Beyond Survival: A New Definition of Health Emerges

After cancer treatment, sudden menopause, and the emotional chaos that followed, I found myself facing a question I never expected to ask: What does it even mean to be healthy now?

I had done everything right—or so I thought. I followed the protocols, ate the “right” foods, checked all the boxes. But afterward, I didn’t feel healthy. I felt exhausted. Disconnected. Like I had lost my body, my rhythm, and some deeper part of myself.

If you're in that in-between space—where you’ve survived something big but still don’t feel whole—you’re not alone.

This post isn’t about going back. It’s about moving forward with intention—on your own terms. It’s about inviting you to explore: What could a new definition of health look like for you now?

I’ll share what that journey looked like for me, and offer questions you can use to begin shaping your own. Because your definition doesn’t have to look like anyone else’s. And it’s okay if it changes.

When the Old Definition of Health No Longer Fits

I used to believe health meant getting things right—a clean diet, a daily workout, a full to-do list, and the ability to keep pushing no matter what. But that version of health was built on productivity, performance, and punishment. At the moment when I received that cancer diagnosis, I was in the most fit shape of my life. I truly felt healthy and strong. If I had cancer, was I healthy?

My definitions and beliefs surrounding the word "healthy" didn’t account for emotional pain, trauma, or a body in recovery. It didn’t make space for grief or fatigue. It didn’t allow softness or rest or seasons of stillness.

✨ When my body broke down, that definition of health did too. It was no longer mine to carry—so I began shaping a new definition of health that truly fit.

A New Definition Emerges

I didn’t find this new definition overnight. It revealed itself slowly, through quiet moments and honest questions:

• What made me feel grounded again?

• What helped me feel human?

• What choices left me with more energy—not just physically, but emotionally and spiritually?

Little by little, I realized that health wasn’t something to chase or measure. It was something to come home to. My new definition of health included rest without guilt. It allowed grief and joy to coexist. It honored intuition over routine, nourishment over numbers, and connection over comparison.

My New Definition of Health—And How I Got Here

Today, health means alignment. It’s not about looking a certain way or ticking boxes. It’s about feeling congruent in my body, my spirit, and my choices.

It means having the energy to do the things I love—on the days I can—and offering myself grace on the days I can’t. It means making space for emotions, eating food that supports healing, and choosing relationships that feel reciprocal and kind.

It means asking:

• Does this nourish me?

• Does this drain me?

• What do I truly need right now?

And it means knowing that those answers can change—and that’s okay.

Redefining Health on Your Own Terms

If you're in a season of rebuilding, know that your definition of health doesn’t have to match anyone else’s. You have full permission to redefine it for yourself.

Maybe it starts with one question:What makes me feel like me again?

You don’t need to “bounce back.”You don’t need to do it perfectly. You just need to begin—gently, honestly, and in your own time.

Take a moment to ask yourself:

• What old beliefs about health might I be ready to release?

• What does feeling nourished look like for me—physically, emotionally, and spiritually?

🎥 Watch: A New Definition of Health After Illness

I recorded a short video sharing the mindset shifts, questions, and realizations that helped me let go of outdated beliefs—and build a new, nourishing definition of health. Watch below:

This is the new path I walk—and the one I guide others through now. Instead of reaching back to the old version of health; stretching forward to something deeper and more real.

✨ If this resonated, you might also like:

→ 7 Self-Care Habits That Helped Me Feel Human Again

→ Grieving the Old You: Loss of Identity After Illness

→ How to Rebuild After a Health Crisis

💬 I’d love to hear from you in the comments:What does health mean to you now?