By Danny Lannen
Article in the Geelong Advertiser, Thursday, March 19, 2009
DR IAN Gawler is still struck by the clarity cancer can bring to the lives of sufferers. Thirty years on from his acclaimed recovery from virulent bone cancer the survivor sees a power lit within some people’s minds as they focus on what matters most to them. “Many of the people who come to our programs look back on their diagnosis as one of the best things that ever happened to them,” Dr Gawler said. “They think about what’s important to them, re-prioritise and get out of the common trap of living on automatic and doing what comes next. “By standing back and thinking what’s important to them, people find much deeper level of happiness.”
Dr Gawler lost a leg and a lung to cancer in the 1970s and was told he had a few weeks to live. He was declared clear of cancer in 1978, later founded the Gawler Foundation and late last year his case was acknowledged in the Medical Journal of Australia. He will bring his perspectives to Geelong on March 26 for a talk at Kirrewur Court touching on the power of the mind and the importance of a therapeutic lifestyle in preventing and treating illness.
Dr Gawler worked in Geelong as a locum veterinarian. He underwent chemotherapy in the city and fondly remembers spending time at Torquay healing from his affliction. He believes daily lifestyle disciplines in diet and meditation aided his recovery. “The mind is the starting point for everything,” Dr Gawler said. “Having a clear mind that can think clearly and can function independently of emotional ups and downs is really important.”
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