Becoming Me Again

“This is hard. This is scary. But you ARE strong enough to get through this.” A friend recently asked me, “If you had to give your last years self advice, what would you tell yourself?” That was my answer. And this is my story. One Year Ago Today… I Was Diagnosed With Cancer Cancer is something that happens to other people. People outside your circle. A friend of a friend’s parent or grandparent. Not your loved ones—and definitely not you. That’s how it’s supposed to be… until it isn’t. The Beginning In April 2024, I turned 40. Like so many women, I scheduled my routine mammogram—just another item on the to-do list of adulthood. The results came back clear. I felt relieved, reassured. I checked the box and moved on. But a few months later, while lying in bed one night, I reached across my chest to grab my chapstick and felt something unfamiliar—a small lump that hadn’t been there before. It was slightly painful and didn’t feel right. I couldn’t shake the feeling that something was off....