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Recently Ivelisse Page was interviewed by Go Solo. That article is copied below, original source can be viewed here >

Interested in starting your own journey in a non-profit organization, but not sure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Ivelisse Page, co-founder of Believe Big in Colorado, USA.

Tell us about your organization…

It is our mission to help families face, fight, and overcome cancer. We do this by educating individuals on a comprehensive approach to cancer prevention and treatment. We help connect patients with physicians trained in mistletoe therapy, oncology nutritionists, and the resources necessary to allow them to advocate for their health. We provide spiritual and emotional support to help patients and their families overcome fear and anxiety. Lastly, we plan to overcome cancer with The Believe Big Institute of Health and support the ongoing phases of the Mistletoe Clinical Trial in collaboration with The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine.

How did you get started? What is your motivation?

After facing, fighting, and overcoming stage IV colon cancer, I wanted to reach out to other patients facing the many challenges I encountered through my cancer journey. After assembling a team of doctors and accumulating extensive research, my husband and I established Believe Big in 2011 to help families bridge the gap between conventional and complementary medicine for treating cancer.

What’s your biggest accomplishment so far?

My most significant gift in what I do is bringing hope to those feeling hopeless in their cancer diagnosis. I have witnessed in the lives of hundreds of patients that Believe Big helps not only quality of life but also quantity of life.

What’s one of the hardest things that you’ve faced with your organization?

One of the biggest challenges we face is to continue to meet the funding needs of our organization. The number of those diagnosed with cancer continues to grow, and thus the need for our help grows. All of our resources are free to patients that contact us, and at times it can be challenging to meet all of the funding needs of our programs. I am grateful that we have been able to help every patient that has reached out to Believe Big due to our faithful donors. Just last year, we impacted over 170,000 individuals.

What are the top tips you’d give to anyone looking to start, run and grow an organization today?

To someone starting, I would advise them to know their why, share stories, and engage with other businesses and organizations for support. Your why will carry you through the difficult days and help you be creative when things are hard. The stories you share of the lives you impact each day build loyalty and inspire others to know their donations or support make a difference. Lastly, engaging with an organization or business five years out from you can help you maximize your efforts and energy.

Is there anything else you’d like to share?

In the days ahead, when you are facing seemingly impossible challenges, remember that God can turn your adversity into victory, your obstacles into opportunities, and your problems into possibilities.

Where can people find you and your organization?

Website: https://www.believebig.org/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/believebig/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/believebig
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UChM9CgletyS8WEq5FNoV3MA

If you like what you’ve read here and have your own solopreneur story that you’d like to share then email community@subkit.com, we’d love to feature your journey on these pages.

Feel inspired to start, run or grow your own subscription business? Check out subkit.com and learn how you can turn “one day” into day one.

Red, White and Blue Summer Salad

Recipe Credit: Green Light Bites

Ingredients

3-4 cups of fresh romaine lettuce, organic, cleaned and torn (you can use the bagged lettuce)

About ½ cup fresh blueberries, organic

About ½ cup fresh strawberries, organic, cut into small chunks

1 oz. (28 g) crumbled feta cheese

1 tbsp dressing (recipe below)

Instructions

Wash and prepare all your ingredients.  Top the greens with the berries and cheese.

Drizzle on the dressing (recipe below)

Lemon Poppy Seed Dressing

¼ cup olive oil

¼ cup of lemon juice

2 tbsp honey

1 tsp Dijon mustard

1 tsp poppy seeds

½ tsp onion powder

¼ tsp kosher salt

¼ tsp fresh ground pepper

Whisk all ingredients together.

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Red, White and Blue BERRY Smoothie

Recipe Credit: Super Healthy Kids

Ingredients

2 cups strawberries, frozen, organic

1 cup raspberries, frozen, organic

1 tablespoon honey

2 medium bananas, green-tipped, frozen

2 cups blueberries, frozen, organic

1 ¼ cups almond milk, unsweetened

2 tablespoons flaxseed, ground

Low glycemic fruits in this recipe, means lower sugar

Instructions

If you do not want the separate layers, just blend everything together at once in a high-powdered blender.

If you DO want to make the layers, start by blending the red layer ingredients together. Pour into individual glasses, about 1/3 full. Set glasses in freezer for 10 minutes.

Rinse out the blender jar to remove any remaining red layer mixture. Then, add your white layer ingredients.  Blend until smooth.  Pour the white layer over the frozen red layer, fulling about 2/3 full.  Set glasses back in the freezer for 15 minutes.

Rinse out the blender jar to remove any remaining white layer mixture.  Then add your blue layer ingredients.  Blend until smooth.  Pour the blue layer over the frozen white layer, filling to the top.

Serve with a straw.

RED: frozen organic strawberries, raspberries and a bit of honey (can use coconut water to loosen it if needed).

WHITE:  frozen bananas, unsweetened vanilla almond milk (but any milk will work) and a few ice cubes

BLUE:  frozen organic blueberries, unsweetened vanilla almond milk, and ground flax.

Panache and Believe Big – Maru Fava – Believe Big Volunteer

By: Caitlin RogersPosted at 1:36 PM, May 20, 2020

She Inspires is a new initiative from the boutiques at Green Spring Station who are giving back to women and non-profits that inspire them. Panache is a premier women’s fashion boutique specializing in high quality merchandise and impeccable style.

The owner’s sister in law is a two time cancer survivor. Believe Big is a non-profit organization that bridges the gap between conventional treatments like chemotherapy and surgery and complementary treatments like nutrition, acupuncture, and spiritual wellness.

Believe Big was invited to attend the SIO Conference in New York City this past weekend! We were able to connect with top physicians who specialize in integrative oncology from all over the world, discuss options for our phase 2 mistletoe clinical trial, be filmed for Dr. Kelly Turners new documentary (coming out in March) on healing, make connections with companies that have products and resources for the patients we serve, and meet with the Believe Big Institute of Health team to outline our next steps to bring integrative oncology and wellness care in a research and data driven residential center!

Learning to Relax When Coping with Cancer

Original Source: https://www.cancer.gov/about-cancer/coping/feelings/relaxation

Many people with cancer have found that doing relaxation or imagery exercises has helped them cope with pain and stress.

Take the time to learn helpful relaxation skills, such as the ones below, and practice them when you can. You can also take a class, buy a relaxation DVD or CD, or find other exercises online.

Getting Started

For each exercise, find a quiet place where you can rest undisturbed. Let others know you need time for yourself. Make the setting peaceful for you. For example, dim the lights and find a comfortable chair or couch.

You may find that your mind wanders, which is normal. When you notice yourself thinking of something else, gently direct your attention back to your body. Be sure to maintain your deep breathing.

Some people like to listen to slow, familiar music while they practice these exercises.

Breathing and Muscle Tensing

• Get into a comfortable position where you can relax your muscles. Close your eyes and clear your mind of distractions. You can sit up or lie down. If you’re lying down, you may want to put a small pillow under your neck and knees.
• Breathe deeply, at a slow and relaxing pace. Concentrate on breathing deeply and slowly, raising your belly with each breath, rather than just your chest.
• Next, go through each of your major muscle groups, tensing (squeezing) them for a few seconds and then letting go. Start at the top of your head and work your way down. Tense and relax your face and jaws, then shoulders and arms.
• Continue tensing and relaxing each muscle group as you go down (chest, lower back, buttocks, legs), ending with your feet. Focus completely on releasing all the tension from your muscles and notice the differences you feel when they are relaxed.
• When you are done, focus on the pleasant feeling of relaxation for as long as you like.

Slow Rhythmic Breathing

• Stare at an object or shut your eyes and think of a peaceful scene. Take a slow, deep breath.
• As you breathe in, tense your muscles. As you breathe out, relax your muscles and feel the tension leaving.
• Remain relaxed and begin breathing slowly and comfortably, taking about 9 to 12 breaths a minute. To maintain a slow, even rhythm, you can silently say to yourself, “In, one, two. Out, one, two.”
• If you ever feel out of breath, take a deep breath, and continue the slow breathing.
• Each time you breathe out, feel yourself relaxing and going limp. Continue the slow, rhythmic breathing for up to 10 minutes.
• To end the session, count silently and slowly from one to three. Open your eyes. Say to yourself, “I feel alert and relaxed.” Begin moving slowly.

Imagery

Imagery usually works best with your eyes closed. To begin, create an image in your mind. For example, you may want to think of a place or activity that made you happy in the past. Explore this place or activity. Notice how calm you feel.

If you have severe pain, you may imagine yourself as a person without pain. In your image, cut the wires that send pain signals from one part of your body to another. Or you may want to imagine a ball of healing energy. Others have found the following exercise to be very helpful:

• Close your eyes and breathe slowly. As you breathe in, say silently and slowly to yourself, “In, one, two,” and as you breathe out, say “Out, one, two.” Do this for a few minutes.
• Imagine a ball of healing energy forming in your lungs or on your chest. Imagine it forming and taking shape.
• When you’re ready, imagine that the air you breathe in blows this ball of energy to the area where you feel pain. Once there, the ball heals and relaxes you. You may imagine that the ball gets bigger and bigger as it takes away more of your discomfort.
• As you breathe out, imagine the air blowing the ball away from your body. As it floats away, all of your pain goes with it.
• Repeat the last two steps each time you breathe in and out.

To end the imagery, count slowly to three, breathe in deeply, open your eyes, and say silently to yourself, “I feel alert and relaxed.”