How to be Positive

I’ve been lucky enough to not only meet many of my childhood idols and spend one-on-one time with them during media interviews but there have been some special stars who have left an even deeper impression on me.

Two of those standouts are Judith Durham and Olivia Newton-John.

Sadly, both of these Aussie icons passed away last month; Olivia on the anniversary of my Mum’s death.

These extremely talented women were trailblazers, who first achieved huge international success back in the 1960s, at a time when very few females reached that level of accomplishment.

Judith Durham became famous as the lead singer of the folk group The Seekers before etching out an equally successful solo career.

Despite their stratospheric stardom, what stood out most to me was that both Judith and Olivia remained grounded and humble and positive right to the end.

I remember doing an extensive interview on talkback radio with Judith Durham back in 2014, just before she returned to the stage to perform at Carols by Candlelight.

I marveled at how well she spoke and articulated her thoughts given it was only 18 months earlier that Judith suffered a stroke during the Seekers’ Golden Jubilee tour. The stroke also diminished her ability to read and write both visual language and musical scores.

She credited the power of positive thinking during her convalescence as a big help in her progress to rebuild those skills. Fortunately, her singing ability was not affected by the stroke.

This wasn’t the only setback Judith Durham experienced in her life. She broke her hip and wasn’t able to sing The Carnival is Over in the closing credits of the 2000 Sydney Olympics, singing it instead, in a wheelchair, at the 2000 Paralympics Closing Ceremony.

Listening to Judith singing you would never know she was born with asthma and after catching the measles at 4 years of age she was left with a life-long chronic lung disease, which ultimately caused her demise at the age of 79.

Judith and her husband, musical director and pianist Ron Edgeworth, were involved in a car accident in 1990 on the Calder Freeway in Victoria.

As she recuperated from her fractured wrist and leg she was astounded at the enormous positive out-pouring of support from her fans, which prompted her to get back together with the other members of the Seekers for a silver jubilee show.

It was during this reunion that her husband of 25 years was diagnosed with motor neurone disease and Judith took care of him and remained by his side until he passed away in 1994.

I remember also speaking with Judith about how she coped after being stalked by a fan and all she expressed was compassion towards them and once again reiterated that it wasn’t healthy to dwell on the negative and although she couldn’t change the past, she could change her current frame of mind and how she reacted to it.

Judith was also very conscious of what she put into her body. She and her husband were vegetarians; she avoided alcohol and caffeine and in 2015 became a vegan.

They say you should never meet your heroes or idols because, most of the time, we have put them on such a high pedestal that meeting them often means they don’t meet our expectations and can leave us disappointed.

That certainly was not the case with Judith Durham and definitely not the situation when I met Dame Olivia Newton-John.

In 2008 I was excited to fly to Ballina and then drive with my crew to Gaia Health Retreat in the hinterlands of Byron Bay on the NSW North Coast to spend the day with Olivia.

Olivia and her business partner Gregg Cave had only started Gaia a couple of years earlier and she was so proud to walk me around the entire estate and was enthusiastic about what she wanted to achieve at the retreat.

When you think about Olivia Newton-John, it is music and movies that immediately come to mind but there was so much more to Olivia.

She was also an activist for the environment and human rights and a huge advocate for breast cancer research.

“I’m happy, and I think being happy keeps you looking young.” – Dame Olivia Newton-John.

Olivia looked incredible and belied her age. Her energy and passion were over-flowing. She certainly practiced what she preached and believed in the mind, body & spirit being inter-connected.

Olivia was a vegetarian at the time, and I still treasure the signed copy of her cookbook she gave me after we had lunch (Olivia introduced chicken and fish into her diet later in her life).

Photo: Olivia Newton-John (right) with Susie Elelman 2008 Gaia Retreat & Spa

When we sat down for our one-on-one interview it was Olivia’s positivity that shone through the most.

“Grease changed my life in the most amazing way, and I’ve had such an amazing life. When things go wrong, you’ve got to believe you will get through them and focus on the positive things in your life.” – Olivia Newton-John

Olivia was first diagnosed with breast cancer in 1992 and had already been in remission for 16 years when we sat down for our chat so it would be understandable if she had simply decided to put that terrible chapter of her life behind her and move on to other things but that certainly wasn’t the case.

Olivia’s vision was to build a positive healing wellness and cancer research centre in Victoria and her tireless fund raising and awareness campaigns saw her travel the world enlisting celebrities and cancer survivors to join her on her Walks for Wellness, including a 228km walk along the Great Wall of China.

In addition to being a major fund-raiser for the ONJ Centre, Olivia believed these walks symbolised the steps cancer patients must take on their road to recovery.

Olivia was very conscious of how she spoke about herself and her illness. She didn’t like the phrase ‘fighting cancer’ because she believed that sets up images of battles and anger.

She chose instead to see her body as winning, which is a much healthier mental picture and often described her own positive frame of mind in media interviews.

“I’m an 18-years thriver, I call myself, not a survivor, because I feel like I’m in thriving my life even better than I ever have, and I want to encourage other women that are going through this journey that here I am.” – Olivia Newton-John

Dame Olivia’s dream finally became a reality when the Olivia Newton-John Cancer Wellness & Research Centre (ONJ Centre) opened its doors in 2015.

Olivia’s Story posted on the Olivia Newton-John Cancer Wellness and Research Centre (ONJ Centre) website.

In 1992, I was diagnosed with breast cancer. The diagnosis came the same weekend my father died of cancer, so you can imagine the shock.

I learned very quickly how important it was for me to think positively.

When the second friend I called with the news burst into tears, I thought – this is too stressful. I had to find someone else to handle the day to day discussions of my health so I could concentrate on healing.

I underwent a partial mastectomy, chemotherapy and breast reconstruction. I did herbal formulas, meditation and focused on a vision of complete wellness.

The whole experience has given me much understanding and compassion, so much so that I wanted to help others going through the same journey.

With more and more people affected by cancer every day, I believe we are in a world desperate for healing, and I’m committed to doing whatever I can to help.

I also believe that when you go through something difficult, even something as dramatic as cancer, that something positive will come of it.

And that’s exactly what the Olivia Newton-John Cancer Wellness & Research Centre (ONJ Centre) is – a positive healing Centre to support people on their cancer journey.

The ONJ Centre provides top medical research and the newest cutting edge treatments, combined with the best in wellness care, where we support patients and their families with life enhancing Wellness programs during their journey.  I believe that through our research we will ultimately find cures for all types of cancer.

My dream is that one day the ONJ Centre will be only about Wellness, and we will no longer need cancer centres because cancer will be a thing of the past.

Love and Light,

Dame Olivia Newton-John

Dame Olivia’s breast cancer returned in 2013 and again in 2017 where it had metastasised to her lower back, but her positivity never waned.

In an interview in Who Magazine in February this year, knowing her prognosis, Dame Olivia said for a lot of people going through cancer, attitude is everything, and staying positive is essential.

She insisted ‘positive thinking’ was vital amid her diagnosis of stage-four metastatic breast cancer. Olivia was able to see first-hand the services at her ONJ Centre, when she was admitted as a patient and found herself on the receiving end of traditional cancer treatments and wellness therapies.

“My cancer scare changed my life. I’m grateful for every new, healthy day I have. It has helped me prioritise my life.” – Olivia Newton-John

Dame Olivia has left an enormous legacy with the ONJ Centre now specialising in investigating treatments for cancers of the breast, bowel and gastrointestinal tract, lung, skin, prostate, liver and brain and collaborates with like-minded researchers, clinicians, pharmaceutical companies and universities across the world.

• Stay Positive

Researchers have revealed that our emotions change our body at a cellular level, and we have powerful capabilities to choose positive ways of thinking.

Rather than trying to get rid of negative feelings, we can choose instead to respond to them differently.

Olivia believed that to live a happier life, it is essential for us to learn how to focus on positive thinking and improve our outlook on life.

I look at my cancer journey as a gift: It made me slow down and realise the important things in life and taught me to not sweat the small stuff – Olivia Newton-John

It isn’t just great music that will be Judith Durham and Dame Olivia Newton-John’s enduring legacy, we can be grateful to them for giving us so much more.

Stay Strong and safe…Cheers Susie