Meet Sam - you can follow her @__reconstructed

Meet Sam! A doctor, yogi, and an amazing Breastie who ignored her lump when everyone else insisted she get it tested.

I was 26 years old when I was diagnosed with triple negative bc. But despite being “too young” I don’t have the typical story of being brushed off by medical professionals. In fact, the only doctor that was brushing off this giant lump in my left breast…was me.

My husband (also a doctor): “hey you should really get that thing looked at.” The employee health doc, “Yes, it could be something. Here is a prescription for an ultrasound.” (bless her) But I had no family history. Plus, with my medical training, I could come up with a good-sized list of breast lumps that aren’t cancer. This lump was just inconvenient in its timing – I was starting my medical residency! I let it go for months, and then I noticed blood spots in my bra. That’s when I knew I had to face this. Six rounds of intense chemo with neutropenia and anemia, one BRCA diagnosis, a double mastectomy, and 28 days of radiation later, I became a triple negative success story.

No one would describe me as a rigid person, but my life has had a pretty set plan and it didn’t include being sick. I didn’t know who I was going to be after taking this detour of losing my hair and stamina to chemo and my breasts to surgery. I was strong and positive all throughout treatment but fell apart trying to navigate my survivorship. I was in such a dark place for so long and was afraid I was tempting fate by making plans. I was simply existing, coming home to curl up into a blanket and wait for recurrence. I thought it would hurt too much to start living again if it was only going to end in a downer ending. But eventually what became more painful was wasting what I had been given, no matter how long or short.

The sneakiest thing that cancer takes is the comfort that there’s plenty of time. But “plenty of time” is an illusion for us all. So I’m out here doing the best I can with what I have. I've got my yoga practice to remind me that life is one breath at a time. I've got my Breasties, family, friends, and amazing husband by my side. And I’m so proud of what I’ve made of my life after cancer 🙌🏻💕