Cancer Free

Recently, I have seen some creative ways of how people are celebrating someone’s victories of making it through the last chemo treatment or receiving the best news ever, being cancer free. When I view these posts, it brings me great joy because this is a moment I have experienced myself. Personally, I am not even quite sure how to explain the feelings and emotions that run through your mind and body. The sense of relief, the joy, the gratefulness, the new sense of appreciation and the excitement for a new chapter in life. I feel extremely blessed to be alive today and to continue to be cancer free. Some people have asked me aren’t you afraid of having a relapse or getting another type of cancer. My response is that in the beginning after receiving the news, I did fear falling back into cancer. Fear and worry consumed me in the beginning because I was overwhelming myself with information, data, statistics, and negative comments from people. You know what, information is powerful but too much information is dangerous. I was at the dangerous point until one day, in a follow-up appointment, I received my test results that I was still cancer free. I sighed with a sense of relief and figured out that I had to stop reading too much and listening to realistic, aka negative comments of possibilities of having a relapse or getting another type of cancer. I needed to have faith and take it one day at a time and enjoy my life. I had to focus on living and stop thinking of the worst-case scenario. I have learned that life is unpredictable and we need to cherish and embrace each day with a positive mind-set that great things will happen and know that we are not alone if we face new challenges. Stop existing and start living.

#Living