Listen to Susan and Coach Meg here:
http://www.wellcoach.com/flash/cm110301_1.html
http://www.wellcoach.com/flash/cm110301_2.html
http://www.wellcoach.com/flash/cm110301_1.mp3
http://www.wellcoach.com/flash/cm110301_2.mp3
Last week, I introduced Susan. Susan isn’t a survivor; Susan is a thriver. And, she thanks God for it every day. Susan is thriving with Stage 4 cancer and is on a journey to live her purpose.
Dear Meg,
My first session with you was so great. As I re-listen to the session, I am still in awe that I am so blessed to have run into you and your colleagues at the Coaching Conference in Boston.
I am a cancer survivor having gone through mastectomy, chemo, and radiation. The day I was originally diagnosed was July 1, 2007. I finished all my hospital visits May 2008 and was in recovery from this experience until December 2008. It was then that I went back to work and a short 3 months later was re-diagnosed with metastatic breast cancer. I was misdiagnosed from the beginning.
I had to be re-radiated in May 2009 to remove a tumor from my spine. I hit an emotional and spiritual abyss. I could not believe it. It was then that I hit rock bottom. I could not see any purpose in my life. Amazingly, I continued my prayer and spiritual routine each and every day -- praying and believing that some good had to come from this crisis. By July and August, I knew I was in emotional trouble.
I reached out to friends. One of them was at the Chautauqua Institution for three weeks with her family. I flew there and thus began the journey of my return to LIFE. It is there I was resurrected, and received the purple shawl. It was there that I first learned of integrative oncology through Stephen Sagar, M.D., who was a guest lecturer at Chautauqua.
Then, by God’s grace, I was made aware of a symposium to be held in Boston on Coaching in Medicine and Leadership. I had been so disillusioned and disappointed by my experience at the two top hospitals in the country (Massachusetts General and Dana-Farber). My experience with the doctors and the system was fragmented, distant, and unsupportive. I knew there had to a better and more effective way for patients with cancer or other critical illness to navigate this process and utilize the services offered.
Yes, they had approached the physical healing in a perfunctory and cursory manner. But with the confirmation of two doctors that I had three to five years to live, I had lost all hope and purpose and was literally dying in a health care system that had not reached out to provide emotional healing. My will to live and my spirit were broken by the very doctors who were hired to heal. My inspiration for joy and life was crushed.
At the conference I shared my story. It was there that I revealed to the more than 500 attendees that I was at the precipice; to either take my life or transform my life. It was difficult and emotional. I could not hold back the tears as I spoke. I could feel the pain released. I was embraced by so many people at the conference and they reached out to support my journey: Pam Schmid, also a cancer survivor and a wellness coach; a woman from the Harnish Foundation who told me she was a 10-year breast cancer mets survivor; and a doctor who is also a wellness coach. The symposium changed my life’s purpose and direction.
Then, I met you; an amazing coach. It is the first time I have ever worked with a coach. I am blessed by the consistency and the encouragement you provide. My life has changed dramatically from the dark days, and now I awake each day renewed and hopeful. I know I have a BIG purpose in this life and you are assisting in the revelation of that and keeping me moving forward. Of course the foremost coach is God; it is His direction and guidance I look for each day.
Margaret Moore, also known as “Coach Meg,” is CEO and founder of Wellcoaches Corp. in Wellesley, MA and can be reached by email at:
coachmeg[at]wellcoaches.com
http://www.coachmeg.com
http://www.wellcoaches.com
http://www.harvardcoaching.org