How SoulCollage® Helped Me on My Journey with Cancer

By

Anne Marie Bennett

When I first heard the word "SoulCollage" in 2004, I fell in love with the idea of it. My two favorite words, combined into one process? I was captivated and intrigued. In early 2005 I attended my first SoulCollage® workshop and it was "love at first card."

One of the biggest lessons I've learned throughout my personal journey with this process is that SoulCollage® meets each of us exactly where we are. I truly believe with all my heart and soul that there is no situation, condition, circumstance or event that SoulCollage® cannot help us with. SoulCollage® is being used around the world with so many populations, including those who are homeless, ill, dying, in prison, victims of assault, children, women in transition, transgendered, religious, non-religious and more. And all of these people are experiencing healing because of it.

I experienced this healing via SoulCollage® recently on my second go-round with cancer. I had gone through treatments for breast cancer (two surgeries, chemo, radiation) in 2002. And then in 2011 I was diagnosed with secondary angiosarcoma of the same breast that had been radiated nine years before. The only treatment was complete mastectomy, which was followed by more chemo.  

By 2011, SoulCollage® had changed my life in many ways, and I knew firsthand of its power to offer healing and support to those in distress, transition, and heartache. When this new cancer diagnosis came, I was filled with a dizzying array of emotions, from anger and betrayal (my body has done this to me again), to sadness, deep grief, longing, fear and even guilt, like somehow this was all my fault.

But instead of wallowing in these feelings, I turned to SoulCollage®. I pulled out my stack of images, bought a bunch of new magazines, gathered the scissors, mat boards and glue... and I began making intuitive cards that expressed the fearful tumult going on inside of me. In short, SoulCollage® helped me begin to make meaning from a very difficult journey.

Here is the first SoulCollage® card that I made for my second journey with cancer. I call it "Not Again!" and it helped me to articulate (in images and then in words) my frustration and sense of betrayal at the cruel twist in the road my cancer journey was taking me on.

One of the things that sets SoulCollage® apart from other such processes is the journaling work we do with the cards after we make them. We actually enter the image(s) on the card and speak from them, instead of about them. This particular card was very vocal. Here is what it said to me: 

I Am the One Who is mad as hell that this is happening to me again. I Am the One Who can't believe I've been diagnosed with cancer again. I Am the One Who has been thrust into the deep hellish feelings of fear and anger.  

I Am the One Who feels betrayed by my body. I Am the One Who shouts WHY ME to an unhearing universe.

My gift to you is these strong, powerful feelings of anger that are a catalyst for change. I give you the strength and the stamina to feel these feelings. I give you a means to express these feelings.  I give you a new path to follow. I give you the knowing that you can survive even this.

I want you to feel whatever you are feeling, whenever you are feeling it. I want you to remember that these feelings will not destroy you, they are just a part of life. I want you to give yourself room to have all this anger, all this fear, all these questions, without hurting yourself over it.

This simple process gave me a sweet, much-needed release of the energy of the feelings that were pent up in my body, mind and spirit. It gave me a deep re-connection to my Self, and a blessed permission to feel whatever I was feeling no matter how strong, power-full or scary those feelings were.

I made and worked with many SoulCollage®® cards during my recovery from surgery and subsequent chemo treatment. This one was especially healing for me. She said to me: I Am the One Who is intent on celebrating LIFE in spite of the deadly cancer cells that were inside my beautiful body.  I Am the One Who dances in lightly and freely and blesses you with vibrant color and life.  I Am the One who clears away the black flowers and makes room for the bright pink ones instead. I Am the One who says, "Behold, I bring you good tidings of aliveness and well-being."

If you or a loved one are dealing with some stage of a cancer (or any other illness), or if you are looking back at a cancer journey from your past and still trying to process it, I urge you to give SoulCollage® a try. Allow ALL of your feelings; give them image and give them room to breathe. Give yourself the gift of a healing journey.

Anne Marie Bennett is a published author, self-taught artist, and SoulCollage® Facilitator/Trainer in eastern Massachusetts.   You can see all of her SoulCollage® cards that reflect her cancer journey here:

www.kaleidosoul.com/cancer-journey.html.  She has also created a new website,

dedicated to helping women with any kind of cancer stay connected to Self,

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How We Are Using SoulCollage® in Spiritual Settings (part 2) Produced by Facilitator, Sue Gelber

SoulCollage® Trainer and Art Therapist Kat Kirby narrates how "Sue," an art therapy client of SoulCollage® Trainer Audrey Chowdhury, gently releases deep feelings of grief through SoulCollage®. 

Learn all about the Facilitator Training here