David: And so just as I began to consume more and more, Healing Strong was less shocking for me as I got into it, 'cause I was like, you know, I think fundamentally it just makes sense of the body can heal itself and there's ways that you can... Like, people have been doing natural medicine for thousands of years, right?
Right. You know, modern medicine is very recent. Um, so I think a lot of it was intuitive, even though it was new. I'm like, wow, you know, there's some things that are, are still shock- you know, more shocking than others, but, um, as I was understanding more of the protocols. But, um, I think by and large it, it made sense on a fundamental level and so it, you know, I wasn't necessarily repulsed by it or, uh- Thinking anybody was crazy.
Announcer: You are listening to the I Am Healing Strong podcast, a part of the Healing Strong organization, the number one network of holistic cancer support groups in the world. Each week, we bring you stories of hope, real stories that will encourage you as you navigate your way on your own journey to health. Now here's your host, stage four cancer thriver, Jim Manis.
Jim: David Sanders, the youngest board member of Healing Strong. How are you?
David: I'm doing great, Jim. How are you doing?
Jim: I'm doing fantastic. Good. Even though I just shared with you a little while ago that I, I am never sick, but I do live transparently and, uh, and I just came off of this nasty infection that I think it started in a dental area.
And it's not like I was putting off going to dentist, 'cause I actually like the dentist. I'm the only person I know that likes the dentist. But I just kinda put it off. I thought, "Oh, something hurts up there. I'll get to it." And then it affected the rest of my body. So I've just, I'm just pulling out of that, so be patient with me.
David: Pulling out and probably scheduled a, a dental appointment, I would imagine.
Jim: Oh, yeah. Yeah. To
David: close it out.
Jim: You were just down the road from me in... Well, you're right where my group used to be for seven years in Greenville. I never saw you there. I don't wanna mention that.
David: Yeah, we're relatively new, so we moved here last summer.
Uh, me and my wife were in Chicago, uh, for work. Uh, from the Southeast, we, we both are from the Atlanta area, and so we knew eventually the Chicago winters would wear us down. Yeah. And Greenville, you know, as we're looking back at the Southeast and where we wanted to land, um, her folks are close by, and so Greenville kinda became a, a good place for us.
So we've been here almost a year now. Um, love the little town. L- you know, we're settling in, making friends. Uh, so it's a fun little city.
Jim: No, living here is a good excuse, so I'll let you off the hook.
David: Yeah. Yeah, yeah. I'll have to keep an eye out for you, though, as you come around now.
Jim: Yeah. Yeah, you're familiar with the, uh, Cancer Survivors Park downtown?
That's where we- Yeah.
David: Yeah ...
Jim: that's where we meet. This coming Tuesday, in fact, we meet there. Okay. But, uh-
David: Yeah, that's a cool spot ... it's,
Jim: it's me and all women, so I'm, like, begging for guys to show up. Like- ... nothing against women, don't get me wrong, but-
David: I'll see if I can pop by and come say
Jim: hey. Or get some
David: company.
Jim: We'll, we'll make a big deal about you being a board member and everything, and I'll-
David: Yeah ...
Jim: we'll knock their pictures
David: with them. Oh, that'd be fun. I'd love that.
Jim: How long you been a board member?
David: Um, so I reconnected with Susie last summer, um, as they were looking to expand the board, and I think officially it was probably October-ish, so last fall.
Okay. Um, and you know, I got connected with Susie kind of midway through my cancer journey. Um, and she, you know, we, we didn't keep in touch a ton, um, over the years. So just quick context, um, I was diagnosed in 2018, um, had a couple year battle with cancer, and so it had been three or four years since I'd spoken with Susie.
But she reached out and just said, "Hey, was thinking about you." Uh, and she was, you know, I was on her heart as she was thinking about board members and, uh, thought it'd be fun to reconnect and just hear what was going on in life and if something made sense. So we chatted a few times last summer and, you know, Healing Strong for me, I, I think was a good chance just to reengage with cancer and people going through that journey in some capacity.
I think, um, for me, thankfully was able to beat cancer and start to return to more of a normal life. Okay. Uh, but in doing so, cancer kind of drifted into the rear view. Right. Um, and so it, in some ways it was like I don't really know how to continue to engage in that. The emotions are still there, the, the passion, the care, the compassion for people who are going through it is still there, but it doesn't necessarily intersect in life day-to-day anymore.
And so Healing Strong was a fun way for me to be able to just kind of reengage a bit and, and give back and, uh, find a way to, you know, support folks who are still going through it. So, um, yeah. So going on six or eight months now as, as a board member, uh, still learning a lot of things and trying to figure out the best way to plug in and, and be helpful.
But, um, they're gracious to keep me around while I try to help in some way.
Jim: Yeah, I see that you have a degree in a master's in nonprofit management. I think that could help a little bit.
David: Yeah. Yeah, ideally, right? If I took good notes, uh, at the time. Um, but yeah, so I did that. Um, I kinda had a long... My, my career journey is long and winding.
Um, I was actually a biology major undergrad looking at med school. Decided it, it wasn't for me at the time, um, and then ultimately went back and did a, a one-year master's degree in nonprofit management. Um, and spent a few years doing nonprofit work, um, after that. So if there's any Atlanta folks, I, I worked in a couple of nonprofits in Atlanta, one being Atlanta Mission, uh, that serves the homeless, um, in Atlanta and kind of around the, the metro area.
And then Four Ten Bridge does international community development. Um, so worked with them for a number of years as well. Um, so yeah, I think the intersection of, of cancer and kind of the familiarity with that, uh, just the, the struggle is long, along with like how do you, you know, what's the role of a board?
How do you fundraise? How do you do program management? Like, you know, some of the, um, more administrative items of a nonprofit world. Uh, feel like I can kinda bring some of that as well.
Jim: And you grew up where?
David: I grew up, uh, north of Atlanta, uh, in Cumming, Georgia.
Jim: And then, uh, you went to Emory University, right?
David: I did. So undergrad was University of Georgia, go Dawgs. Okay. Um, and that's where I-- So that was my bio degree and master's in nonprofit. Okay. And then I did Emory for business school. So that's kind of the next chapter. Um, I ended up going back and going to business school and, um, kind of pivoting from there.
But that's the, again, long, winding road to where I am today. Right.
Jim: And so you moved to Chicago for your job, is that what it was?
David: That's right, yeah. Okay.
Jim: Were you married at that time?
David: I got married in business school. Um, so I met my wife, uh, 2020. It was spring of, of COVID. Yeah. Um, we did a lot of walks in the open parks, and there weren't restaurants open.
But, um, we met then, and it was, you know, an interesting time today. We just had some friends introduce us because the world kind of shut down and-
Jim: Right.
David: Um, but it was... Yeah, we dated for a few years and been married, uh, we just had our fourth anniversary. Um, so yeah. Wow,
Jim: congratulations.
David: Thank you.
Jim: All right, tomorrow is my 37th anniversary.
David: Wow, you got me beat by a couple.
Jim: Yeah. And we're the same age. What's up?
David: Started young.
Jim: Yeah. Ah, that's what I said. I didn't even start young, and I'm still way behind you anyways. That's beside... We don't have to bring that up. Thank you. So I'm just trying to s- find out why. You seem to be a person who just wants to give back, um, which is not normal for, for humans especially.
They just wanna gain all they can, go to college, and then go somewhere and just make a lot, a ton of money somewhere. But anyone who's going into nonprofit, normally it's somebody who, uh, wants to give back. Like some people, once they conquer their behind, they just wanna forget all about it. But you're still wanting to be involved 'cause you know the feelings that you get when you get the diagnosis.
I mean, it's not like, "Oh, darn it. I got a little bit of cancer." But no, it's, it's a gut punch Mm-hmm. And, uh, you're thinking, "Oh my gosh, is this it? Is this the end? Is this how it's going down?" Explain to me or tell me a little bit about that time. You know, when did you get your diagnosis? I mean, what were you doing?
Where were you at?
David: Yeah, so diagnosed in 2018. Um, it, for me it was a long road pre-diagnosis. Um- Hmm ... so for me, I had a lot of just kinda random symptoms. Um- Right ... really probably 18 months to two years. It's hard to pinpoint exactly, um, just e- even in retrospect just to trace all the things. But yeah, so it was a long road of, of ultimately getting a diagnosis.
I just had, like, I would see doctors and they'd be like, "Yeah, that's kinda weird. Uh, you know, I don't, I don't know. You seem healthy." Uh- ... but you know, it, it ended up being Langerhans cell histiocytosis is what I was diagnosed with. Um- Right ... which manifested and, and caused, uh, uh... LCH for short. Um- Yeah. I, I see you kinda squinted like, "Wait, what did you just say?"
Um-
Jim: You know they make these names up, right?
David: Yeah. Some guy named Langerhans was like, "Yeah, we'll just call this that." Um- So yeah, I, I had a range of, of kind of obscure symptoms, uh, for a couple years. Yeah. Um, and, and really couldn't find a doctor who, who could recognize the, the bigger picture of what was going on.
Right. Um, and it ended up being, I went in for an annual physical in 2018 and I had a swollen lymph node. And so they- Right ... uh, pulled a sample of that, um, and that was ultimately how, how they did the, the diagnosis. But you know, for me, it, honestly the diagnosis at that point was a bit of a relief, um, because it was at least there was some clarity about what had been going on for some time.
I think, you know, just the, the previous year, not only were there no answers from doctors, but it was like multiple attempts to like try to pull myself up out of this struggle of like, "Okay, I'm gonna get back on track and get healthy. I'm gonna start exercising. I'm gonna try to figure this out." But there was no way to climb out of that because my body was going through something more serious.
And so just- Right ... emotionally being able to fight was a welcome opportunity because I'd been fighting- Hmm ... and struggling against something that I didn't, you know, that I couldn't really overcome. Um- Right ... and so at least I had a clear picture of what I needed to do next. Um, didn't mean it was an easy battle, but, um, at least, you know, all the things leading up to that, that moment, um, had a little bit more clarity and definition.
Jim: It's hard to be swinging in, in the air at nothing.
David: Mm-hmm.
Jim: So did, did they give you hope or did they say, "Well, yeah, you have to do the normal six months or five years," or whatever it may be?
David: They didn't put a number on it. It wasn't a- Okay ... an imminent challenge. Um- Right ... thankfully LCH is slow-moving, but I'd, I'd had it for two years, so it had, it had progressed.
Right. Um, you know, loggerons is something they kind of measure by like number of systems that it's in, not necessarily stages. Um- Right ... and that's how they like measure severity, and so I'd had it in my skin, I had it in my lymph nodes, um, I had it in my pituitary gland, um, and my lungs, and maybe one other place.
I think there were five total, but I'm drawing a blank on the fifth one. And so it did progress pretty significantly, so you pretty immediately started chemo. Um, you know, it's a... LCH is a disease that, um, is mostly in infants, so under the age of two is... It's a rare disease in general, but where you do see it, it's mostly in infants.
And so there was a range of, you know, maybe three or four different options that were, you know, on the market, so to speak. Um, and so I was able to find a good doctor at Emory. Um, there was kind of a, there was a guy there who treated it, and there was, um, a couple of doctors in Houston that had treated it, but it was really those two pockets of, of people.
Um, and so thankfully one of them was in Atlanta, and I was able to get plugged in with him pretty quickly. You know, kind of took a string of finding the right guy, but, um, ultimately, you know, was able to work with him over the course of several years and find a treatment plan that worked and, um... But yeah, that, that was kind of the, it, it was tough.
I, I don't remember the odds off the top, but, um- Yeah ... it wasn't a, "Hey, man," like it's bad-bad.
Jim: Yeah. And is that when you started doing research or did you already know Suzy before that?
David: So it took some time. Um, I, I didn't know Suzy. So I did six to 10 rounds of chemo. Um, so, uh, you know, my, my schedule was like a round per month.
Um, and so I did chemo for a while before, but it just really wasn't working for me. Um- Mm-hmm ... so after six months or so of chemo, did, you know, kind of pressure on scans and it was like, ah, you know, we-- it stalled in some places, it's progressed in others, but like we were making progress. And so at that, there was this moment where, um, kinda had to circle the wagons and, and f- you know, find a, a new approach.
So part of it was changing chemos, which I think helped a good bit. But there was this other part where it was like I just needed to stop and ask for help, you know, just both from a emotional and spiritual standpoint, but also like I needed to be more holistic in the tactics I was applying. So it was through that process that I ultimately got connected to Suzy.
A friend of a friend introduced us and, uh, was able to kinda get me going there, and so they were able to provide a bit of resources. And then, you know, I think even broader than that though, it was like I'm gonna start seeing a holistic doctor, I'm gonna start doing, um, HBOT. You know, I, I did just a kind of a wide range of, of interventions of, hey, let's pursue some different things and see what can augment chemo.
I, I wasn't ready to, to stop the chemo, but it needed to, yeah, expand the scope and, and try to find some alternatives.
Jim: Did that all seem kind of strange to you once you found, you know, Healing Strong and, and all the protocols and stuff that they were-- would talk about? My diagnosis in 2016, and I came across Healing Strong in 2018 when they had the convention there in Atlanta, and I was, like, overwhelmed by all the, the stuff that was available, all the information, all the different protocols, and the fact that everybody at the convention was stinking happy.
Yeah. I'm like, "Do I need to remind everybody we have cancer? What's going on here?" They were just so full of hope. Uh, they were constantly praying, and they were doing things that were making them feel better. All these things that I was brought up, uh, and I was being told that, "That's just what the hippies do," you know?
Back to nature, hugging trees, and stuff like that. But apparently they're a lot smarter than we had realized growing up. Did that seem strange to you, or was that part of your life anyway, you knew things like that?
David: It was definitely new. I think it was a learning curve for me. I, I, I'd started moving in the direction of more holistic wellness, I would say.
Mm-hmm. Um, just starting to listen to podcasts, Dr. Peter Attia, Dr. Mark Hyman. Some of these guys are at least, um, you know, formal doctors, but more like how do we take an integrated approach to medicine? Yeah. So that's kind of like the, the gateway for me a bit of, oh, how do you think about the body more holistically?
And so just as I began to consume more and more, Healing Strong was less shocking for me as I got into it, 'cause I was like, you know, I think fundamentally it just makes sense of the body can heal itself, and there's ways that you can... Like, people have been doing natural medicine for thousands of years, right?
Yeah. You know, modern medicine is very recent. Um, so I think a lot of it was intuitive, even though it was new. I'm like, well, you know, there's some things that are, are still shock, you know, more shocking than others, but, um, as I was understanding more of the protocols. But, um, I think by and large it, it made sense on a fundamental level, and so it, you know, I wasn't necessarily repulsed by it or, uh-
thinking anybody was crazy per se.
Jim: Yeah. I mean, most of it is very logical, like you said. I mean, if, if especially if you believe in God, I mean, He created us, and He's not gonna like, "Oh man, I don't know how to fix it," you know, once it goes bad. The more I learn, and I'm, and I'm not medically minded at all.
I-- Lots of these things don't stick to my brain, so fortunately there are people with videos and podcasts that I can go back to.
David: Yeah,
Jim: I really should just write things down and force myself to remember. But hey, you know, I've lived long enough. I don't remember too many things anyway. But, you know, it's, there's just so many plants out there that have a purpose and some we don't even know about yet- Yeah
what their purpose is. And you're like, "What? We can... Dandelions in our yard? Are that... You know, they fight cancer?"
David: Yeah.
Jim: You're supposed to get rid of them, for crying out loud. But, uh-
David: It's amazing ...
Jim: it's incredible. And, um, like an, ah, I really do need to learn more. Maybe I should get certified as a nutritionist, but that's too hard for me.
David: I
Jim: don't think that's what I'm meant to do. I do have friends that are nutritionists, so I'll just kinda go off of them So how long did it take for you to, uh, to heal from this cancer? And what, what exactly did you do beyond the chemo, of course?
David: Yeah. It ended up being about a two-year journey, so 2018 to 2020.
So six months of chemo not really working, and then about another year of chemo helping, you know, the Healing Strong protocols for me that were, were helpful were, um, a lot of stuff I just, again, in hindsight I'm like, well, obviously you just eat more vegetables. Like-
Jim: Yeah ...
David: of course. You know? Some of it was basic of, as sad as it was, like, like I think for me, I grew up, played baseball, played basketball.
Six days a week I was in a gym doing something. Like, so it's just very active and healthy and I could, uh, treat my body a little bit worse. Right. Um, and so I never really had to learn great nutrition. Like, um, and so I think there was a learning curve for me of how do you just eat healthy? And so some of it was, was that, but also how do you do a juice cleanse?
How do you, uh, do fasting? And I think the protocols that were, um, especially helpful though were like some of the detox stuff. Mm-hmm. Um, at a certain point for me, you know, it, it became more of a battle against the chemo than the cancer. I got clean scans three or four months after kind of this pivot that I'm talking about.
So pretty quickly I was able to like make a lot of progress. Maybe it was, it was a little bit longer than that, but maybe six months. Uh, but I still wanted to do six more, uh, rounds of, of chemo. And so that just, it just really beat up my body. And so I needed to learn how to, to detox really well and just kinda minimize the, the impact of chemo.
And so some of the protocols about fasting, you know, before chemo, like just preparing your body for that, and then how do you quickly detox after, became really just tactical things that I could implement. And so that was kind of a big part of Feeling Strong. But then, you know, ramped up supplements through kind of a, a natural doctor that I was seeing mentioned HBOT, so that was big for me.
Um, one of the weird things about LCH is it can manifest as something called hidradenitis, which is this really weird like skin condition. It's, it's effectively like these very inflamed lesions. And I actually got it treated before I was diagnosed 'cause I thought it was just hidradenitis. Um, but the way they do it is essentially take like a skin graft kind of.
So they just like cut off the top layer of skin to remove it. Nice. Um, but it, yeah, it was brutal. So I had these huge open wounds that would not heal. Big open wounds. And so it was honestly like As I look back on cancer, chemo was, was definitely number one as, as far as most challenging, but this was easily number two just 'cause like day to day I had these massive wounds would not heal.
And so finally I got connected with, um, just doing HBOT therapy 'cause it, it can help with wound healing. Um-
Jim: Right.
David: And so did a good bit of that. Um, and, and I think it, it was helpful for me more broadly just because I don't know if you've ever done hyperbaric oxygen chamber, but, um, the naps that you can take in there are just phenomenal.
Totally. No matter what, if you go in there and you, you're like, "I'm not gonna... I'm gonna listen to a podcast" or whatever, within five minutes you're just out. And so it was like I would take these hour and a half long just deep, deep naps that I felt so g- anyway, one day maybe I'll get an HBOT 'cause I just love the nap so much.
But it helped with my wounds, but also I think was just really restful and like it's good to, you know, enrich your body with oxygen. So did that. Um, I'm trying to think what else was kind of in that. Uh, started doing sauna and, you know, a range. Anyway, it was kind of a-
Jim: Right ...
David: somewhat of a shotgun. There was some strategy behind of it, but, um, uh, just kind of threw everything I could at it and was able to, to ultimately get better.
Jim: Yeah, it's usually the case because there's so much you can do these days that You don't know what to pick.
David: Yeah. I
Jim: mean, there are things that stick out in your mind, of course, like eating vegetables. I mean, that's like a no-brainer. Uh, and don't eat junk. Yeah. And the other, it doesn't take a lot of brains to do that.
I immediately stopped sugar 'cause I was always told- Yeah ... hey, sugar feeds cancer. And I'm like, I don't wanna stop sugar 'cause I've eaten it all my life. And I was always a skinny guy. I was always very active. And so, and, and the thing on, uh, about me, they always make fun of me on the radio because people would bring junk by all the time, of course, especially on the holidays.
Everybody's worried about weight, and so they say, "Well, just give it to Jim. He can eat it." And sure enough, I did 'cause I was always hungry. And the guy in the morning, he, he lost 140 pounds, so he's like a... very much into nutrition and everything. He was a- Hmm ... extreme athlete. And, but he is into counting calories.
I've never counted calories in my life, but he counted... Just that morning on the show, I ate 10,000 calories.
David: Oh my gosh.
Jim: Not even knowing it. He just, he had to count everything. Those
David: donuts add up fast.
Jim: Yeah. And I'm like, and I still feel great.
David: Yeah. I was similar, yeah. I mean, just again, playing sports all the time, like I could just inhale and inhale.
Jim: Yeah.
David: And so you kinda become, you know, known as the dumpster. Like they would always- Yeah ... put it down. He'll clean up the plates. It was
Jim: great, wasn't it?
David: Yeah. Yeah.
Jim: And then, yeah, and the cancer normally stops that-
David: Yeah ...
Jim: that mindset. Yeah. But yeah, then you, then you don't know what to pick, so you just take things that you know to do.
Yeah. And eventually, you know, you get a little wiser, a little smarter, and you're like- Yeah ... okay, I don't really need to be doing this, but perhaps I should bring this in.
David: Yeah.
Jim: And,
David: um- I think that was good. You know, that's the value of getting to know Susie and- Yeah ... and being plugged into a group is like you just have more of a sounding board- Mm-hmm
um, of is this crazy? Uh, no. Okay, maybe it's not crazy, but it, it's not necessarily needed for LCH- Yeah ... and what I'm going through per se. And so having somebody or, or a group of people to just bounce ideas off of and filter through it, I think is really helpful.
Jim: Yeah. I imagine it's kinda good that you got most of that out of the way be- before, uh, by the time you met your wife.
So that was good timing.
David: Yeah, it was. And it, you know, it's funny timing of it. I think my last round of chemo, which honestly is God's grace, was February 2020, so right before COVID happened in March.
Jim: Yeah.
David: Um, which was a blessing just to not have to go through COVID with all that fear of a weakened immune system.
And, and then I met my wife like two months later. So, um, it, it's similar to what I was talking about originally of in some ways it's such a blessing because... I'm gonna get emotional talking about it. Um- I was able just to live a normal... Like, she didn't know that part of me, right?
Jim: Right.
David: And so from that day forward, I was able just to know her and as a, somebody without cancer.
Um, but in the same way, she doesn't know that part of me, and so, um-
Jim: Mm-hmm.
David: We just don't go there as much. Yeah. You know, we do now, but it allowed me to turn the page really well and just live a normal life and date her as a healthy human. Um- Right ... but it's also created, you know, when I mentioned of why it's been so fun to join the board for Healing Strong is how do I engage in this?
I don't, I don't wanna turn the page entirely. I still want to find a way to engage in the community. But yeah, I met her two months after and was still recovering a lot ways. It takes a while to fully come back from lots of chemo and cancer. Mm-hmm. Um, but thankfully not actively battling it.
Jim: Yeah, that was a good time.
And then some- but sometimes you probably think, you know, it would've been good to have her while I was- Yeah ... going through this too. But like my wife, she was, she's one of those people who just kicks in when there's, you know, someone needs help or there's a, a situation. I mean, I had to sleep in a recliner after my surgery because I couldn't lay down on, on any area.
And every time I moved, she was right there. She woke up out of- Mm-hmm ... sound sleep. She would've had to... If that was her, she'd have to beat my, my head to wake me up. It's just me.
David: Yeah.
Jim: It'll take me a while. But she was, she's like perfect in that, in that way. So she came in handy. I'm glad I did have her at that time.
Yeah. But, but yeah. Uh, like now that you're a board member and you wanna give back to the community, uh, what do you, what do you see the future holding for your time with Healing Strong?
David: Just wanna find a way to, to serve mostly. I, I think- Mm-hmm ... you know, Susie and Kay and the other board members, there's so many longstanding board members who have stewarded the vision of Healing Strong so well.
And so I just wanna be additive to that, I, I think more than anything else. Um, I think, you know, just thinking about a little bit of what, what does the next season of Healing Strong look like, um, is fun for me just to kind of vision cast and then think about how we go achieve that. Like, is that reaching more people?
Is that reaching the same people but doing it differently? Is it, you know, expanding groups or, you know, whatever it might be. I think going through cancer and you're searching for answers, it can be such a lonely place. And so how do we just like spread that so that we can reach more people and do it in a more impactful way?
Um- Yeah ... not only help people heal, but, you know, it, it's interesting that you mentioned give people hope, 'cause honestly that's what, that's what changes it. Like, again, I keep referring back to this pivot point for me, but in retrospect, I think it's a point where I got hope again. Um, I, I accepted help and had people come into my life and really encourage me.
Hmm. I think through that process I was able to get hope again, which gave me the energy and the motivation to try new treatments, to try different things. Like, um, I, I think if I didn't have hope, it, it would've been hard to fully embrace a lot of those things. Um- Yeah ... so I, I think it's so critical that people find groups and find, whether it's Healing Strong or otherwise, that can support them and just breathe life and hope into the process, 'cause it, it's just a grind, uh, to try to do it any other way.
Jim: And the fact that you're so young I think is great, because it used to be cancer is just an old person disease. But now, uh, unfortunately, it's, uh, more and more young people are getting it- Mm-hmm ... 'cause of just all the toxins that we are living with. And I mean, it's hard to avoid all the things that, uh, affects us and, and tears down our immune system.
And it's good to have a, a young voice Even younger than mine. Oh my goodness. Uh, I can't believe how fast it goes. But, uh, yeah, I mean, as an older person, you can look back and, you know, be retrospective and, and gather, you know, some of your wisdom and be able to do that. But being young and going through it yourself, I mean, you have so much more to offer and, and it helps young people who are facing this like, "Ah, I don't need, I don't wanna just talk to old people who are gonna die soon anyway," you know?
It's like, in fact, we have a guy in, uh, my wife owns an after-school care. We have a worker that grew up in there as a child, grew up all the way, and now he's working for us. He's in college, but he's working for us. Uh, he's 22 years old, and he just got diagnosed with, uh, thyroid cancer.
David: Hmm.
Jim: Which, you know, the doctors say, you know, it's, it's rare for a guy and it's rare for a young person.
David: Hmm.
Jim: But it's just becoming less and less rare, and so-
David: Yeah ...
Jim: we just, we need younger voices, so thank you so much for being young.
David: Yeah. Yeah, absolutely. I'm glad I can contribute at, at minimum.
Jim: Yeah, 'cause it doesn't last forever. What would you say to people who are listening right now? 'Cause we always have people who are, are new listening to this.
I just got a call last night from my cousin, I mean, from my, my niece, who has some friends that are facing cancer. I don't know the story yet, but obviously they are- Hmm ... scared and they wanna know what to do, and so I plugged them into Healing Strong, but they also wanna talk to me. Mm-hmm. Uh, and basically they just need someone to calm them down- Mm-hmm
you know, let them know there is hope. But what, what would you say to those people that are listening? In fact, they're probably listening to this one because, uh, they started listening to the podcast as soon as we told them about
David: it. Yeah. I think it's, um, I, I think you have to find people who can help guide you, help give you hope and guide you.
Mm-hmm. Um, it can be, you know, there's so... Everybody comes, starts at a different point. You know, I, I needed to learn vegetables were important again. Yeah. Um, so maybe I was, I had a bit more of a learning curve than most. But, um, I think having a person, a group of people who can not only give you hope, but also just kind of, um, connect you with the right resources, connect you with the right protocols, and just begin to give you a path, um, and some structure of how to fight, um, I think is, is an imperative.
Without that, like, you know, there's great doctors who do, you know, all kind... Like, modern medicine is, you know, it's a miracle in a lot of ways as well. But making sure that somebody has the, uh, the foresight to just look at a range of options and, and ultimately discern and pray and try to figure out, uh, w-what's the right thing for me in this moment with this cancer, with where I am in that journey.
I think it's just such a dynamic context, context-specific challenge that finding a group of advisors and trusted folks is, is so important.
Jim: Yeah. And of course planning a Healing Strong group.
David: Definitely. That's a, a great set of advisors to, to get you started.
Jim: That's right, especially if you're in Greenville.
You stop by that Cancer Survivors Park.
David: And we'll
Jim: be there. Every
Announcer: Tuesday.
Jim: Yeah. Well, the fourth Tuesday. Fourth Tuesday. You can come every Tuesday if you want, but we'll only be there on the fourth Tuesday.
David: What time do you guys, uh, what time do you guys meet?
Jim: It's at 7:00.
David: All right.
Jim: In the building, the only building on there.
People think a park, so you just kinda meet out on the benches or... So no, we have our own building. Yeah. And they trusted me with the keys. They built it for you
Announcer: guys.
Jim: Yeah. Well, David, thank you so much. It was great to meet you, being in the same town. Likewise. And like, see you face to face.
David: Absolutely.
Thanks for having me. It was great to chat with you.
Jim: Thank you.
Announcer: You've been listening to the I Am Healing Strong podcast, part of the Healing Strong organization. We hope this episode encouraged you and gave you confidence to take charge of your healing journey, trusting God to guide your path. Healing Strong is a non-profit dedicated to connecting, supporting, and educating individuals facing cancer and other diseases through strategies that rebuild the body, renew the soul, and refresh the spirit.
It's free to join a local or online group. Just visit healingstrong.org to find one near you or start your own. While you're there, create a free My Healing Strong account to access all of our free resources to help you live healthier and heal strong. Though our groups and resources are free, we invite you to support our mission through a monthly Hopegiver's donation of your choosing.
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