Maria Menounos’ rocky health journey has taught her the importance of maintaining a positive outlook.
The former E! News correspondent joined Mark Consuelos on Thursday’s episode of Live with Kelly and Mark to co-host the morning show in Kelly Ripa’s absence. The 44-year-old revealed that she is doing well during the show and provided an update on her health after privately battling stage 2 pancreatic cancer earlier this year.
Menounos declared, “I’m doing great; I feel great; and I’m grateful to be healthy with my baby.”. “And I’m most thankful for the odd challenges that have come my way because I can see how God has just designed my life so that you don’t always see it right away, but you do later. ” .
“You see why all these things had to happen, and so, I always say, ‘Why not me?’ People always say, ‘Why me, why me?’ Why not me? I know there’s a silver lining, even to having had massive pancreatic surgeries and all the things that have had to happen, brain surgery, it brought me to this moment where I’m so uber happy for life and so happy,” the woman continued. ”.
The fact that Menounos can now assist others with their health and educate them on the value of taking “an active role in your healthcare,” she continued, makes her grateful. ”.
“You need to run your health like a business. You need to know what’s wrong with you, she said, and you need to do the research necessary to identify the best course of action. “So it’s been a really interesting journey, and I’m just thankful I know how to get back up,” the speaker said. “It ain’t about how hard you hit, it’s about how hard you can get hit and keep moving forward,” is one of life’s most encouraging quotes, and we are grateful to Rocky for coining it. ’”.
Menounos then discussed some of the “real challenging moments” she faced while battling cancer and explained to Consuelos how she overcame them by maintaining her outlook at every turn of the road.
She acknowledged that it was difficult to recover from the experience of receiving a fatal diagnosis because it was so frightening. “However, I grew to prefer wonder to worry. Choose wonder over worry, my hypnotherapist Aida once advised me. Therefore, when I began doing it actively, everything changed. ” .
“I remarked, “I wonder what it’ll be like when the doctor calls me with good news next. So he did. “I wonder what it’ll be like when this surgery goes well and I heal quickly.”. Then I did. I just kept repeating that, so. Additionally, your brain is a supercomputer that you can program to perform any task, she added. As a result, I would ask it, “Hey brain, can you go into my pancreas? Send a message to my pancreas. I want to make progress in my healing. And I would communicate with it, with my body. Therefore, whatever you tell yourself—you tell yourself you’re bad, you tell yourself you’re stupid—all of those things are going to come true. ”.
Menounos cited Jim Kwik, a brain expert, as the person who first introduced her to the power of the brain and the significance of changing one’s perspective.
“What you think about, that’s what you’ll feel. I therefore consider that often and focus on my desires rather than my dissatisfactions.
My mentality changes.
These are tools, she added, adding that while giving advice to others, she is frequently reminded to put them into practice because it is difficult at first.
Menounos disclosed to PEOPLE earlier this year that she was privately battling stage 2 pancreatic cancer. She successfully underwent surgery to remove a 3 point 9 cm after being diagnosed in January. tumor. Menounos has made it her mission to inspire others to seek treatment for their health issues ever since she first opened up about her experience with cancer.
In a February interview with PEOPLE, she said, “I need people to know there are places they can go to catch things early. “Fear must not stand in your way. I had that moment where I believed I was doomed, but I’m okay because I caught this in time. “.
She proudly displayed the surgical scars on her stomach in a selfie this month, reflecting on everything she has endured.
She captioned the photo, saying, “I look back on surgery earlier this year and am grateful for the strength god blessed me with to get through and of course all of the beautiful humans he sent to help me too. “Now that I can see the scars that my careful application of sunscreen protected, I smile. ❤️”.
Many fans hailed Menounos as an inspiration and thanked her for sharing her journey in the comments.
One follower commented, “Your scars are now badges of honor!” while another added, “Scars of a champion!”.
“So happy you continue to share your story, another Instagram user commented. Thank you, and be proud of those scars. You deserved them. ”.
