A year ago, a seat belt saved my life. But not the way you think…
Flashback to October 2017: I’d been ill for months but had been explaining away my extreme fatigue and other symptoms as typical for a mom juggling 3 kids—2 of them twin toddlers. As I was driving, I started getting bothered by the feeling of the seat belt hitting my neck. As I slowly felt around, I noticed how swollen my neck was. “Well, I’ve been sick,” I thought. Then I felt a pea-sized mass near my collarbone that I knew should NOT be there. I swallowed hard and told myself I was overreacting. Never did I ever think it could be cancer. But it was.
Soon we learned I had Stage 3 Hodgkin Lymphoma. I spent the end of 2017 and most of 2018 in treatment. Miraculously, I went into remission midway through treatment.
I’m continually amazed at how one small act can change the course of your life forever. Had that seat belt not made me uneasy, my outcome most definitely would have been different. Had I not listened to my gut and finally went to the doctor, I may not have made it.
By fate, providence or intuition—I’m still here. Getting diagnosed with cancer last year right before the holidays was certainly devastating, but there was still plenty of good to be found in a terrible situation. I was lucky to be diagnosed exactly when I was. It allowed me to be one of the first patients in a clinical trial for a new immunotherapy drug. I believe that treatment has improved my chances at long-term remission and a cure.
Sometimes it takes everything falling apart for things to finally come together. I do believe everything happens for a reason. But we must choose the reason. When we enter a difficult season, we must trust that it is happening for a reason—even when we are struggling to find the light in the midst of overwhelming darkness. We must believe we can get through this. Because there are no wrong turns in life; just unexpected paths. In bad times, we must remember that even the most terrible events provide an opportunity. It’s up to us to learn from what happened and grow from it.