Survivor Slimdown

Forward Focus for Women’s Health Week

In honor of the start of Women’s Health Week and for Mother’s Day, Cervivor kicked off the week with an open letter to young mothers going through cervical cancer treatment. Mother’s Day is a day that brings a lot of feelings up for us in the Cervivor community and it’s a reminder that motherhood is defined so differently for every single one of us.

The awareness week, May 8-14, 2022, is led by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Office on Women’s Health to serve as a reminder for women and girls to make their health a priority. A sentiment that resonates with us from our Cervical Cancer Awareness Month campaign, Take Care of You in 2022.

This year’s Women’s Health Week theme is “Forward Focus: Achieving Healthier Futures Together.”

Now is the time to put an emphasis on scheduling those screening and vaccination appointments, to put your mental and emotional health first, and to maintain and cultivate relationships with friends, family, and ourselves.

How do we focus on building a healthier path forward?

Screening and Vaccination 101
Take the time to schedule your annual physical and other health appointments. Have a conversation with your medical care team about any vaccines or preventive care you may have missed due to the pandemic. Check off your list of preventive tests which include cervical cancer screenings, mammograms, bone density scans, stress tests, cholesterol screenings, blood pressure screenings, physical exams, and other health screenings. Don’t let the cost of preventive care stop you, there are several programs available to help with this.

Mental and Emotional Health
Make time to unwind and focus on things you enjoy. Finding healthy ways to help you manage stress levels like meditation, yoga, and reading can help maintain balance with mental and emotional health. If you notice changes in your mood, behavior, and thinking that cause disruption in your day-to-day life, check in with your medical care team for further assistance. You may also want to keep these resources in your toolkit for future reference.  

Nourish from the Inside Out
Eating a well-balanced diet can go a long way in a healthy path forward. Check out everything you need to know about healthy eating and dietary guidelines here. If you’re a cancer survivor and are looking to for support in leading a healthier lifestyle beyond cancer, join our private Facebook group Survivor Slimdown.

Friends and Family
Stay connected with your friends, family, caregivers, and community. Talk with people you trust about your concerns and how you are feeling, it can truly help things feel less scary.

These are just a few ideas worth pursuing for a healthier path forward. Are you ready to take action?

Survivor Slimdown

In 2018, there will be an estimated 1.7 million new cases of cancer diagnosed in the U.S., with that number estimated to be 23.6 million worldwide by 2030. Thankfully with advances in medicine, the number of survivors of the disease is also on the rise. The National Cancer Institute reports that in 2016 there were 15.5 million cancer survivors in the U.S. and that number is expected to increase to 20.3 million by 2026.  Cancer Survivorship is an area that continues to be studied, as practitioners seek to help patients learn to live life beyond cancer.

Cervivor has found that many cancer survivors emerge on the other side of the disease ready to tackle life, but often what is waiting for them is an unhealthy lifestyle. Obesity is a known factor for the development of other co-morbid illness, prevalent in cancer survivors such as diabetes and heart disease and can feel like an up hill battle. Survivors regularly struggle with depression, anxiety, motivation, and weight issues that are often intertwined and connected to one another. We see and hear this message consistently and decided to do something about it.

In January 2018, Cervivor re-launched a project called “Survivor Slimdown.” Survivor Slimdown is an online group aimed to support ALL CANCER survivors in their fight to live a healthy and balanced lifestyle after a cancer diagnosis. While we are a “slimdown” group, we aim to address and support all survivors and recognize the connection of mind, body, and spirit. We currently have 70 members engaged in our private online group, led by cancer survivors Patti Murillo-Casa and Holly Lawson.

Patti Murillo-Casa, Survivor Slimdown admin AND in-house fitness guru.

Holly Lawson, Survivor Slimdown admin, finishing her first post-cancer 5k.

Patti is a retired New York City police officer turned fitness guru. After her battle with cancer, she lost over 100 lbs! She is a Certified Personal Trainer, Certified Senior Fitness Specialist, Pound Pro Instructor, and Spinning Instructor just to name a few. Patti assists in the administration of our online group, ensuring information being shared is safe, accurate, and cutting edge. Holly had just completed her 4th half marathon when she was diagnosed with cervical cancer in 2016. She had extensive complications from treatment that left her inactive for two years. Holly is determined to regain her health and fitness. She and Patti pack a power punch. They love leading the Slimdown group as active participants on the constant journey of health.

Survivor Slimdown provides daily motivation with “Fit Tips” and regular challenges, to keep members engaged and motivated. The group is constantly sharing recipes and tips for living a balanced lifestyle. However, it truly is the spirit of our survivors that makes the group so dynamic. Survivors understand one another and can encourage one another in the quest for health in ways others simply cannot.

Here’s what participants are saying about Survivor Slimdown:

Survivors keeping one another motivated and challenged! They understand!

“I love that we are all in this journey together even though we may be at different levels of fitness or at different stages in our health or Survivorship, we come together in this group. We all encourage each other, laugh about our misadventures, and “celebrate our victories.” Maria Franklin

“This brings motivation to me without judgement and constant nagging!” Kristine Sprigler

“The Fit Tips are my fav! All the positive posts really keep me going and inspire me to ‘pay the motivation forward’. My physical and spiritual self-feel energized.” Carol Lacey

“I like the realistic goals & suggestions, along with the consistent positive encouragement are such a breath of fresh air and help me stay on goal.” Sarah Nielson

“The daily posts, the recipe suggestions, encouragement from everyone keep me motivated.” Paulette Apostolou

Survivor Slimdown participants are staying active with everything from walking, running, personal trainers, sparing, and water aerobics!

“The positive attitudes of the members and the constant encouragement of each member to push and support the rest of the group through all obstacles, has been one of the biggest reasons I love this group.”  Scott Courville

Do you find yourself feeling stuck and unmotivated to be active and live healthfully? Do you want to be on this journey with people who get you? Would you love to have accountability, recipe sharing, daily Fit Tips, and regular challenges for yourself? If this is you, we invite you to join us. We welcome all cancer survivors, male or female-no matter what the diagnosis, to join our online group. We understand cancer survivors, we understand finding your way in Survivorship, and we understand the desire to live a healthy balanced life after cancer. Come join us in Survivor Slimdown!

Click here to join Survivor Slimdown!

Statistics retrieved from https://cancercontrol.cancer.gov/ocs/statistics/statistics.html