Hello Phil,
A few months ago I wrote to you about my dear friend who was diagnosed with stage 4 lung cancer and how I had tried (long before her diagnosis) to help her switch from cigarettes to vaping, unsuccessfully. I’d like to share with you an update, and to echo my message – never, never give up trying…whether it be vaping to reduce harm and give up the smokes or holding onto positivity, when your life appears to be hanging by a thread.
Upon receiving the frightening news that she was very ill, my dear friend changed the way she lives her life – she gave up meat, dairy and eats only organic food (fortunately, she has an enormous vegetable garden). She meditates several times a day and practices restorative yoga. Keeping positive and not letting her mind fill with fear is an hourly struggle, something I don’t think anyone can truly relate to unless they’ve faced this kind of challenge. Some days she is exhausted simply from trying to live in the moment. But she doesn’t give up.
She received some uplifting news last week. The chemo and immunotherapy treatments are currently holding the disease at bay, she will be on maintenance treatments for now and will no longer need one of the chemo treatments…the one that makes her terribly sick. She has also gained 2 lbs – this may not sound like a lot of weight to gain but on her very tiny frame it is good news.
She’s by no means out of the woods but considering it’s been only 5 months since her diagnosis it appears something positive is happening. We’ve shared many tears during our visits but thankfully our latest visit was full of silliness and side-splitting laughter. I am grateful for every smile on her face, her honesty when sharing her experience and her appreciation for each moment of every day.
Some people may feel her diagnosis would encourage me to give up vaping. On the contrary, my reaction has been to raise my voice another octave with regards to educating anyone who will listen, about vaping as harm reduction. Recently, a friend (?)didn’t hesitate to share her surprise that I hadn’t given up vaping after receiving the news about my friend’s diagnosis. I responded by telling her if I gave up vaping I’d most likely be smoking again and why would I want to do the one thing that could put my health at risk?…again. I sent her some links and videos about vaping and to my surprise she responded positively and thanked me for educating her 👍.
I simply will not give up educating those who don’t understand vaping and how it has helped millions of people quit smoking and I continue to read as much as I can on the subject; to help me get the point across.
I truly believe vaping saves lives. Many thanks to you and Dimitris for your tireless efforts.
Cheers Phil,
Janine
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