The Crab of All Crabs
By Dr. Erin Denil
I have had many people around me suffer from the crab of all crabs, CANCER. No one likes this word and no one wants to hear the diagnosis for themselves or anyone that they love and care about. Really, no one usually wants to hear this diagnosis for anyone when we are in a loving state of being.
My mom died of skin cancer. My best friend’s mother has lung cancer that spread to her brain, my aunt’s best friend just died of lung cancer. One of my good friends and someone whom I work with regularly in my business has been diagnosed with cervical cancer. My beloved chiropractic mentor died of bladder cancer. Someone else I know has just gone for a breast biopsy and we are praying that it comes back benign. My uncle had prostate cancer. The list can go on. This is my list, the person reading this post has their own list. The ‘crab of all crabs’ affects everyone, and no one escapes from knowing someone or being directly affected by cancer.
This is such an uplifting way to start a dialog cancer (not!). My point is that everyone is affected by cancer in some way. It can be very scary for many people. The thing about cancer that most people don’t know, if that cancer is abnormal cells. Our bodies have abnormal cells every day that we deal with and get rid of on a regular basis. Our body is actually designed to take care of cancerous cells for us. The problem occurs when those cancerous cells become more than the body can handle. I am not claiming in any circumstance to have a cure for cancer. What I can say is that cancer takes place in a body that is over-stressed, physically, chemically, emotionally, or spiritually. It is so important that people start addressing these stressors before they get a cancer diagnosis.
I have had abnormal cervical cells, not fully cancer, but on their way, and I have noticed that during times of peak stress, I get a worse type of cell to present, and during times that I am using my RANCH Principles, my cell types go back to more normal cell types.
Inflammation, stress, not enough good nutrition/supplements, not enough exercise, lack of sleep, too much time sitting, chemicals from personal care products, cleaning products, herbicides, pesticides, other environmental chemicals all take their toll on the body. Everyone handles stress differently. It is important to identify which stressors are most significant in the individual’s life and try to eliminate the stressor or change how a person responds to the stressor.
It is impossible not to have any stress in life, actually some stress is essential to live. However, an overabundance of stressors leads to cancers. Again, not claiming to have a cure for cancer by any stretch, but there is a way to decrease the amount of stress in life, which helps the body support its natural processes. The body is designed to deal with abnormal cell growth, the body walls it off and tries to separate it from the rest of the body. Before stress accumulates to the point of cancer or other diseases, it would be better to make the necessary lifestyle modifications to decrease stressors in hopes of preventing cancer from ever occurring. I have online health training programs that I teach people my RANCH (Rejuvenate Awaken Nourish Change Heal) Principles for staying healthy.
It breaks my heart to watch so many people affected so negatively because of cancer. The world that exists is a stressful one. It makes so much more sense to work on health before it becomes the crab of all crabs. It makes more sense to embrace the idea that life improves on all levels when the amount of stress is decreased.
Truly the RANCH Principles are all about creating an environment that promotes healing, instead of promoting disease. Believe it or not, my RANCH Principles are not about denying oneself the pleasures of life. Really they are about identifying which areas of life need modification. I talk often about an 80/20 rule. Doing healthy things 80% of the time and allowing for the indulgence of the 20%of the time so that life doesn’t feel like it’s not worth living. Everyone is different and everyone’s 20% indulgence looks a little different. Sometimes, people need to follow a 90/10 rule, depending on the stage of dis-ease their body is in, they may need to be more diligent for a period of time while their body is healing.
From my own experience, and witnessing many of my patients heal, finding joy emotionally is one of the keys to health. Letting go of resentments and anger, taking responsibility for oneself, and truly being grateful are great starts on the path of healing through the storm.