BringOnTheJoy

Don’t let the learning from your own experiences take too long. If you have been doing it wrong for the last 10 years, I would suggest that’s long enough!” —Jim Rohn

Lesson 2: “When in doubt, just take the next right step.” I love this one because it makes every task easier to complete. This lesson is my drug of choice to fight procrastination.

Lesson 45: “The best is yet to come.” Just when you’re ready to give up, hang in there. The best could be inches or hours or mere breaths away.

Lesson 43: “All that really matters in the end is that you loved.” This is the guiding compass point of every day.

Lesson 21: “Burn the candles, use the nice sheets, wear the fancy lingerie. Don’t save anything for a special occasion. Today is special enough.” Cancer taught me that one in a way I’ll never forget.

Lesson 22: “Overprepare and go with the flow.” I use it every day. It works great at work, at home and family holidays. Lesson 28: “Forgive everyone everything.” This one sets you free for good.

Lesson 48: “If you don’t ask, you don’t get.” I haven’t perfected this yet, but I’m much better than I used to be.

Lesson 34: “God loves you because of who God is, not because of anything you did or didn’t do.” This is my get out of jail free card. No more being stuck in the bondage of me. I don’t have to try to dazzle God by being perfect. I’m supposed to be my messy self. What a relief.

Lesson 37: “Your children get only one childhood. Make it memorable.” Consider this a permission slip to joy.

Lesson 50: “Life isn’t tied with a bow, but it’s still a gift.” A gift that keeps giving.

Lesson 17: “You can get through anything life hands you if you stay put in the day you are in and don’t jump ahead.” Cancer taught me to live only in the day I’m in. In the moment I’m in. Some moments, I simply ground myself by touching the desk, the table, the wall wherever I am and say, “You’re right here. Stay put in this moment.”

Lesson 27: “Always choose life.” Give yourself the best odds by doing all you need to do to stay alive. Going through chemo is like investing money in a retirement account. You feel the hit right now, but later in life you get to reap the benefits – by still being alive.

Lesson 35: “Whatever doesn’t kill you really does make you stronger.” Ok, so with cancer, what makes you stronger often makes you weaker first, but if you hang in there, one day you’ll feel invincible.

Lesson 1: “Life isn’t fair, but it’s still good.” Life isn’t fair. People shouldn’t get cancer. Especially children. But even cancer can bring about gifts. Ask Lance Armstrong about that bike.

Lesson 16: “Life is too short for long pity parties. Get busy living, or get busy dying.” Even if you feel awful, switch couches and enjoy a different view from the window. Radiation treatments can sap your strength, but it can’t touch the power you have to change your thinking.

Eat well, eat often–4-6 small meals a day to optimize your metabolism and keep your body energized and in balance. Don’t deny yourself treats, but make sure that the majority of your food choices are high in nutrients, fiber, “good fats,” and lean protein. Local, in-season, and organic when possible? All the better

A recent scientific study showed that people who slept fewer than 7 hours each night were three times as likely to catch colds as those who slept 8 hours nightly. So tuck in and get your zzs!

Love triggers the release of all manner of feel-good brain chemicals that bathe our bodies in happiness and well-being… even protection from illness. But that’s not the only reason love—be it romantic or platonic–is a health-giving thing. When you choose to love, you experience what pianist Arthur Rubinstein famously said “Love life, and life will love you back.”

Did you ever think of laughter as an ab-toning exercise ? Well, it is! Plus, it’s a blood-oxygenator, endorphin-releaser, and general body relaxer.

The human body was meant to move, stretch, expand, and engage. So take a walk, jump in a pool, skip rope, or just lift your arms toward the sky and see how high you can reach.

Try taking ten long, mindful breaths, feeling clean oxygen come smoothly into your body , CO2 and toxicity gently flowing out. Don’t you feel better already?

Studies have shown that volunteering can help alleviate depression and may even contribute to longevity. So help clean up a local park or volunteer at a nursing home, and know that you can feel great about what you’ve given, but also what you’ve received.

The principle of “cross-training” is embraced by athletes who know that changing things up keeps our bodies primed, flexible, and in top form. Try cross-training your life by bringing healthy variety into your diet , fitness, work, and social habits.

Educate yourself on your health. Talk to your doctor, a health professional and do research online or at the library

Drink  8-12 glasses (8 ounces each, please!) of clear, hydrating fluid to keep your system functioning at its best—and toxins moving toward the exits.

Make something. Maybe it’s a knit scarf, maybe it’s a beaded mosaic. Maybe it’s a sandcastle or a container garden. Doing creative activities not only engages your brain on an above-the-everyday plane, it is believed to contribute to better heart health and even longevity.

Schedule “time-out” time each day—make an appointment in your calendar if necessary!—to unplug and vege out with a magazine, a meditation CD , or just the blessed sounds of silence.

“Let it out,” we whisper to ourselves or loved ones when tears start to flow. And we mean that both emotionally and physically—tears have antiviral and antibacterial properties, as well as health-giving lubricating effect on our eyes.

Simple human connection, whether online, over the phone, or even in the doctor’s office waiting room, can be a restorative tonic, not to mention protection against the isolation and anxiety that can come when we struggle with health conditions

Excerpted from Beliefnet.com