Wellness Within in Roseville, California is a nonprofit wellness center for patients, survivors, caregivers, and families affected by the trauma, stress, and anxiety brought on by cancer.
We want to provide serenity and support for all cancer patients and their families during and after treatment. We provide a wide range of services that enhance an individual’s ability to experience quality of life through practices that incorporate physical, emotional, and mental well-being. We encourage incorporating vitality, joy, and acceptance into everyday life, even when dealing with cancer.
We offer more than a dozen programs in the fields of Meditation & Mindfulness, Healing Movement, Nutrition & Cooking and Expressive Arts. A resource library, various group meetings, individual counseling and retreats also provide opportunities for clients to connect and gain support. All classes and workshops are led by a dedicated staff of experts determined to provide a supportive and healing environment.
Our classes are provided at no charge.
Jasper: A digital app for your cancer care Jasper is an app that supports people affected by cancer and their caregivers. Jasper helps:
Jasper is available to all clients of our community to help organize and manage the logistics of cancer care. Sign up for free and learn more by clicking the link below.
|
---|
In 2009, the call many of you may have given or received occurred. I will always remember. It was your typical day, multi-tasking, checking off the list, forgetting to breathe — you know, just “living.” I breathlessly answered the call, “Hey I’m heading out the door. I only have a few minutes, what’s up?”
“Patti, I have cancer.”
That word just hung there … cancer?!
You know that moment when you have ‘had-it-up-to-here’ with whatever issue keeps presenting itself in your life? It was happening. I had witnessed too many people I care about inflicted with this heartbreaking disease. Now, with my dear friend of 40 years facing the diagnosis, I was ready to take action.
Many of you who have survived this dreadful ordeal know “it” doesn’t end when your treatment stops. A residual ensues for many months, even years after treatment. “Life altering” can be an understatement during and after treatment. Cancer invades, turns lives upside down, raises all kinds of havoc. The financial burdens can be devastating. Although great strides have been made in finding more effective treatments in SOME cancers, its wrath is relentless, causing much disruption in the lives of our loved ones.
It was time. Thus, Wellness Within was born.
Here at Wellness Within we won’t find a cure or raise money to find a cure; rather, we are in the trenches with people as they navigate all the assaults on their mind, body and spirit. We wrap our hearts, expertise, support and love around each client who steps through our doors. We understand the larger impact of what having a cancer diagnosis means for each individual. We know the whole person is affected. Thus, our mission is to offer tools that speak to the needs of each individual, to restore healing and instill hope.
We are grateful for all those who have stood with us, believe in the importance of our work and continue to be generous with their donations and time. Thank you from the heart.
Patti Brown, Founder & Executive Director
Pause-worthy Ponderings, March, 2024:
During your day, do you notice moments which fill you with awe, like the sun bursting through storm clouds, or the pure joy streaking across the face of a child learning to ride a bike? Could it be that being present to live these moments of awe add up – little “whys” that, when we notice them, make life vibrant, instilling gratitude, regardless of the larger circumstances of life?
These accumulated “little whys” of life, in addition to cultivating our bigger why – our authentic purpose in life – is a theme of Dr. Viktor Frankl in Man’s Search for Meaning. Dr. Frankl’s book provides insight to how we have the power to choose how we react and respond to situations, and how these choices make a difference in how we emerge through challenging situations. On a recent podcast release, called Cultivating Meaning and Resilience in Cancer Survivorship, Wellness Within Founder Patti Brown and Dr. Samantha Seigel, MD, further discuss recognizing and making choices in mindset, and how the power of defining and recognizing “whys” is so important in cancer care. (You can access that podcast HERE.)
Both Frankl’s work and the Wellness Within podcast had me asking, what are the “whys” of Wellness Within? Wellness Within is comprised of a small team of staff, board members, instructors, volunteers, donors, sponsors, community health workers and clients. In short, YOU. Everyone comes together, passionate, hard-working, and driven towards improving the lives of those impacted by the trauma of cancer and enhancing quality of life for each individual. This is the Wellness Within mission, and it is indeed the ‘big picture’ why.
But when we intentionally journey through the everyday by living the Wellness Within motto – Pause. Breathe. Proceed. – we can be repeatedly met with multiple “little whys”. When I witness an individual enter Wellness Within reserved, overwhelmed, and anxious, but then leave the center engaged, with more lightness and joy, I recognize my own internal shift, and I take note of this “why”. When I hear a burst of laughter from the center’s studio, I also feel a “why”. When I read an email from a client about how they navigated the rest of their day after a class, feeling restored and able to face that which presented itself throughout their day, my own heart lightens, and I smile. The “little whys” stack up, and I begin to realize I am feeling fulfilled.
Many stakeholders and virtually every grant we apply for asks, “how do you measure success?” Certainly, Wellness Within staff captures and analyzes plenty of data. We have key performance indicators. We administer surveys. We conduct trend analysis. This information, while important for any business, is simply what it is – metrics and datapoints. To me, at the end of the day, I measure success by the feeling I get when I see we are achieving our “big why” – our mission, our purpose – by accumulating the “little whys” we witness as we make a difference in the lives of each individual, one person at a time.
As you journey through your day today, I invite you to take moments to Pause. Breathe. Proceed. When your body sings at the awe and beauty of birdsong, perhaps ask yourself, is that a “little why”? When sitting in traffic, perhaps glance at the light through the trees, noticing the sway of the leaves in the wind, their diverse colors, which when all combined create the most perfect and unique pallet of colors. That ‘color pallet’ may not be there tomorrow, or even in 5 minutes. The transitory reality of life makes each moment we notice – really notice – even more a gift to behold. Upon witnessing, perhaps again ask, is this a “little why”?
Within each of us is something unique, something to which we have been called by the world to provide. Today, maybe all that is required is to silence society’s demands and pressures and to honor that which is within. Truly, living with Wellness Within. Pausing, Breathing, before Proceeding, and recognizing and embracing our “whys” regardless of how passing, fleeting or “little” they may seem.
Wishing you peace,
Elizabeth Klein
Executive Director
|
|||||
Shortly after I was diagnosed with cancer, I found Wellness Within, a welcoming, caring and comforting haven, and the many resources offered. It’s caring staff has helped me heal and transformed the way I take care of my mind and body in a positive way. The nutritional education classes given by Diane Giuliani have been an important part of the many wonderful benefits I have received. I have gained knowledge about nutritious food, delicious recipes and other related ways to stay healthy in my daily life. She is dedicated to helping us achieve wellness through healthy eating and diet. Diane has done a tremendous amount of research and makes it available to Wellness clients, so that we can spend our time concentrating on navigating our medical issues and recovering, when we are so overwhelmed. She also empowers us by showing us where to find more information, giving us confidence in making decisions about our individual needs and diet. I am so grateful for Diane’s genuinely caring nature and the knowledge she shares.
I would encourage others to attend her classes and to enjoy the delicious dishes and snacks she prepares for us to sample.
Kathy Maxwell
I was thoroughly impressed at the quality of this retreat. The program, the speakers, the yoga and Patti were absolutely top notch! I am very hard to please so these words hold a lot of weight.
I found the exercises that Patti led were eye opening to me and directed my inner thoughts towards positivity.
The program was 4 days of concentrated, high quality, well-paced meetings that achieved real results.
I liked that we were away in a beautiful setting and could just concentrate our time and thoughts to self healing.
It was so great to have commonality with other cancer survivors and those in current treatment.
They know what it’s like to have cancer and being scared and chemo and radiation suffering side effects.
The program helped me identify my strengths and identify what is important in my life. And, don’t waste precious time on the past which you can’t change.
Thank you so much for this program!
Pat Merenda
609 Oak Street
Roseville, California 95678
www.wellnesswithin.org
[email protected]
(916) 788-0333
Leave a Reply