One of my goals in life was to get married and have a family. After graduating from college, I met the man of my dreams and we were married less than a year later. We had been married for seven months and were just thinking of kids when the diagnosis came: I had a five cm tumor in my left breast. I was 28 years old.
After a mastectomy, I endured four rounds of chemo and eight weeks of radiation therapy. My sweet husband was there through the entire treatment. He traded sides of the bed so he wouldn't accidentally bump my surgical site. He held my hair back as I vomited into the toilet. He cut my hair short when it started to fall out, then took his razor and shaving cream and shaved it all off. (My long, naturally curley hair was one of the things that first attracted him to me.) He didn't tell me when the chemo made me smell funny. When it was over, I knew if we had survived cancer treatment, we would be together forever.
Life doesn't end with a cancer diagnosis. I have now been cancer free for five and a half years. I just gave birth to our third child, a boy who joined his 2 year old brother and 4 year old sister. I have nursed all three of my children with just one breast.
The most important thing I have learned: life goes on. After a diagnosis of cancer, the most important thing is to focus on treatment and making yourself well. Once you have been treated, move on. Don't let cancer ruin the rest of your life. There will always be reminders, but there shouldn't be limitations. A positive attitiude really is the best medicine.
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