My frequent hoarseness drove me to see a specialist to rule out cancer with a laryngoscopy. Then, I had 8 sessions with a speech pathologist who specialized in 'Vocal Hygiene,' (I love that title) for preservation and healthy maintenance of the voice. My hoarseness improved even on days when I went in with a hoarse [...]
If you ask a cancer survivor what HOPE means to them, their answer may not necessarily be 'a CURE.' It may be 'feeling well enough to attend a family event in two months,' or 'accomplish a task within the week', or 'have a pain-free moment'. After my presentation at Grand Rounds, I had a tour [...]
So many people have said to me, “You look fantastic!” Why focus on how I look? You probably have little idea about my quality of life compromises that you cannot see on the outside. For me, I had bilateral vocal chord polyps and nodules, basal cell carcinoma in my radiated field, ringing in my ears, [...]
“I am lucky enough to have a front row seat for Humanitarian Acts,” proclaimed my new friend Ida Huneault who chaired the dental hygiene conference in Ottawa at which I was the keynote speaker. Her 15 year old son Tyler Huneault has Sialidosis, a very rare enzyme disorder from which few children survive more than [...]
This commercial tells a compelling story. They are not selling services. They are selling their passion to make a difference through STORY. No better vehicle to engage listeners and be memorable than through a story. It certainly worked with me! It's a story about a healthy active woman diagnosed with cancer but survives well due [...]
Canada is a huge country and not too populated so they open their doors to loads of people from all corners of the world who are young enough to add to the work force and hopefully add to the population by starting a family there. My taxi driver from downtown Saskatoon to the airport told [...]
Two years ago, after my lecture for the National Oral Health Conference in Huntsville Alabama, I grabbed some dinner at the hotel restaurant. When I went to pay my bill, the server told me it was taken care of. I inquired by whom. I walked over to the 'lady over there.' Shelly Spoeth, currently a [...]
“We were engaged 35 years ago, but never married. Now, we are engaged again,” explained the couple sitting at the next table at the restaurant. I started talking to them when the server rolled the cooking table over with the ingredients to prepare my favorite dessert in the world, bananas foster, which is served flaming. [...]
When I meet a person, I'm anxious to know their story. What do they stand for? How has their life experience shaped them? I met Samantha through this article in Business Insider and her story is worth telling. She is a professional hugger. She hugs people for $60/hour and makes $7200 a month. Soon she [...]
A story not silenced. When I spoke to this radio interviewer, I heard words are slightly slurred and others annunciated with a struggle. Very quickly into the conversation, I got past the struggle and heard the strong vice and smart mind of this man who has a passion to improve the world by being an example himself [...]
