Bob Ellal knows a lot about Survivorship – I dare to say he is an expert. Diagnosed with Stage 4 non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma in 1991 and given six months to live, Bob Ellal read everything he could about cancer survivors. He practised visualisation and breathing techniques along with his treatment. At the end of 6 months, against all odds, he was cancer free; but over the following five years the lymphoma would return three more times. His treatment; double doses of CHOP (chemotherapy) was targeted at the disease that returned in his pelvis and fractured hip. Remission. Then another recurrence in his shoulder and a stem-cell transplant. Bob found Qigong and used it to successfully add to his survival strategies ‘tool-kit’. Remission again and recurrence; a second transplant was required. Throughout his crisis Qigong became his focus – the perfect partner for Bob helping him to withstand the side effects of drastic treatments, allowing him to gain resilience, calm strength and centredness. He persevered and found authentic hope in the combination of the best conventional medicine had to offer and what he could do to help his body, mind and spirit to survive and thrive.
Bob Ellal is a true Survivor and his story and writings come from a place of deep wounding that has been transformed into a way of mindful living based on Martial Arts principals.
As time went on Bob committed himself to the practice going more deeply into the mind/body connection – he trained with a Boston kung-fu master in the art of Qigong. Bob’s Doctors gave him a 10% chance of survival. He immersed himself in a disciplined daily practice of Qigong. Against all odds, he finally beat the disease in 1996.
He’s been cancer-free for 17 years and continues to practice Qigong. In his working life Bob was writer/editor for a division of a major publisher and now works as a freelancer. In addition to co authoring Energy Warriors: Overcoming Cancer and Crisis with the Power of Qigong, he is completing his second book, The Leavings of the Wolf, a collection of short stories about the real-world challenges of cancer survivors.
Bob is co author of “Energy Warriors – Overcoming cancer and Crisis with the power of Qigong” I interviewed him recently on my Voice America radio show:
http://www.voiceamerica.com/episode/69039/navigating-the-cancer-maze-grace-gawler-and-bob-ellal-energy-warriors-and-the-role-of-qigong-in
Visit Bob’s website for more info/articles: http://www.bobellal.com
Visit Master Lawrence Tan’s website: http://www.tandao.com/energy-warriors/
Qigong in the news: This week I also discovered a newly published study that found that the practise of Qigong reduced symptoms of depression and improved quality of life in women undergoing radiotherapy for breast cancer reports Lorenzo Cohen, PhD, professor of General Oncology and Behavioral Science at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center and director of its Integrative Medicine Program, and a co-author of the study.1 Continue reading “How Qigong helped Bob Ellal survive stage 4 lymphoma – Energy Warriors on Voice America with Grace Gawler”