and hectic. Combine that with raising my kids and trying to juggle being a wife, daughter, sister, and friend – I couldn’t imagine returning to work at that time. I needed to heal. And, I was apparently going to have to do it on my own. 

As a rehabilitation physician, I understood the science of healing and had a lot of experience helping people heal. So I started putting into practice the advice I had given to so many of my patients. I made a plan, set goals for myself, made sure to keep reasonable expectations, and had a clear vision of the level of health I intended to reclaim – then I worked hard to reach it. Once I recovered, I wanted to share my healing plan with other survivors and wrote the first guide to recovery from cancer treatment, After Cancer Treatment: Heal Faster, Better, Stronger.

My new book, You Can Heal Yourself: A Guide to Physical and Emotional Recovery After Injury or Illness, covers the best recovery strategies regardless of the underlying diagnosis. I focus on healing from the inside out (using mind-body strategies such as meditation, biofeedback or progressive muscle relaxation) and from the outside in (setting the table with carrots and eating other nutritious food). Evaluating what will help you heal both internally and externally is an ideal approach. For example, one of the critical things that helps us boost our level of health, whether we are sick or not, is when we listen to our healing voice. Often we are so busy that we ignore various signals our bodies give us. To bring about optimal recovery from any injury or illness, paying attention to symptoms such as pain, fatigue, and stress, takes on new importance. In essence, the idea of “pushing through” physical or emotional discomfort in order to get the job done isn’t ideal when your body is working hard to heal. 

Instead of ignoring what your body is saying, pay attention and listen up. When do you feel the best? What makes you feel worse? When you aren’t feeling good, what helps? How can you alleviate some of your pain? What can you do to feel more energetic? And so on. 

I have found that my patients are actually very good at providing holistic solutions to many of their symptoms. Those who really listen to their bodies come up with excellent strategies that improve their health. For example, if you notice that your muscles feel sore and aching, then you can try things that encourage relaxation such as heat and massage. Or, if you recognize that you feel more energetic during the day when you are not hungry, then you might want to change your lunch hour from 1:00 p.m. to 11:00 a.m. and eat a light snack in the afternoon. 

When it comes to recovering well, there are many proven strategies. However, one of the biggest challenges working women face is making the time to heal. Remember that a commitment to spending time on your recovery is an investment in you, your family and your future. Prioritize your daily activities and use your emotional and physical reserves wisely. The better you feel, the more you will be able to accomplish at work and home.  Nurturing yourself now paves the way for you to be able to nurture your loved ones more in the future.

Tips

Put on a Pedometer—Try tracking how many steps per day you take.  The goal for healthy people is 10,000 steps each day  Determine how close you are to that goal and see if you can gradually become more active over time. Check in with your doctor to be sure that increasing your activity level is safe for you.

Walk and Talk—Staying active can be hard when you don’t feel your best.  One way to increase your activity level without even noticing is to walk while you talk on your cell phone. As the minutes of cell phone use add up, so will the number of steps you take!

Make a Colorful Dinner Appetizer—Starting every meal with a colorful array of fruits and vegetables will help you and your entire family eat better.  You’ll be surprised at how many more servings of healthy food your kids will eat when this is the first and only option on the table (serving it before the main dish rather than with it is key).

Rest Well—The importance of rest and good sleep can’t be overemphasized when it comes to healing. During the day, balance activity with rest. At night, if you have difficulty with sleep try “sleep hygiene” techniques such as avoiding alcohol, caffeine and exercise before bedtime. If you still can’t sleep well, talk to your doctor. A good night’s sleep is critical in order to feel better during the day.

Avoid Worrying about Being Worried—We all know that stress isn’t good for healing, but everyone who is ill or injured has some amount of it. Accept this and don’t worry about being worried. Instead, try to do a couple of things every day that are calming. You might want to meditate, go for a walk, listen to music, or anything else you find calming.

Julie Silver, MD is a rehabilitation specialist and an assistant professor at Harvard Medical School in the department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation. She is the award-winning author of over a dozen books on health and healing. Her newest, “You Can Heal Yourself,” is published by St. Martin’s Press. For more information about Dr. Silver, please visit www.JulieSilverMD.com.