Suleika Jaouad is Learning to Live (With Cancer) | Rich Roll Podcast
Rich Roll
Jan 15, 2024
Mindsip insights from this episode:
Choose your response to reclaim your freedom
Citing Viktor Frankl, true power lies not in what happens to you, but in the space between that stimulus and your response, where you have the freedom to choose.
Live each day with curiosity and seek tiny joys
Instead of living each day as if it's your last, which creates panic, try living it as if it's your first by waking up with curiosity, wonder, and seeking out tiny joys.
Transform limitations into creative accomplishments
The speaker believes her greatest accomplishments would not have been possible without being sick, as her limitations foreclosed conventional paths and forced her to be more creative.
Commit to one small creative act daily for 100 days
To build a creative habit during a difficult time, commit to one small creative act a day for 100 days, keeping the bar low enough that you can always do it.
Create personal rituals to navigate life after illness
Since there are no established rites of passage for navigating the aftermath of illness, you may need to create your own rituals to find your way back to life.
Recognize PTSD risk after cancer treatment
It may be surprising to learn that PTSD is not just for war veterans; it can be diagnosed after the trauma of cancer treatment, which is often overlooked.
Reject hero's journey narrative to confront trauma authentically
The pressure for someone who is sick to be stoic, brave, and wise is exhausting and dangerous because it glosses over the real challenges of enduring trauma.
Transform isolation and suffering into creative expression
Reimagine survival as its own kind of creative act by alchemizing isolation and suffering into something meaningful, like writing or painting.
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