Hello everyone! I hope you are all doing amazing! Today, I am ecstatic to present an author’s interview of Jean Jacques Trchon, who is Cancer Survivor and an exceptionally talented writer. This interview is in association with IRead Book Tours. I hope you enjoy this interview.
Shreya Vijay: Hello Mr. Trochon! It is a pleasure to have you here with us today! First of all, congratulations on releasing your book and thank you for being here with us today.
Jean Trochon: Thank you so much, Shreya. I am happy to be here too.
Shreya: So Jean, a memoir, by its very nature, is an intimate style of writing. How did your children react to their portrayal in the book?
Jean: It was always going to be difficult to write about my children and how they experienced my cancer. Their reactions to the book have been as different as their personalities. My son, Jeff, read much of it whilst sitting next to the ocean in his adopted homeland of Australia. Being close to the ocean made him feel close to me, since we both love to surf. Jeff told me that the book made him cry at times, but also that he is very proud to be part of it. My daughter, Kelly, has found it a little more difficult. She was thirteen years old when my cancer was initially diagnosed. Being a couple of years older than her brother, she perhaps found the experience more traumatic to deal with. Reliving her experience on the page is not easy for her. However, I know that she is also proud to see my story in print.
Shreya: This sounds so amazing! I have got to ask, You write about fasting in your memoir. How important do you consider fasting to be for the maintenance of good health?
Jean: I consider fasting essential for everyone, if their health allows. I now fast for five days every month. However, it doesn’t have to be as ‘hard core’ as that. There are many different ways in which to fast. For example, the benefits of interim fasting have been well-documented. If I am not fasting, I follow the same approach as my wife, Heather. We now only eat two meals a day, which generally means eating a healthy brunch at around midday and then having our evening meal no later than 8:00 p.m. This way the digestive system is given a rest for around sixteen hours. Naturally, it’s not just a question of eating less but also eating better quality. Processed foods and refined sugar no longer feature in my diet! (Full disclosure: I have, however, been known to have the odd chocolate and raspberry ice-cream… 😉 )
Shreya: Haha, everyone is allowed a couple of cheat days, aren’t they? Anyway, we are currently in the midst of a global pandemic. Why did you decide to publish your book at this time?
Jean: Heather, and I began work on the book some four years ago. The story kept evolving as my health situation changed. After the positive response to Rethinking Cancer 2017, the cancer conference that I initiated and which is available on my YouTube channel of the same name, we knew that people were interested to know more about my story. However, it was when France went into lock down that Heather decided to finish the project. I actually feel that it was the right time to publish the book. Unfortunately, with so much focus on COVID, many cancers have gone undetected. My hope is that, through my story, there will be greater awareness of the simple measures we can all take to improve our health. I have also had a lot of positive feedback from cancer patients, who have seen their results improve on account of adopting the approaches that I write about.
Shreya: Wow! I like the way you think. Now that you have retired as an airline pilot, a lot of your time is spent researching into cancer treatments. This must be quite intense at times, what do you do to relax?
Jean: Well, I know that many people consider me to be a bit weird, but I actually find my research to be fun! I have the kind of brain that loves detail and never gets bored learning about health… However, I also can’t wait for live spectator sport to begin again. As is evident throughout my book, I am a passionate rugby fan. It will be a very happy day for me when I am finally able to cheer on my team, South Africa’s Springboks, from a stadium in Cape Town or Johannesburg.
Shreya: And finally, as a bit of fun, if you were an animal… what animal would you be and why?
Jean: I would actually choose to be that most majestic of birds, the eagle. I would be an eagle because it flies, is quick and sharp. An eagle sees its target from a long distance and swoops directly in on it. It is also very good at anticipating obstacles in its flight path… not so dissimilar to an airline pilot, in fact!
Shreya: Thank you so much for being here with us today, Jean! It was wonderful to get to know you. It was a really fun session. I wish you all the very best for your future.
