Using Gratitude as a Gateway to Abundance During Cancer Treatment

 by Kathryn White

When you’re facing cancer, the word “abundance” might feel far away.
Doctor’s appointments, scans, side effects, and uncertainty can create a landscape where loss feels more present than gain. And yet, even in the midst of difficult, gratitude has a quiet power. It can become a gateway to fullness, even when life feels stripped down.

Gratitude Isn’t About Pretending

Gratitude is not about denying pain, grief, or fear. It’s not a forced smile or a spiritual bypass.

It’s about noticing what is still here, still good, still beautiful, alongside everything that’s hard.
It’s about honoring the complexity of your experience while choosing to bring your attention to what supports and sustains you.

Gratitude is a muscle. And like any muscle, it grows with practice.

 

4 Practices to Cultivate Gratitude During Cancer Treatment

These simple practices aren’t meant to erase struggle, they’re here to help you experience moments of peace and possibility within it.

1. Morning Gratitude Journaling

Start each morning by writing down three things you’re grateful for.

They don’t have to be big:

• The warmth of my tea

• A text from a friend

• Waking up today

The more specific and simple, the more powerful.

2. Gratitude Walks

If you have the energy, take a slow walk outside. Let your senses guide you.

Say aloud or think to yourself:

• “I’m grateful for the sound of birds.”

• “I’m grateful for the breeze on my skin.”

• “I’m grateful for these feet that still carry me.”

Let your body and the earth remind you that life is still happening.

 

 

3. Gratitude Letters

Think of someone who has helped you either during treatment or beyond.
Write them a letter of thanks, even if you don’t send it.

Reflecting on their impact can open your heart and reconnect you to a sense of support.

4. Evening Reflection

Before bed, ask yourself:

• What moment today surprised me with joy?

• What helped me feel supported?

• What can I thank my body for?

Let these questions help you end the day with softness and awareness.

Reflections on Abundance

Gratitude doesn’t change your diagnosis but it can change your experience of the journey.

It softens the edges of fear. It reconnects you to beauty, to love, to meaning.

Abundance, in this context, is not about having more, it’s about noticing more.

 

It’s the richness of spirit. The abundance of a deep breath. A nourishing conversation. A sliver of sunlight on your face.

Cancer may take many things. But gratitude helps you see what remains and sometimes, what has grown stronger in the fire.

What Are You Grateful For Today?

Start small. Write it down. Let it in.

You may be surprised by what begins to bloom.

There is a lot to navigate when you are living with cancer. When you have guidance and tools in your life you start to reclaim your life and choose to learn how to live with cancer. Cancer does not get to control your life, you do. 

To learn more about reclaiming your life and choosing to learn how to live with cancer join me in my free 7 Day Get Thriving Mini-Course. Sign up for my newsletters and get immediate access to the course. Explore this mini-course that shows you some of the key fundamentals to becoming a cancer thriver.

If you would like to know more about the concept of living with cancer, I have written a book all about my personal experience with moving from survivor to thriver. In my book I offer anecdotes and strategies that will encourage you to learn how to thrive with cancer. You can get a copy of Living to Thrive: a holistic guide to living with cancer here.

You don't have to navigate cancer alone. As a Certified Holistic Cancer Coach I support women who are looking for more than just surviving day to day - they want to learn how to thrive with cancer. The THRIVE Cancer Coaching Program is a space for you to learn and grow while getting one to one support from a ten year cancer thriver. Let's talk about how coaching can help you create abundance in your life with cancer. Schedule a free 30 minute call today to learn more about coaching and how to get started.

Kathryn White is a Certified Holistic Cancer Coach who supports women to turn their cancer diagnosis into a thriving story one woman at a time.