More Some Side Effects of Prostate Radiation that Oncologists Kind of Tell you About; or, Cancer & LIM, Living in the Moment (Pt II)

Buddha, probably Amitabha

As I alluded to in Part I, after my psychiatry session, two things changed for me…one, I was prescribed Zoloft and two, I began practicing Zen meditation.  I’m not trying to persuade you to do what I did (each man to his own prostate path), but because my anxiety/anger was difficult to control (thank you, Lupron), it was important for me and my relationship to change directions.  If it weren’t for my partner, who “kicked your ass” (her words), I’m not sure I could have gotten this far.  In short, she saved me from myself and I love her all the more for that.  Whether you have a partner or not, Zen meditation can be immensely helpful.  Best of all, it’s free and portable.  The point of meditation doesn’t preclude you from having thoughts, but it keeps you from dwelling on them by concentrating on one’s breathing.  I’m a novice at this and it’s taken a bit of practice to get into a routine, but I feel the benefits from doing it in combination with other mental health related modalities.  If it’s of interest to you, I’d recommend two books, How to Meditate by Pema Chödrön and Zen Mind, Beginner’s Mind by Shunryu Suzuki to give you a direction if not a path.  If nothing else, meditation helps in focusing on the moment, being in the moment, breathing in the moment.  That’s not to say you won’t think about your cancer.  To the contrary, it would be difficult to escape, but for 10 or 15 or 20 minutes you can let that go, not dwell on it, and focus on something other than the “disease,” which comes from the Old French, desaise, meaning “lack of ease” and cancer is nothing if not a lack of ease.  So, try to appreciate the Laughing Buddha, the obese Buddha, the Buddha who loves his food and drink both of which may ease your lack of ease since cancer doesn’t necessarily preclude you from eating and imbibing within reason.