I had never considered my fight to get fit for life as I recovered from breast cancer as particularly inspirational, but when Dr. Peter Tylee considered it worthy of a mention in his news letter, I got to thinking that maybe others might be interested in how I took the holistic approach to self healing and to get fit for life. So for those of you that are suffering from any debilitating disease, I hope you find this encouraging.

My desire to get fit for life started a few years ago when I was treated for breast cancer. After the operation I used the time while recuperating to really consider where I was at as far as my health was concerned.

I did some research and came to the conclusion that my cancer had been brought on by stress. (Just as an aside, I think stress is one of the primary causes of cancer, yet little research is being done in this area.) So as well as looking at my diet and exercise, I also looked at ways to reduce my stress levels as a constructive path towards my healing process.

As I did more research, I found that each part I looked at was linked to another. A healthy diet seemed to be a prerequisite to become fit for life. Then there was the need to do some form of exercise.

This came as no surprise, but then I found I also needed to be in the right frame of mind, to set goals , be positive, to know where I was going and what I believed in. I had thought of these things as totally different to my physical health, but I was finding out how much control our minds have over our bodies.

I had found for myself what several people already knew and that is to be fit for life you need to embrace holistic health. By this I don't mean total alternative medicine. Just that we need to treat the body as a whole being, including the mind and soul. I liked the idea and the more I read the more I liked the idea, and the more sense it made.

I became interested in mind power and began to understand more about how attitude has such a large bearing on how we react to illness. I knew that the surgeon had done what he could, but the rest was up to me.

I had always been fit, a big part of our life has been living aboard and cruising our yacht, but even so I decided that to stay fit for life meant making a proper effort.

Part of my exercise was to cycle to work. I took up meditation and once I had mastered the relaxation technique, I was amazed at how good it made me feel. Some years previously my husband had used meditation and mind control to cure seasickness, so he was always very supportive.

Gradually I began the changes that I thought would be more beneficial to my health. I also embraced techniques and ideas, some of which are many thousands of years old, but all new to me.

Being fit for life encompasses the physical, spiritual, emotional and mental parts of ourselves. As we grow we need to be aware of areas that need attention. It might be hard to get your head around some ideas such as emotional health, but you don't need to be a rocket scientist to know that if you dislike your job and hate going to work every day, somewhere down the line it will impact on your health.

If you are carting around emotional baggage such as guilt, resentment or grudges, they will eventually eat away at you and cause problems, not only in your life but also in your health.

I was grateful to medical science for making it possible for me to be treated for breast cancer, but at the same time I didn't want to spend the rest of my life taking drugs. When the surgeon suggested a course of radiation after the operation, I refused.

The same went for the drugs, though I had no medical knowledge to back up my belief, I just knew it wasn't right for me. There had to be a better way to staying healthy other than taking drugs for the rest of my life.

Being fit for life isn't about a quick fix or instant cure, it is about getting to know yourself and finding out what is right for you. It is prevention rather than cure. Had I been following a fit for life regime earlier, I would not have got the cancer in the first place.

Once we understand that we have the tools to facilitate self healing, that it is up to us to start learning how to use them, we can stop the use of drugs and the over burdening of our hospital systems.

I changed my whole life. I not only ate a better diet and did more exercise, that was the easy part. I also got rid of the stress and emotional baggage, I changed my job to something I enjoy doing and now live a more positive life.