"Two summers ago, I heard the three scariest words: You have cancer.

How could I have cancer? I felt great! I was active! I felt on top of the world! I couldn’t believe it – how could I have cancer?

These feelings are not uncommon when diagnosed with cancer and according to the American Cancer Society’s “The Emotional Impact of a Cancer Diagnosis,” “Your first emotion may be shock, because no one is ever ready to hear that they have cancer. … You may not even believe the diagnosis, especially if you don’t feel sick.”

I didn’t feel sick. I couldn’t believe this was happening to me.

I had invasive breast cancer. I am told that my cancer has an aggressive personality. I never knew cancers had personalities, I just thought cancer was cancer, but you can have different stages/different factors that affect your cancer and my cancer is Her2Neu+. We have to be aggressive in treating it and I will be in treatments for a year. All I could think of was my kids, what about my kids?

I’m in survival mode. I couldn’t think straight and I had some decisions to make but I couldn’t think about making decisions – I don’t want to think about “what if?”

So Begins the Ride

I was having all kinds of problems accepting the fact that I had cancer and needed to do chemotherapy and radiation. I didn’t want to lose my hair, I didn’t want to feel like crap, I didn’t want to put my life on hold and I was sick and tired of crying all the time."

Get the Story:
Laura Revels: You have cancer (Indian Country Today 5/4)