This One Word Helped Him Reclaim His Life

About this episode

Terry Healey shares his journey of resilience and transformation after surviving sarcoma cancer, emphasizing the importance of gratitude and personal growth.

On this powerful episode of The Secrets of Being, I’m honored to sit with Terry Healey—a keynote speaker, author, and survivor of sarcoma cancer who has spent the last 40 years inspiring others with his story of courage, transformation, and faith. At 21, Terry was a junior at UC Berkeley with his whole life ahead of him. Then a small bump behind his nostril turned into a diagnosis that would change his life forever. A ten-hour surgery altered his appearance, but not his spirit. He shares the moment he saw himself for the first time post-op and thought he looked like “The Elephant Man”—yet still found gratitude in the fact that he could see, breathe, and live. That perspective, he says, saved him. We talk about resilience. About what it means to feel fractured by adversity and how confidence is built back—slowly, through reflection and small wins. Terry reminds us that growth starts with permission to feel. To grieve. To cry. To be honest about where we are. He shares how his book At Face Value started as a journal—just for himself—and became a powerful tool for connection. A lifeline for others going through similar journeys. Terry’s REBAR acronym—Reflect, Build, Act, Renew—is…

People in this episode

Host: Dawn Airhart Witte

Guest: Terry Healey

Topics covered

• resilience
• transformation
• grief
• identity shifts
• trauma recovery
• gratitude

Keywords

• resilience
• transformation
• grief
• identity
• trauma
• gratitude
• healing

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: UC Berkeley

Books & works: At Face Value

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