Story By: Gheorghi Caraseni, Sub Editor: Joseph Golder, Agency: Central European News
This young woman has decided to move to live in the Siberian wilderness with only a pet rat for company in a bid to get back to nature and cleanse herself as she battles cancer.
Zoya Angara, 32, from the city of Ulan-Ude in the southern Russian republic of Buryatia was diagnosed with stage 3 cancer at the end of 2019 and on top of that has suffered from arthritis for over a decade.
But despite both conditions while in eastern Siberia, she plans to hunt, cook porridge and chop wood after taking the decision to get back to nature in one of the hardest environments in the world to survive to fight her cancer.
She was first diagnosed with stage 2 cervical cancer before the summer. She underwent radiation therapy for six months, but was diagnosed with stage 3 cancer in October 2019, according to local media.
After finishing her course of radiation treatment in November, Angara is reportedly on a six-month pause and revealed she will now travel to the Siberian wilderness with her pet rat in February.
She will travel to the district of Okinsky, which nestles along the country’s border with Mongolia, to live in a winter house until summer 2020.
Her only companion will be her rat, which she received as a present over the festive period.
The young woman plans to take canned foods, herbs, cereal and a generator with her, among other necessities.
Despite living in a remote location, Angara said she will make sure she is close to villages as her trip is not about “surviving the extremes” but rather “self-development”.
She said: “I could hide in the house, but I am not going to take any chances.
“I will live alone, but not far from some villages. I will still need people for groceries and even conversation sometimes.
“Most importantly, the area is shamanic and my family were all shamans. We left that behind when we moved to Ulan-Ude [city].”
Local psychologist Natalya Semenova said: “I want to say that Zoya is a very brave woman and this is an important factor when overcoming the disease.
“In psychology today, there are many people who promote such methods for defeating cancer and other serious illnesses.
“Many psychologists share the view that cancer comes from an overabundance of emotions.
“We all look forward to seeing the new ‘rebooted’ version of Zoya soon.”
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