Not Your Average Desperate Housewife : Relay for Life

Opening Lap, because I was not speaking until 6:30 and I had Jesse along side, I was not there for the opening

This weekend Madison County hosted the annual Relay for Life Rally at the Oneida High School. One of my best friends, Heather, works for Bridges and had a Reality Check Booth at the Rally as well as served on the American Cancer Society committee. She asked me to speak at this years rally. I was very uncertain, but chose to participate. I was nervous to say the least, but I have learned along the years that pushing through fear, brings personal growth. I gave a very short speech (while doing it it felt like a very long speech). After completing my draft I was asked to incorporated services I received from ACS... I still only had to write it twice. Jesse accompanied me and Heather kept an eye on him while I did my part. I stumbled a couple of times, but was quick to recover. The following is my speech. Although it looks incredibly long, in reality it took about 7 minutes to complete.

Hi…My name is Sheron… I am a wife, mom, daughter, sister, friend as well as a cancer survivor. I am sure I would have much in common with some of you…But there one connection we all share…cancer…

You may be living through a personal battle or like me, sporting the scars from the fight for life that was won, possibly mourning a lost loved one, supporting a patient or hoping the best for someone you know that has been touched by this disease. Cancer is no respecter of age, religion, gender or nationality.

My own illness was my second fight with the disease. My first experience was being a caregiver to my mother.
I was diagnosed with breast cancer in May of 2006. As one can imagine, after losing my mom to lung cancer in 2002, my own diagnosis was surreal.

My first recollected thought was survival. I made up my mind I was going to fight back in that battle. My husband, Doug and I have a good marriage and our sons AJ and Wyatt were only 14 and 8. I had plenty of reasons I wanted to stay on this planet. With my faith in God and my relationship with Jesus Christ I knew, that somehow, everything would be okay, that I would be restored. The only question remained was whether it was here or in Heaven.

My faith saw me through medical visits, tests, surgery and treatments. The love for my family kept me strong. I found myself in the care of amazing medical professionals, loving family and supportive friends. My husband was my primary care giver and he stood by my side, played cards with me while chemotherapy was being administered, helped with the household duties and our children while holding a full time job. My sister, Karen took care of me from a thousand miles away as well as coming to my aide during radiation. My closest friend, Irene, pulled childcare duty for days on end when I chose to go out of state for internal radiation. My brother, Bill supported in his own way. He had me covered in prayer VIA the internet all over the world.
I feel I remained hopeful but yes, I did have my moments of doubt, crying in my husbands arms because the thought of leaving my boys broke my heart.

Treatment was not all hardship. It taught me how brave I can be. How much I love my family. How great God really is. I had so much support from my church family and friends. Even my employer at the time, Wal-mart, was understanding and accommodating.
I received help from medical specialists and the American Cancer Society. My oncology office here in Oneida provided samples of medication I couldn’t afford as well as nursing staff strait from Heaven. The American Cancer Society provided me with a wig that suited my personality and the Look Good Feel Better program was a lot of fun in a bad situation. I was taught application tips to use make up to cover the effects of treatment, different ways to use scarves and how to make a tee shirt turban. I left feeling like a queen for the day and a bag full of cosmetics. I encourage you to take advantage of these and other services that is offered to you.

The fight can be difficult and recovery can feel long but as you can see I made it through this trial and I stand before you as living proof that there is life after cancer. Not only am I living a full life with my husband and sons now 20 and 14, we welcomed a third blessing, Jesse William to our family on New Years Eve 2008.

I want to leave you with my own personal reflections I could have been diagnosed six months earlier. I don’t want to go into details of the medical mistake, but instead touch on the fact that if I would have been my own advocate my battle may have been less wearing on my body. There is a great chance that the tumor would have been much smaller and relieving the need for chemotherapy. Fortunately, as the mass grew bigger, I sought a second opinion from my now primary care provider, Barbara Jeffers (who by the way is fabulous), she ordered a mammogram and I was quickly diagnosed and given a biopsy by Dr Spirt at Oneida Imaging. Please if you take nothing else from my experience remember to be your own advocate…( If you are a caregiver, you may have to be the one standing in the gap for the patient)…be strong and ask the questions. Please stand up for yourself, don’t ignore symptoms and never dismiss a growth. You deserve the best medical care available and it is your right to expect and even insist on it.

Also I know first hand how isolating this illness can make you feel, even with the best care and the most amazing support. As you walk through this time try to remember you are not alone, allow your friends and loved ones to care for you and support you in whatever way you need.

I also remember as caregiver having feelings of helplessness, stress and loneliness. An illness such as this can bring forth many emotions…whether you are a caretaker or patient keep in mind that you are partners in this fight …

I want to say a personal thank you to the caregivers. You are an irreplaceable partner in the life of your loved one. You are amazing! To the Warriors I want to encourage you to continue to fight back with all you have in you.
"A person standing alone can be attacked and defeated, but two can stand back to back and conquer. Three are even better, fro a triple-braided cord is not easily broken" This is one of my favorite verses from the Bible and can be found in Ecclesiastes 4:12
Life is beautiful and meant to be cherished and enjoyed…I leave here thanking God for my health and my family and asking Him to go with you and yours.