On 23rd December, 2017, I did a Facebook Live session with Cancer Conqueror, Inspirational Speaker and Author Neerja Malik. She reminded me of Debra Jarvis who was diagnosed with breast cancer while working at a Cancer Center. In one of her inspiring talks, she says, “A very small part of cancer experience is about medicine, a very large and significant part is about – Feelings, Faith, loosing and finding your ‘Identity’, discovering the strength and flexibility you never knew you had and laughing at the face of uncertainty.”

Slipping into introspection while talking to people, I have discovered that certain conversations are immersive. They present you with a comprehensive view of life and give reasons to inspect your endurance towards the worst. Suddenly, you become a spectator and life plays in anticipation. What you see is your response to situations that disrupt your natural functioning. The catch is that between stimulus and response, there is a gap, big enough for the choices you make. What you choose as your response is what you deliver, what you deliver decides your course of life…

-Manvi

“Neerja said to herself, “Okay, I have got Cancer, but, I will not let it steal my identity or defy my faith in God.” She embraced the uncertainty that flickers along with it with absolute pride and a sense of responsibility towards her body. She paid detailed attention and reported even the minutest of changes that were reflecting time and again. I remember her telling me – “Doc is God, so follow what he/she says.” Her recovery was backed by a systematic approach blended carefully with emotional healing. The problem with taking on a ‘cancer survivor’ identity is – there is sympathy aligned with it. I discard the word ‘survivor’, to be able to combat something as stifling as cancer, one needs to be called a ‘Conqueror’. Cancer Conqueror!”

For more details, check out my conversation with Inspirational Neerja Malik below-