I recorded Episode 4: Freudenspanne, the Real Reason We Want to Live Longer, in February of 2022. But I came to realize how timely this interview is as I prepare to attend the London Breast Meeting 2023. I have been asked to speak on a topic closely related to what my podcast guest, Zack Varkaris and I chat about. I have been asked to speak on the topic of the impact of lifestyle factors on breast cancer risk and survivorship: nutrition, exercise and beyond.
As I listened to this podcast again while on the elliptical today, it truly resonates with me as I prepare to leave for London. So much of what Zack speaks about, finding joy in life, healthy eating, exercise, who we connect with, our lifestyle choices, is pertinent to the importance of embracing these choices in breast cancer survivorship.
How I Learned to Embrace the Philosophy of Living Longer Through Healthy Choices
Zack and I both discuss our families and how we each have longevity in our lives. My maternal grandmother lived to be one hundred years old. She grew up and lived in an agrarian community rich in farm-raised foods. Grandma worked hard in the fields, raising six children all while growing and canning her own vegetables.
Even after having breast cancer twice, I knew adopting an even healthier lifestyle after diagnosis number two and sticking to it was going to make a difference in my survivorship. Only one sibling of the six children Grandma raised, my uncle, has passed. This quote from my uncle has always resonated with me.
“I’ve been run over a time or two.”
Words from a wise Uncle
The Meaning of the Word Freudenspanne
The conversation I have with Zack, aligns in many ways with my own lifestyle as I listen to his philosophy and sharing his Greek heritage. I refer to Zack as the purveyor of knew ideas and purposeful living. When you are alive and living, there are things you must do to maintain that life. You must eat, sleep, poop, you must exercise, and maintain your structure to keep yourself going. Zack made a virtue out of necessity.
Even though many of us have struggles in life, it is how we deal with those struggles that make you the person you are. Zack came up with a word to describe what truly matters to all of us in life and it is not your life span. If you cannot be happy as you live longer, what is the point in longevity? It is the joy in life, your “joy span”. And so, he created the word based on German origin, Freudenspanne, the joy in your life.
Our Conversation about Freudenspanne, the Real Reason We want to Live Longer
This is a comfortable conversation for me with a man who truly desires to find the joy in life. And so, I invite you to listen to someone I consider a Greek philosopher, a lover of life, and a man who lives by his own words, Freudenspanne.