Write this name on your hand
 

As most of you know, I have recently finished up six months of chemotherapy for non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. I was fortunate enough to be able to keep CrossFitting (scaled, with extra rest days) throughout. Even did 2 months of SS. Something which really helped me was knowing that there were CFers out there who wrote my name on their hand, then went out and gave it their all in a workout. We create a lot of fabulous energy when we workout, and I'm positive that these good vibes helped me when times were tough.

So I'd like to give something back.

I envision this thread as a place where anyone here can come and ask for the healing energy that CFers have to give. You can ask for it for yourself, for someone in your family, or for anyone else you wish. You can tell us the reason why this person needs healing energy, or you can simply tell us the person's name.

This is the commitment I will make. When a name is posted here, I will write that person's name on my hand and keep their struggle in mind as I do my next workout. I'll do it as long as I am able. Join me if you wish.

To start things out, please write my friend Diane's name on your hand. Diane recently had a mastectomy.

Re: Write this name on your hand
 

Robert,
Congrats on finishing up the chemo and champing through to the other side.

I've started to pass this thread on and will make a commitment for the same.

Re: Write this name on your hand
 

Crossfit for my girlfriends Uncle Mike. He had some type of cancer in his neck that they are afraid has spread into his brain. He goes in tomorrow for some scans to see how badly it has spread. Keep him in your thoughts, hearts, and prayers.

Re: Write this name on your hand
 

Mike and Diane on my hand, now off to see another girl named Elizabeth....

[QUOTE=Sean Kane;310309]Crossfit for my girlfriends Uncle Mike. He had some type of cancer in his neck that they are afraid has spread into his brain. He goes in tomorrow for some scans to see how badly it has spread. Keep him in your thoughts, hearts, and prayers.[/QUOTE]

Re: Write this name on your hand
 

Nice thread. Glad you are well.

Re: Write this name on your hand
 

It doesn't work unless you tattoo the name on your hand.

Re: Write this name on your hand
 

[QUOTE=Robert Olajos;310367]Mike and Diane on my hand, now off to see another girl named Elizabeth....[/QUOTE]

Thanks man, again great idea for a thread!

Re: Write this name on your hand
 

I'm fresh out of names to write on my hand for tomorrow's workout. Someone out there knows someone who needs some inspiration, needs some healing energy, needs a little CrossFit even if they're not a CFer.

Bring it on!

Re: Write this name on your hand
 

Robert,

My cousin's wife Shannon could use a few happy thoughts. She just lost her mother last Friday after a long battle with cancer. Five years ago (+/-) Shannon lost her father in a freak car crash- he was travelling next to a logging truck when a chain snapped and the logs fell on his car, killing him instantly. Shannon and my cousin Don are stand-up people.

Thanks, good luck, and stay safe!

Dan

Re: Write this name on your hand
 

Robert,

This is interesting. I am a bit confused, though. I ask these questions so that I can better understand your situation and for what you are asking.

Do the people (whose names are written on your hand) know that their names are written on your hand? Do they benefit from this? Do you benefit from this, and if so what are the benefits? When your name was written on someone else's hand, did you know about it at the time? Would you like describe how this helped you?

Re: Write this name on your hand
 

The people will only know if someone chooses to tell them. If they are told, great. If they are not told, I do not believe that this diminishes the impact.

Do they benefit? I benefited. Sometimes I knew and sometimes I didn't. Either way, I still benefited. That's all the proof I need. Some people pray, some do metta. I even had monks banging on gongs and chanting my name (apparently it's a hard one to chant). I didn't find out about that until well after the fact, and the monks made no effort to inform me that they were doing this for me. I didn't know any of them, but they found out about my situation through a friend of a friend....

Do I benefit from writing someone's name on my hand and sending out positive vibes to them? Yes, I do. You've heard the saying, "The more you give, the more you get." I don't chant. Writing names on my hand and doing the WOD is what I do. Sometimes you know when someone is praying/chanting/sweating for you, and sometimes you don't. Regardless, the impact is still there.

When I knew that people had my name written on their hands, it provided a huge morale boost. Even if I couldn't do a WOD because I was too sick, someone out there was doing one for me. But if I didn't know, the benefit was still there. If anyone chooses to think that the benefit only accrues when the beneficiary knows about it, I'm fine with that. I don't agree, but that's what makes the world go 'round.

By the way, I do hope that this will be a highly participatory thread. You can write these names on your hand too!

Shannon's on my hand and I'm off to do Michael.



[QUOTE=Joel Chapman;315609]Robert,

This is interesting. I am a bit confused, though. I ask these questions so that I can better understand your situation and for what you are asking.

Do the people (whose names are written on your hand) know that their names are written on your hand? Do they benefit from this? Do you benefit from this, and if so what are the benefits? When your name was written on someone else's hand, did you know about it at the time? Would you like describe how this helped you?[/QUOTE]

Re: Write this name on your hand
 

Thanks Robert. I have no names now, but will keep this in mind.

Re: Write this name on your hand
 

Robert,

My sister Cyndi had an emergency c-section on Mother's Day after being diagnosed with pre-eclampsia and HELLP syndrome. She was in ICU for 9 days with multiple serious consequences associated with the HELLP Syndrome. She was finally put in a regular hospital room last night, the issue is now she is in Acute Kidney Failure and on Dialysis. I would be honored if you wrote her name on your hand for your next workout! I will do the same!

(P.S. I was a GYN oncology nurse for 12 years before I opened my CrossFit Affiliate and admire you for being able to do CrossFit while on Chemo. . . that is TOUGH!)

Re: Write this name on your hand
 

Life is tough. CF is tough. CFers are tough. Cancer's just another tough thing to deal with.

Might have to do Cindy in honour of Cyndi today.

Re: Write this name on your hand
 

Robert great idea for a thread I hope it continues.

My 20yo neice JAYME is severely inflicted with cerebral palsy and has now been in the hospital for 4weeks for what was at first increased seizure activity, then pancreatitis, then gallstones. She's now at the UCD Medical Center undering multiple tests to try to determine what is causing her constant involuntary movements - so much movement that on ICU doc commented it's like she running a marathon and is afraid her heart will eventually fail. She's on sedatives, seizure meds and paralytics to keep her calm.

As many prayers and CF WOD's in her name will certainly send positive vibes her way. Thanks!

Re: Write this name on your hand
 

Nice thread! And nice tactic having the name on the hand while you go through the work out.

Re: Write this name on your hand
 

Bit of a bump....

Also to say that tomorrow's WOD I will have my Uncle Gerry's name on my hand. Gerry is in end stage pulmonary fibrosis. He's so central in my family that my wife danced the first dance (after me of course) at our wedding reception with him.

Keep the names coming!

Re: Write this name on your hand
 

I would like to add a name: Kristina Pineda. She is a good friend of mine who was just diagnosed with Breast Cancer. She turned 30 last week. Thanks for this Robert. I wish you the best of luck in your own recovery.

Re: Write this name on your hand
 

John A Chapman

[url]http://www.msc.navy.mil/N00P/Chapman/citation.pdf[/url]

Re: Write this name on your hand
 

Beverley (Bev) can use all the good vibes she can get

[url]http://bevenuti.blogspot.com/[/url]

Re: Write this name on your hand
 

Vicki

a friend of over 20 years and an avid shooter, passed away yesterday from widespread cancer. She was diagnosed only 5 weeks ago.

[URL="http://www.brianenos.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=68015&hl="]http://www.brianenos.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=68015&hl=[/URL] W/FS

Re: Write this name on your hand
 

I'm a bit behind, so will have a name on all 5 fingers for today's weighted pullups.

Vicki, Bev, John, Kristina and now [B]Shannon[/B]

My mom sends me names from time to time. Shannon is a distant cousin of mine.

I'm going to take some photos of my hand and send them to Shannon. I encourage you to do the same, take photos of your own hands and send them on to the people we're doing this for if you wish. Or send them the photo of my hand, when I post it here.

Here's what my mom wrote about Shannon:

"The next time you are doing a work-out, you can write Shannon's name on your hand. This gal needs some support and prayers. She was diagnosed with breast cancer back in the winter. Has had the breast removed and is now into the chemo process. Jeff and Shannon have 2 daughters - the eldest graduated Gr. 8 this year."

And this from Shannon's family:

"Well Shannon's Chemo treatments are now over half done. We went for #7 on June 24th. For the first 6 treatments we were in the Allan Blair Cancer Clinic for 2 hours being administered two drugs. For treatments #7 to 12 we started Paclitaxel, but we went into the Clinic at 8:00 a.m. and never started until 8:45. We left the hospital at 2:00p.m. It looks like this one drug has to be administered over 3 hours, but then there is the initial Benadryl (for allergies) and then a flush afterwards, so probably will be around 5 hours for each treatment.

Shannon has lost her hair and we have a wig - although she prefers to wear the head scarves. She does have her eyebrows still and her finger nails - you can lose your nails.

Around 2-3 days after this last chemo treatment, Shannon had bad leg and hip pain which lasted for more than two days. We called in and they said to take Tylenol, but that did not help. We called back and they said to take Motrin which seemed to help alleviate the pain. Then finally the pain went away, but Shannon's energy level was down quite a bit. Then starting Tuesday this week she wasn't breathing properly until today she couldn't take it anymore and we went to emergency. They took Shannon's blood pressure and it was very low 92 over 52. They got us in a room at emergency right away and then took x-rays. Shannon has pneumonia. They think it is in just one lung, but the doctor said she thought she heard something in the second They are keeping her in at the hospital with an IV and giving her blood thinners (for blood clots since she hasn't been very active recently) and anitibiotics. She is at the Pasqua hospital but doesn't want visitors, just your prayers."

Re: Write this name on your hand
 

Robert,

Congratulations both on being a cancer survivor and on using your experience to help others! You are an inspiration to me.

My son Joseph is also a cancer survivor. He was diagnosed at age 1 with myelodysplastic syndrome (similar to acute myelogenous leukemia), and underwent several months of chemotherapy in 2006 and 2007. Now by all objective measures he is cured, we believe prayer played a part in that.

This season Joseph was named the "Honored Teammate" by the Clear Lake Team in Training (Leukemia & Lymphoma Society fundraising organization,
[URL="http://www.teamintraining.org"]www.teamintraining.org[/URL] , [URL="http://www.lls.org"]www.lls.org [/URL]both wfs). We participate in their fundraisers, and I do the marathon training runs with them in my "Joseph" jersey with my son's photo(attached pic), to encourage the athletes who have dedicated themselves to helping others. I've been wondering if it would be possible to arrange a CF fundraiser as an alternative to the endurance events, just a thought...

Thanks for the positive thread! I will also have those mentioned here in my thoughts and prayers in my next workout.

Steven

Re: Write this name on your hand
 

What a cutie! It must be such a relief to see him running around now, I cannot even imagine.

Seen as he seems to be cured, I won't write Joseph's name on my hand, but will rather take inspiration from his successful battle and lump that on top of my energy to send on to the other five.

Re: Write this name on your hand
 

[QUOTE=Steven Novick;348711]I've been wondering if it would be possible to arrange a CF fundraiser as an alternative to the endurance events, just a thought...
[/QUOTE]

Sounds like you have a task ahead....

You do know about the [URL="http://athletes.kintera.org/faf/home/default.asp?ievent=186179"]CF FGB fundraiser[/URL]? (wfs)

Re: Write this name on your hand
 

Hi Robert,

I've been following this thread, and writing some names on my hand, too. Even though I'm a newbie, every bit helps! Congrats on your victory against cancer!!

Now I have a name of my own to add. My friend, Jana, was murdered last week. She was a champion of women and men, and always believed in keeping the body healthy. I think she would have liked crossfit!!

Re: Write this name on your hand
 

Thanks Robert,

I agree Joseph is a cute boy, he lost his hair too during chemo. Now mom won't let me take him for a haircut since his curls grew back.

I did see a notice about the FGB fundraiser for prostate cancer, another good cause. I don't yet know the history of the CF involvement, but will investigate.

I will have to contact the TNT and CF offices to see if there would be interest in a joint fundraising event for leukemia/lymphoma. If not, perhaps a "grassroots" project would be possible. I'll let you know what I find out. I think it's a reasonable question, I imagine as this thread continues, you will see there a lot of people in the CF community whose lives have been affected by blood cancers.

Along the same lines, this thread is of interest:
[URL="http://www.board.crossfit.com/showthread.php?t=34236"]http://www.board.crossfit.com/showthread.php?t=34236[/URL]

Other CFers are interested.

Steven

Re: Write this name on your hand
 

To Steven, Robert & everyone else posting on this thread:

You are all great people & have helped me start my Monday with strong motivation to work hard at CF and at my fundraising for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. Thank you! Getting personal with cancer survivors and those who are fighting through cancer puts everything into perspective and gives me the desire to keep working.

I will be checking this thread often and will deffinitely be writing some names on my hand. You guys & gals are hero's and are great examples of what is possible if you put your mind to it.

Re: Write this name on your hand
 

Robert,

Thanks for starting this thread, great idea. I'll be watching it and writing the names on my hand.

BTW, funny about your name being hard to chant. Was it the "Robert" or the "Olajos" they found difficult?

Best regards,

Re: Write this name on your hand
 

Great thread, Robert.
Jeff Hayes, who owns BTB Fitness (Crossfit box) here in Atlanta along with his wife Melissa, battled and beat Hodgkin's Lymphoma last year. Unfortunately, the cancer returned and he underwent a bone marrow transplant a few days ago. Please keep him in your thoughts. Thanks.

Re: Write this name on your hand
 

Cristin, thanks for the name. Will keep them in mind next workout.

Marco, AFAIK chanting "Bob Olajos" is difficult in that kinda monotone Buddhist way. Never tried it myself. But my name is kinda funny, spawning nicknames like Blahblahblah, Bubbaliscious and Bob Outrageous.:rofl:

Must drop by that Zen centre and say thanks.

Re: Write this name on your hand
 

Bob,

Thanks for the reply about the name, that's funny.

Folks,

My friend Tina developed cancer last year which may have spread to her spine and brain. I would appreciate it if some folks could join me writing her name on their hands for a workout.

Thanks.

Re: Write this name on your hand
 

Laurie Yeh, wife of Allen Yeh (Allen hangs out at Performance Menu)

Laurie has been diagnosed with
* Chiari Malformation
* Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome
* Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome
* Syringomyelia

[URL="http://laurieyeh.blogspot.com/"]http://laurieyeh.blogspot.com/[COLOR=Red][B]PLEASE ENSURE YOU ANNOTATE ALL LINKS WHETHER WORK AND FAMILY SAFE.[/B][/COLOR][/URL]

Re: Write this name on your hand
 

Thanks to everyone's help, we raised over $4,200 for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. Kudos and good karma to everyone who was able to contribute (and to all Crossfitters for that matter).

Please keep my wife's aunt, Christy Joyce, in your thoughts and prayers as she was just recently diagnosed with myeloma.

The Big Kahuna Tri I have been training for with Team In Training is this Sunday. I will push through and work hard on behalf of all cancer survivors and those currently battling cancer.

Thanks everyone for your support.

Travis

Re: Write this name on your hand
 

Sorry to pull this one up and make a request as I haven't posted a whole lot on here...

But my wife is going back for a follow up today with Dr....she hasn't been feeling well, and they found some lumps they need to check out. Doctor says not to worry, but her words didn't match the vibe I was getting from her...and there is a history of breast cancer in my wifes family.

I covet any prayers and good wishes you can send her way, and encouragement that this community provides in every thread.

Stina (Christina) if you want to write it on your hand.

Re: Write this name on your hand
 

[QUOTE=Nic Dawson;401456]Sorry to pull this one up and make a request as I haven't posted a whole lot on here...
[/QUOTE]

We don't care how many times you've posted here, or how old this thread becomes.

Best of luck to Stina, and consider your request fulfilled.

Re: Write this name on your hand
 

[QUOTE=Alicia Zhuang;388242]Laurie Yeh, wife of Allen Yeh (Allen hangs out at Performance Menu)

Laurie has been diagnosed with
* Chiari Malformation
* Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome
* Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome
* Syringomyelia

[url]http://laurieyeh.blogspot.com/[/url][/QUOTE]

What a story and a brave woman. I can't even contemplate enduring what she's been through--especially with the kids.

Let's all take a moment to be thankful for our health.

Re: Write this name on your hand
 

I will dedicate a workout to Gayle's Grandmother -
[URL="http://www.board.crossfit.com/showthread.php?p=466697#post466697"]http://www.board.crossfit.com/showthread.php?p=466697#post466697[/URL](WFS)

Re: Write this name on your hand
 

My dad starts chemotherapy tomorrow for lung cancer. His name is Bob. I'm going to TX is help him through it on Saturday.

Thanks. I'm glad I found this thread tonight.

Re: Write this name on your hand
 

My mom survived cancer - still kicking after 20+ years (non-Hodgkin's lymphoma.) She went to M.D. Anderson....

It is a rough battle. As they hooked up the chemo to her aortic catheter, my mom said, "TAKE THAT, YOU G#@ D@#N CANCER CELLS!!!" That was the attitude she maintained throughout the process. After she was released as a patient, her Dr. said, "You had a 2% chance for survival of over 2 years past diagnosis."

I'll give Bob a nod next workout!