I See Life Differently Now

Mieko Vernon

In December of 2009, I was given the worst news of my life…….as I held the phone I couldn’t believe what I was hearing

“Unfortunately Ms. Vernon, your test results have come back and they are positive for a very aggressive form of Invasive Breast Cancer”.

How can this be I asked myself, this has to be a mistake! I don’t fit the profile I screamed in my head……….I don’t smoke, I don’t drink and I live a very healthy lifestyle. I am a Triathlete who works out at least five to six times a week, I am under the age of forty and most importantly, I had no family history of Breast Cancer. However, it was not a mistake, in fact, it was a reality, it was MY reality and I had to come to terms with it very quickly whether I wanted to or not.

No one ever wants to hear the words “You Have Cancer” and once you have heard those awful words, it is very easy to lose control of your life and to allow a large medical team to take over. You easily get lost in the never ending medical terms and treatment recommendations.

Being a single parent of a child with special needs has made me realize that I had to be my own advocate now more than ever. I had to do my own research so that I would be able to make informed and educated decisions regarding my treatments, this was my life and you had better believe I was going to fight for it. I was not only going to fight, I was going to win!

Cancer has forever changed me and I will never look at life in the same way again.