Straight from the heart

Straight from the #heart.

I write this post as #Caregiver to a #cancer #victor - my wife - Ruby Ahluwalia  and the #challenges we faced during her long drawn treatment and recovery thereafter.

Thru this post, firstly, I wish to congratulate UICC - Union for International Cancer Control  World Health Organization (WHO) United Nations  for choosing this years theme as CLOSE THE CARE GAP, thus bringing this element out in the open.

#CloseTheCareGap .

Fight against cancer is not just #chemotheraphy #radiothetaphy and #surgery. 

Of course #medical #treatment is #crucial but so is addressing all fronts that cancer opens up for patients and their families. 

They need a lot of help to cope up with #emotional, #financial, #physical stresses, #lack of #rehabilitation avenues besides #social #ostracism based on myths. 

Post treatment, they can't be left as #outcasts and non-productive #liabilities . 

It is our #collective #responsibility to provide proper #psychosocial #support and #rehabilitation to them so that they can live a productive life thereby contributing to the national #GDP.

As a caregiver, whilst I was grateful to experience excellent medical support, much was lacking on all other fronts. 

I am grateful to the Government of India for charting a roadmap to make medical treatment more inclusive by opening more super speciality cancer hospitals. Thank you PM Narendra Modi ji for his vision.

However, there is very little focus on augmenting awareness, preventive, psychosocial support and rehabilitation initiatives for this huge population facing cancer / after effects of cancer.

Our personal struggles and learnings led to formation of non-profit Sanjeevani-Life Beyond Cancer in 2012. 

Sanjeevani Life Beyond Cancer has been relentlessly pursuing the dream to fill the gaps thru its various programs. Over 350000 lives have already been enriched during this journey 10 years ..more needs to be done.

Today the entire team at #SanjeevaniLifeBeyondCancer has pledged to redouble our efforts on being there for cancer patients and close as many gaps for them, as possible.

#WorldCancerDay is an international day marked on 4 February to raise awareness on cancer and encourage its prevention, detection, and treatment. 

World Cancer Day is led by the Union for International Cancer Control (#UICC) to support the goals of the World Cancer Declaration, written in 2008. 

Cancer is a huge challenge and needs #collective action on part of all of us. 

Urge all to act. Firstly look at our & our loved ones #lifestyles - so that we dont fall prey to cancer. That itself will stem the tide. Thank you.

Sanjeevani Life Beyond Cancer, is there to assist, thru various handholding, awareness, prevention and holistic healing programs as in the short video

Sanjeevani Programs and Impact

To know more you are welcome to visit our website www.sanjeevani-lifebeyondcancer.com or call our Helplines - 8691000800 / 8691000801.

Wishing all my friends the best of life and everything.

Fragrance Of A Wild Soul

Fragrance of A Wild Soul

BG Conversation, one of the great initiatives by the Bombay Gymkhana Literary Committee, hosted by the club on 6^th February 2020 was a houseful event.

The conversation that evening, between author Ruby Ahluwalia, IRAS, a member of the club and Bombay Gymkhana's Literary Secretary Reena Agarwal was around the book ‘Fragrance Of A Wild Soul’.

Ruby Ahluwalia, a bureaucrat with a wandering, adventurous spirit, had it all — a successful career, a happy, supportive family and a creative and analytical mind. A pro-multitasker, she was juggling her time and energies to be a super professional, a super mom, a super wife and a super daughter. Little did she realize that in this process, she was becoming a ‘below average her’.

Ruby is a Life Coach and a prolific speaker on Holistic healing. She is the Founder of Sanjeevani Life Beyond Cancer and has worked with more than 2 lakh patients across India through the narrative of Integrated Cancer care.

Fragrance of A Wild Soul is her personal journey — a story of self-exploration — which led her to answers that lay in the patterns of human behaviour. The book captures the author’s spiritual quest, introspection and reflection. It explores the causes for upheavals in our lives and turning our catastrophic experiences into opportunities and living life to the fullest.

Reena started the conversation by sharing “I knew nothing about the book and hence was skeptical about having this conversation. I started the book on my way to Goa and got so engrossed that I finished the book in flat 4 hours.”

This sentiment has been echoed by many readers. In fact a couple say that the story as narrated in the book “is un-pu-downable”

Responding to Reena on how Ruby felt on learning that she had with cancer, Ruby quipped “I was very annoyed. Most people when diagnosed with an advanced stage of cancer become sad, fearful and depressed. But I, with the diagnosis, was angry. I was annoyed at myself that such a huge tumor was forming inside my body and I did not even get to know. My whole being had cheated on me, conspired against me, I felt.”

As the conversations grew if became evident that the book is not about only about Ruby’s journey with cancer. It is about her journey in life from a six year old to now. A racy narrative that keeps the reader engaged.

The importance of a positive mindset during treatment was discussed and responding to a members query, Dr Rustom Mody chipped it to explain the nocebo affect “A nocebo effect is said to occur when negative expectations of the patient regarding a treatment cause the treatment to have a more negative effect than it otherwise would have.” 

Here is what some of the readers have to say:

“The book ‘Fragrance Of A Wild Soul’ is truly unputdownable. I read it in a single sitting…. There is not one of us who has not experienced cancer directly or indirectly. Her book is truly inspirational. You have to read the book to fully understand when she writes “All we need to do to heal a wound, to close an open chapter in life, to end misery, to get over a bad experience – is a silent but active listening and a little bit of empathy in the end.’” says Dolly Thakore, Veteran Theatre actress and casting director, who attended the conversation.

“Read the book in one go! You have penned your experiences and feelings so simply, yet is sounds so profound. Coming straight from your heart to the reader’s! Connecting the soul, heart and body and explaining bonding of the three. … Your book will definitely encourage many to shed the weight of their own unnecessary baggage and live a more fulfilled and complete life.” says Pinky Thakker, Trustee of Adore Charities.

“I lost my mother to cancer 20 years ago. I stayed away from any conversation or even any article on cancer as it troubled me bringing back some painful memories. … Last night after dinner, I don’t know why, I picked up the book and started reading this 180 pager till the end in one go. … What an outstanding story! A perfect mix of all emotions – humour, empathy, anger, love and much more. For me, Ruby’s story is inspirational not because she survived a life threatening disease but because I could connect her story to so many Rubys I know. … Her story is our story on so many counts.” says Mitu Samar Jha, Reputation Management specialist and Founder of Eminence Consulting.

“Ruby … read the book. You are awesome and adorable. … This book will be one of the most precious books in my collection. Request every one to read this book. Many congratulations and God bless you.” says Dr Santanu Chaudhari, eminent Oncologist and Chairman, Centre of Excellence for Oncology (Cancer), Nayati Healthcare.

“Liberation does not come easy. Just finished reading the book. It is a beautiful collage of emotions and experiences of the author. Very poignant at places and racy and thrilling…. I fully endorse the new narrative of life and a message of self liberation that she advocates and wish all my close friends to reach that stage of liberation. For that to happen, the book becomes a must read.” says Ranjanesh Sahay, IRAS

Ruby has pledged part of the royalties from the book for her charity and urged all members to enjoy the book and if they like it buy and gift to their friends and contacts.

Each copy sold adds to Sanjeevani's corpus. 

The book can be ordered from Amazon, Flipkart and Notion Press.

The author Ruby Ahluwalia is a senior bureaucrat presently posted in Mumbai, where she lives with her husband, son and daughter.

She can be contacted on wildsoul@sanjeevani-lifebeyondcancer.com

We need to talk.

We need to talk.

One Sunday afternoon in June 2009,while having lunch, my better half, Ruby Ahluwalia made a small remark "we need to talk, there is something I have to share".

We had our lunch and true to her sunday afternoon ritual, she went for her afternoon beauty sleep. 

I picked up an old book and settled down. 

'We need to talk' was forgotten.

Post dinner, during our customary walk, she again said 'we need to talk'.

Now that sounded ominous. 

Fearing that I had screwed up again, I do this quite frequently and with reliable periodicity, I braced myself for another round of solid emotional downsizing.

'Looks like I have a lump in my left breast' she said and left it at that.

Thank God. Was that all. 

I was quite relieved.

Time past by. Monsoon was at its peak. Monsoon brings out the best in Mumbai. All washed up. I love mumbaiya monsoon and for me that is the best time of the year.

That also is the time of year when one moves jobs. I had been chosen to lead my organizations flagship loyalty program for entire the Western India. I was quite ecstatic. The role was just what I loved doing and got totally immersed in my responsibilities.

‘We need to talk’ was forgotten.

A fortnight later Ruby mentioned in the passing that she had discussed the lump with our family doctor and that the doctor recommended we go in for a mammogram, ASAP.

Mammogram, what the hell????
We went for it and the rest is history.

3 years later, Sanjeevani Life Beyond Cancer was born.