Hi it's me, and 10 years ago today marks my Cancerversary 🎀! I'm sure some of you reading this are like, what is that?! What day do you pick? Well, for me it's the day that my cancer was officially gone from my body. On the morning of June 6th, 2014 I went to Moffitt Cancer Center and had a double mastectomy with some lymph nodes removed. I was fortunate enough to not show any signs of metastasis plus they got great margins SO IT WAS G-O-N-E, GONE!
I don't brag about this for me, I like to do this to give those who are fighting or those who recently fought some hope. When you're going through treatments, surgeries, doctor visits, and scans...all you can think of is your fate. You're constantly worried about it coming back or that they missed something or that there's a complication. Your schedule is filled with appointments that you don't want to have. You're spending all your time fighting the disease trying to keep your thoughts from going to the worst outcome possible. You struggle with being sick but also try not to become a victim of cancer because that will consume you. Finding hope for yourself is what gets you through this insanity. I know it sounds cliche, but you need something to keep you going.
Back when I was fighting, it gave me hope when people told me that they were a survivor for 3 years, 7 years, 10 years, and more. They gave me something to look forward to and that I had a chance to survive this. It's tough because we all know not everybody makes it. On a daily basis for years I would think, am I going to survive?
I'm going to keep this short and end with some advice that I'd like to offer. The first 5 are for those fighting, fought, or finished cancer treatment. Number 6 are for your all of us who help support or act as caregivers for those patients!
1️⃣ Keep your chin up and push forward.
2️⃣ Don't accept the "new normal", Go find new things that you like to do and do them. Step out of that comfort zone!
3️⃣ Stay stronger than cancer! So many become a victim of cancer, don't let cancer do that to you. Cancer doesn't deserve that. It happens to the best of us but recognize it and beat it.
4️⃣ Find the silver linings. They are there, although you may not see them at first.
5️⃣ Find time for those who find time for you. That might even be your pets! We're all busy but we have to find time because all of our time is limited.
6️⃣ Be supportive to those dealing with cancer in any way that you know how. This could be listening to them, helping around the house, sending a meal, mailing a card, or picking up the phone to talk instead of text. It's really the simple things that mean the most sometimes!
Thanks for reading 🩷! I hope this serves as a reminder for all of you to get your routine exams and scans. I also hope you now feel the urge to reach out to somebody that could use a friend who is fighting through this horrible disease. It wouldn't hurt to check a caregiver if you know someone is doing the best they can, it's hard on everyone. We need more kindness in this world and it has to start somewhere! 😉
