LAKSHMI
Lakshmi’s story.
By Vidya Murlidhar
This is a story about an ordinary woman with extraordinary strength. Just like so many of us, Lakshmi lived the regular immigrant life in the US. She and her husband held tech jobs and were settled in a suburb of Chicago since 2002. They had two little girls whom they wished the best for and in 2015, they decided to relocate to a better school district. It was a stressful time for the family. There was much work to be done as they put their old house on the market and moved into the new one.
One of those frigid days in February, Lakshmi felt a lump in her right breast. She immediately dismissed it as being serious. ‘Maybe a result of all the stress. It will go away on its own’ she thought. It didn’t, so in a couple of weeks, she visited her gynecologist who said it was probably nothing to worry about but advised her to get an ultrasound all the same. Lakshmi delayed going to the radiologist. Other things took priority with the move. This would have to wait. In April 2015, a couple of months after discovering the lump, when she finally went for the ultrasound, the technician suspected it was serious. She was immediately referred for a mammogram.
The mammogram revealed that the lump was indeed suspicious and further biopsy confirmed that it was stage 2 HER positive cancer. The cancer had spread to the lymph nodes. Not one to be deterred easily, Lakshmi faced this storm in her life with bravado. She underwent six cycles of chemotherapy, a lumpectomy and 10 cycles of targeted medicine. Enough to shake anyone but not her. She did not let any negativity cloud her thinking. The results of the treatment were very promising. By May 2016, she was declared cancer free.
Life returned back to normal for the family after a brief interlude of turbulence. Even though Lakshmi was not religious, and did not have much belief in rituals, she was grateful for having beaten the disease and for the stoic and steely family she was blessed with. Her immediate and extended family were her pillars of strength She dove back into her day to day activities with vigor.
All was well for a couple of years. Then, in Jan. 2018, Lakshmi developed a mild cough that persisted. Subsequent visits to the doctor and further tests revealed tumors and lesions in the lungs and bones. The cancer had come back with a vengeance. Again, she had to undergo six cycles of chemotherapy and this time she was put on targeted medication for the rest of her life.
This time again her treatment was very successful, and the tumors completely cleared. But, she would have to continue taking the targeted medicine forever and get a scan done every three months. Once again, she went back to leading a normal life. Unfortunately, her body soon developed resistance to the medicine and a scan in January 2019 showed a 3 cm tumor growing in her lungs and the presence of very tiny lesions in her brain. The doctors changed the medication hoping it would work. After 3 months though, they discovered that it didn’t. There were a few more lesions in her brain. Lakshmi was completely disillusioned. Why was this happening? She had battled the disease bravely up until now, yet it seemed to grasp her in its tight claws, not letting go.
Around this time, Lakshmi’s sister-in-law Dr. Harini introduced her to Dr. Neelima, who in turn introduced her to Babaji’s meditation. She began to attend a forum in Chicago, albeit not regularly at first. She was tough at heart, but she was also a sceptic and it was not easy for her to believe that the healing lay in her own hands. Was Durga Saptasathi really that powerful? Could meditation and chanting cure her completely? She was a little unsure about this. Though off and on, as per Babaji’s instructions at a forum she started to visualize a bright light enveloping her. Dr. Neelima spoke to her often and continued to guide and support her.
One of these days she heard of a forum closer to where she lived and regularly began to attend it every week. One afternoon, while listening to Babaji’s guided meditation on visualizing one’s own healing, she felt a powerful stirring. As she mentally scanned her own body and perfused it with light, a tremendous belief that her healing was in her own power rose within her. Suddenly, all her fear vanished. She was convinced that if she so decided, she could beat the disease.
Lakshmi began to meditate regularly and unfailingly began to attend the forum every Sunday. At least once a day she sat in stillness for 15-20 minutes visualizing and connecting to her inner divine self. Simultaneously, the doctors also changed her medicine, so she now she had to take a pill every day. She now held the belief that she would be fine. Later scans revealed that the lesions had indeed cleared.
This is Lakshmi’s miraculous story which she wishes will be an inspiration to many. Her experience has taught her that every thought is but a chip in our brain. If we can control our thoughts, unlimited possibilities are available to us, she says. We are all unique and different styles of mediation may work for different people she believes. Yet, no matter the path we choose, the simple truth is the power to heal lies within each one of us. Believe in yourself, she advises others who are faced with the same challenge.
She is also very grateful to her oncologist who is one of the most compassionate people she has ever met. He was a source of great strength to her. And her advice to relatives and friends of cancer patients is to please not shower sympathy. Instead they need to give them the courage and fill them with positive energy. Just like her oncologist and family did.