Wellness Community Fights Cancer With an Attitude

“Keep a positive attitude! You can achieve your highest goals with the right kind of attitude.”

Mom and Dad drilled versions of these motivating words in our heads throughout our youth. At the time, we may not have understood the words’ power, but eventually we found ourselves saying, “I can do it” when we met a challenge.

With those words came a surge of confidence that help us set out not just to compete but to conquer. Maybe they can even cure.

Some people see a positive attitude as an effective tool in fighting cancer. The field of scientific knowledge called Psychoneuroimmunology, which acknowledges that positive feelings and positive emotions can help cancer patients, is embraced by the Wellness Community of Orange County.

The Wellness Community, which opened its doors in Santa Ana in August, 1990, is one of 11 offices throughout the United States. The Santa Monica office, where comedian Gilda Radner attended support groups until her death in 1989, serves as the national office.

Each of the offices offers cancer patients, their friends and families a comfortable atmosphere for finding support, hope, learning and friendship through various free programs, workshops and support groups.

“We are essentially here to support a person with cancer in their fight for recovery and we are an adjunct to conventional medical care,” says Barbara McKone, program director of the local center.

“As one participant put it: ‘The doctors take care of my body, but no one takes care of the inside.’ So that’s where the Wellness Community comes in--we take care of the inside, the emotional side and the social aspects.”

McKone says people with cancer have to face two fears: feeling alone and having to make critical decisions about their treatment.

“People with cancer experience the feeling of being alone even if they have a loving family and people around them. There is no one to understand what they are going through and they experience a total loss of control of their lives,” McKone says.

“Suddenly everyone around them is taking care of them and telling them what to do. Patients must undergo extensive treatment and (are) burdened with the job of making major decisions. No one else can make the decisions for them.”

The Wellness Community organizes a “sharing” group where cancer patients can talk about their personal feelings and exchange information on improving the quality of life. The meetings are run by “victors,” people whose cancer is in remission and who are learning to re-establish their lives.

A “participant” group is led by licensed psychotherapists, but, McKone stresses, “the group is the ‘group of experts.’ The facilitator is just there to guide and keep reminding them why they’re here and to give ideas on how to make the most of their group.”

The center provides free workshops on nutrition, exercise and networking groups that are open to anyone as well as discussion groups led by professionals in fields of interest to cancer patients.

“We have far exceeded the numbers of people we (thought we would be) serving,” says Vicki Goldish, executive director of the Wellness Community of Orange County. “We see 650 people a month.”

Since the people involved in the Wellness Community are great believers in laughter as part of the recovery process, they have organized a Comedy Evening fund-raiser at the Improv in Irvine for June 17. Comedians Paul Riser and Dennis Wolfberg will perform.

Last year’s fund-raiser netted $23,000 for the center, and “we hope to raise more than that this year,” says Goldish.

Tickets are available for $100 per person, which includes dinner.

For more information, contact the Wellness Community at (714) 258-1210 or visit the facility at 1924 E. Glenwood Place, Santa Ana.