Let’s Share Triumph!
Share Triumph is a website & community that shares YOUR cancer triumphs – some big, some small.
? We celebrate cancer survivors at any stage & of any type. ?
This site is a place to showcase the small steps that lead us on our path back to joy.
Rock on, my friends! ?
Share Triumph Story Submission! This one is from the book 'TOUGH: Women Who Survived Cancer' which can be purchased here: https://amzn.to/2MYs47N
Title: Two Diagnoses & One Proposal
Name: Francesca Elizabeth Dials
Town: Lubbock, Texas
Diagnosis: Osteosarcoma in the nasal cavity; myelodysplastic syndrome Age at diagnosis: 25, then 28
Age now: 30
Before my first diagnosis, in 2014, I had just graduated from Texas Tech, a college here in Lubbock, and I was getting ready to move to Austin, Texas, with my best friend, Erica. I had been offered a management position
at Torchy’s Tacos. Lubbock had been my home for 25 years, so this was a big change. Austin is a great city, and I was really looking forward to a new career. Unfortunately, I was diagnosed a couple months after my move, so it was one quick change after another. After I was diagnosed, it was better for me to move back home.
The story started with me waking up one morning with an eye that was swollen almost shut...
More on Francesca's story on Share Triumph's Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/ShareTriumph/photos/a.271253066894134/898183824201052/
Submit your story here:
https://docs.google.com/.../1FAIpQLSc0jKFKHUm.../viewform...
#sharetriumph #cancer #survivor #survivorstories #tough #hope #livenow #lovenow #thetime
Share Triumph Story Submission! This one is from the book 'TOUGH: Women Who Survived Cancer' which can be purchased here: https://amzn.to/2MYs47N
Title: Lip-Synch for Your Life
Name: Molly Young
Town: Baltimore, Maryland
Diagnosis: Breast cancer stage 2; invasive ductal carcinoma
Age at diagnosis: 29
Age now: 31
"I was just as shocked as everyone else around me when I was diagnosed with breast cancer at age 29. I had just had a physical, I had no recent family history of breast cancer, and I’m negative for BRCA-gene mutations. I had no experience with hospitals. I had never even broken a bone. I’m a musician, kind of a “high notes for hire” mercenary. I consider myself very lucky to get to make music for a living, with a very supportive community of colleagues whom I also consider friends. At the time I found the lump, I was working as a voice and piano teacher all day and in rehearsal for Mozart’s Die Zauberflöte all night, getting home at like 11 or midnight. I didn’t do anything about the lump for a few weeks, mainly because I really wanted it to be a cyst. I was very fortunate to have signed up for health insurance as of January 1st, because on February 24th, I was diagnosed with cancer. When I thought about what my life was going to look like through chemo and how I was going to deal with it, I knew I needed a...
More on Molly Young's story on Share Triumph's Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/ShareTriumph/photos/a.271253066894134/863859074300194/
Submit your story here:
https://docs.google.com/.../1FAIpQLSc0jKFKHUm.../viewform...
#sharetriumph #cancer #survivor #survivorstories #tough #hope #livenow #lovenow #thetime
Share Trium Story Submission! This one is from the book 'TOUGH: Women Who Survived Cancer' which can be purchased here: https://amzn.to/2MYs47N
Title: Purpose & Gratitude After Thyroid Cancer
Name: Vanessa Steil
Town: Long Island, New York
Diagnosis: Papillary thyroid carcinoma
Age at diagnosis: 26
Age now: 32
“I’m sorry, but you have papillary thyroid carcinoma,” said the endocrinologist in a monotone voice. If I thought the words seemed to linger on his lips longer than they should have, they took even more time to register in my head. I sat silently and thought, Well, at least it’s not thyroid cancer...
More of Vanessa's story on Share Triumph's Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/ShareTriumph/photos/a.271253066894134/846132339406201
Submit your story here:
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSc0jKFKHUm4jjqx5SREifuDALyXt8yB0tb-bBaVFfYEhElI9Q/viewform?fbclid=IwAR1g8uENQe0MZHdKOmHfUXgAGjAXCAoFd6UJbJJ3gnmIYkJ5eFGmV4aamxk
#sharetriumph #cancer #survivor #survivorstories #tough #hope #livenow #lovenow #thetimeisnow
Share Triumph Story Submission! This one is from the book 'TOUGH: Women Who Survived Cancer' which can be purchased here: https://amzn.to/2MYs47N
Title: Hero’s Beads
Name: Katie Smith
Location: Wilmington, Delaware
Diagnosis: Oligodendroglioma (brain tumor); grade two
Age at diagnosis: 32
Age now: 34
On October 7th, 2013, I was awoken at 1 a.m. by my partner, Ann Marie, who was urging me to put on my bra so we could go downstairs and open the door for the ambulance. I started crying—I’m afraid of ambulances—and asked her why. “I think you had a seizure,” she said.
Ann Marie had asked me, pleaded with me, so many times in the past to stop playing pranks on her…
More of Katie’s story on Share Triumph’s Facebook page: https://tinyurl.com/rp2a83x9
Submit your story here:
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSc0jKFKHUm4jjqx5SREifuDALyXt8yB0tb-bBaVFfYEhElI9Q/viewform?fbclid=IwAR1g8uENQe0MZHdKOmHfUXgAGjAXCAoFd6UJbJJ3gnmIYkJ5eFGmV4aamxk
#sharetriumph #cancer #survivor #survivorstories #tough #hope #livenow #lovenow #thetimeisnow
Share Triumph Story Submission! This one is from the book 'TOUGH: Women Who Survived Cancer' which can be purchased here: https://amzn.to/2MYs47N
Title: Ultimate Frisbee for the Win
Name: Elana Schwam
Location: Cambridge, Massachusetts
Diagnosis: Malignant melanoma; stage 3
Age at diagnosis: 29
Age now: 32
I was diagnosed with stage 3B metastatic melanoma on June 28th, 2016. If you Google metastatic melanoma, it assumes you have stage 4 and gives you something like a 10% chance of survival, so this couldn’t have been more terrifying. The diagnosis came as a total shock. I was probably in my best shape ever at the time, working out and feeling great. Plus I didn’t have any suspicious moles—which is where melanoma comes from. My life revolved around my intensive graduate-level nursing program, my boyfriend, and my Ultimate Frisbee team, Brute Squad.
Brute Squad is not your average Ultimate team. We are playing at the highest level possible…
More of Elana’s story on Share Triumph’s Facebook page:
https://www.facebook.com/ShareTriumph/photos/a.271253066894134/809612349724867/
Submit your story here:
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSc0jKFKHUm4jjqx5SREifuDALyXt8yB0tb-bBaVFfYEhElI9Q/viewform?fbclid=IwAR1g8uENQe0MZHdKOmHfUXgAGjAXCAoFd6UJbJJ3gnmIYkJ5eFGmV4aamxk
#sharetriumph #cancer #survivor #survivorstories #tough #hope #livenow #lovenow #thetimeisnow
Share Triumph Story Submission! This one is from the book 'TOUGH: Women Who Survived Cancer' which can be purchased here: https://amzn.to/2MYs47N
Title: The Artist’s Metamorphosis
Name: Lelah
Location: Hudson Valley, New York
Diagnosis: Hodgkin’s lymphoma; breast cancer
Age at diagnosis: 31, then 41
Age now: 45
I was two years out of grad school, and I had started working with my very first art gallery. I liked storytelling, exploring the fantastical and the dark. I was flourishing in my work and grateful to be making an income doing it. I was living in NYC. I shared an art studio with some friends. I was in a relationship. We had our issues, but that was something I held in and didn’t talk about with anyone. Since I held things in, close to my chest, I may always wonder if that contributed to my first round of illness
At first you want to understand what the cause…
More of Lelah’s story on Share Triumph’s Facebook page: https://bit.ly/2S6E4sg
Submit your story here:
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSc0jKFKHUm4jjqx5SREifuDALyXt8yB0tb-bBaVFfYEhElI9Q/viewform?fbclid=IwAR1g8uENQe0MZHdKOmHfUXgAGjAXCAoFd6UJbJJ3gnmIYkJ5eFGmV4aamxk
#sharetriumph #cancer #survivor #survivorstories #tough #hope #livenow #lovenow #thetimeisnow
Share Triumph Story Submission! This one is from the book 'TOUGH: Women Who Survived Cancer' which can be purchased here: https://amzn.to/2MYs47N
Title: Healing in Heels
Name: Yoko Katz
Town: Westchester County, New York
Diagnosis: Breast cancer; ER+, PR+, HER2+ (“triple positive”)
Age at diagnosis: 36
Age now: 41
When I was diagnosed with breast cancer, I was married, and our son was 8 years old. I was a Ph.D student in economics; I was writing my dissertation on industrial organization of the fashion industry. It was almost done, and I was working as an adjunct lecturer at the Fashion Institute of Technology. I was teaching three courses per semester.
At the time, I considered myself one of the healthiest people in the neighborhood. I ran regularly— five, six times a week, 20 to 40 minutes a run. I grew my own vegetables during the summer, totally organic. I went to a farmer’s market when possible. I bought organic food. And I was juicing every single day in the morning, with kale, apples, orange, lemon, and some other vegetables. I had no family history of breast cancer.
One day in the shower, I found a lump. I thought it might be related to my period. I didn’t pay too much attention, because I considered myself a very healthy person. I let it sit for another couple weeks, but I still felt it. It wasn’t really changing, even though I had had my period.
So I started thinking, Oh. Maybe it’s something. I don’t know. I asked my husband if he could feel it. And he said, “Yeah. There is something.” It was about the size of a large pea. My husband said I should check it out, but I still let it sit. That’s how much I didn’t feel that I had cancer...
Submit your story here:
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSc0jKFKHUm4jjqx5SREifuDALyXt8yB0tb-bBaVFfYEhElI9Q/viewform?fbclid=IwAR1g8uENQe0MZHdKOmHfUXgAGjAXCAoFd6UJbJJ3gnmIYkJ5eFGmV4aamxk
#sharetriumph #cancer #survivor #survivorstories #tough #hope #livenow #lovenow #thetimeisnow
Share Triumph Story Submission!
Name: Jo-Ann Christina
From: Philadelphia, PA
Cancer Type: AML- acute myeloid leukemia; remission from allogenic stem cell transplant
I decided in 2012 to go back to school and complete my dream of getting my bachelor’s degree. I went back part-time to a community college in southwest Florida. I thought that would be the end of it, but I was doing very well and felt like I was on a roll. By the grace of God, I was invited to visit a prestigious university in Philadelphia. I took a leap of faith and went to visit the University of Pennsylvania in the fall of 2014. To make a long story short, I was not only accepted to the university in 2015, but I received an academic scholarship. I began to call it my “Life’s Do-Over.”
More of Jo-Ann Christina's story on Share Triumph's Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/ShareTriumph/posts/741895156496587
Submit your story here:
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSc0jKFKHUm4jjqx5SREifuDALyXt8yB0tb-bBaVFfYEhElI9Q/viewform?fbclid=IwAR0cRiVTbhWXvNOSMPaCXtyuMS9MU-5fMvbj7s4PaoPWd-IHugoM6fRmgPA
#sharetriumph #cancer #survivor #survivorstories #tough #hope #livenow #lovenow #thetimeisnow
Share Triumph Story Submission!
Name: Margarita Lia
From: Makati, Metro Manila
Cancer Type: Invasive Ductal Carcinoma - diagnosed at age 43
I was laying in bed, reading with my 10 year old daughter with my right hand behind my head.
An itch in my armpit led my left hand to graze the area under my breast. Hmmm, “What is that?”
More of Margarita Lia's story on Share Triumph's Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/ShareTriumph/posts/725362838149819
Submit your story here:
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSc0jKFKHUm4jjqx5SREifuDALyXt8yB0tb-bBaVFfYEhElI9Q/viewform?fbclid=IwAR0cRiVTbhWXvNOSMPaCXtyuMS9MU-5fMvbj7s4PaoPWd-IHugoM6fRmgPA
#sharetriumph #cancer #survivor #survivorstories #tough #hope #livenow #lovenow #thetimeisnow
Share Triumph Story Submission! This one is from the book 'TOUGH: Women Who Survived Cancer' which can be purchased here: https://amzn.to/2MYs47N
Title: Art to Heal the Spirit
Name: Robin Glazer
Town: New York City, NY
Diagnosis: Breast cancer; stage 1, then stage 4; ER+
Age at diagnosis: 37, then 53
Age now: 63
I helped to found an organization called the Creative Center back in 1994, after I’d finished a year of treatment for breast cancer. I had 52 chemo sessions, taking drugs that are not used too often anymore—a combination called CMFVP. We founded the Creative Center on the belief that “medicine cures the body, but art heals the spirit.” It was based on both my personal experience and the experience of the two other founders—one of whom, Adrienne Assail, died soon after we began. Geraldine Herbert, the first director, retired in 2006. As for me, I was rediagnosed in 2009, and I’m now going into year 10 of my stage 4 diagnosis with no evidence of disease. At 63, I am now the organization’s director, though we merged with University Settlement in 2011 and are no longer an independent nonprofit.
When I was diagnosed the first time, I was a young mom of five children. I had started my family when I was just 23 and had my children in fairly quick succession. I was always a really creative person, but I hadn’t done my own work since before I had kids. Initially, I was a dancer; I turned to visual art when I became an art teacher in schools. At that time, my artwork was always in the service of others. We always had fabulous birthday parties and great Halloween costumes. My kids had amazing murals in their bedrooms.
Read more on Robin’s story on Shaee Triumph’s Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/265297230823051/posts/710171029669000/?d=n
Submit your story here: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSc0jKFKHUm4jjqx5SREifuDALyXt8yB0tb-bBaVFfYEhElI9Q/viewform?fbclid=IwAR2kEjMLvjKBnTj_cZUIYPiY0G2Rn9XxbwPNr3Krk_W1qtKUB7ftiM-vr7c
Share Triumph Story Submission! This one is from the book 'TOUGH: Women Who Survived Cancer' which can be purchased here: https://amzn.to/2MYs47N
Title: How We Talk About Cancer Matters
Name: Emily Garnett
Town: Mount Kisco, New York
Diagnosis: Breast cancer; stage 4; ER+; invasive ductal carcinoma with metastases to bones, brain, liver, and lung
Age at diagnosis: 32
Age now: 34
As I sit down to edit this essay created from my interview, I realize that it has been a full year since these words took life. An entire year of living with metastatic breast cancer, an entire year of change and growth, and an entire year that has brought me closer to my eventual death. I want to use these words, both then and now, to recognize the shifts that took place, in language, advocacy, and understanding of my life with metastatic breast cancer.
More of Emily’s story on Share Triumph’s Facebook page:
https://www.facebook.com/ShareTriumph/posts/694681554551281
Submit your story here:
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSc0jKFKHUm4jjqx5SREifuDALyXt8yB0tb-bBaVFfYEhElI9Q/viewform?fbclid=IwAR1g8uENQe0MZHdKOmHfUXgAGjAXCAoFd6UJbJJ3gnmIYkJ5eFGmV4aamxk
#sharetriumph #cancer #survivor #survivorstories #tough #hope #livenow #lovenow #thetimeisnow
Share Triumph Story Submission! This one is from the book 'TOUGH: Women Who Survived Cancer' which can be purchased here: https://amzn.to/2MYs47N
Name: Tiffany Dyba
Town: New York, New York
Diagnosis: Breast cancer; stage 1; invasive ductal carcinoma
Age at diagnosis: 35
Age now: 37
When I think about how much my life has changed recently, the story starts a year before my cancer diagnosis. In January 2017, I got a big promotion at work. Instead of being happy with what I had worked for years to achieve, I sobbed on the train home and then on my 10-minute walk to my apartment in Astoria, Queens. To the friends I had grown up with in Ohio, I was living the dream: working in Manhattan, leading the recruitment team at Burberry after years at Tiffany & Co. I love fashion—but after working in jobs related to it for 15 years, I felt like I had turned into someone who was constantly keeping up with the Joneses. I was starting to feel like my outside didn’t match my inside.
More of Tiffany’s story on Share Triumph’s Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/ShareTriumph/posts/659331624752941
Submit your story here:
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSc0jKFKHUm4jjqx5SREifuDALyXt8yB0tb-bBaVFfYEhElI9Q/viewform?fbclid=IwAR1g8uENQe0MZHdKOmHfUXgAGjAXCAoFd6UJbJJ3gnmIYkJ5eFGmV4aamxk
#sharetriumph #cancer #survivor #survivorstories #tough #hope #livenow #lovenow #thetimeisnow
Here’s how her passion as a world-renowned air guitarist helped her cope with her chemo. And how she used it to inspire other women with breast cancer. @onetoughb #breastcancer #breastcancerawareness #breastcancersurvivor
Share Triumph Story Submission! This one is from the book 'TOUGH: Women Who Survived Cancer' which can be purchased here: https://amzn.to/2MYs47N
The World’s First Farewell to the Rectum Party
-
Name: Pat Bodenhamer
Town: Paragould, Arkansas
Diagnosis: Colorectal cancer
Age at diagnosis: 38
Age now: 46
-
I am an Ordained Elder in the United Methodist Church. At the time of my diagnosis, I was serving two small churches in North Arkansas, in Diamond City and Omaha. I had been their pastor for about three years. Both churches were mostly elderly people in their retirement. We were having a great time loving God together. I was single and living alone. My mom, my dad, and all my relatives all lived in Mountain Home, Arkansas, about an hour away...
More of Pat's story on Share Triumph's Facebook page: https://tinyurl.com/y2uo5ojx
Submit your story here:
https://tinyurl.com/y3dyulpb
#sharetriumph #cancer #survivor #survivorstories #tough #hope #livenow #lovenow #thetimeisnow
Share Triumph Story Submission! This one is from the book 'TOUGH: Women Who Survived Cancer' which can be purchased here: https://amzn.to/2MYs47N
Title: Blogging with Vulnerability, Accepting Support
Name: Shelly Vaughn
Town: Munroe Falls, Ohio
Diagnosis: Breast cancer; stage 2
Age at diagnosis: 36
Age now: 39
I ’m not naïve about the world of cancer. I’ve lost friends and family to the disease. My mom has stage 4 breast cancer. I always knew there was a chance I’d be diagnosed, but I never dreamt it would be so soon in life.
I was living my life as a wife and mother, with two lovely girls who were 7 and 9 years old. I was working full-time as a speech-language pathologist and playing volleyball a few times a month. I would say I had a very fun, active lifestyle. Our family was always out doing things—hiking, kayaking, biking, going to museums and festivals. The girls were busy taking dance classes, cheerleading lessons, and piano lessons. I had always been a very healthy person. But there was no denying the lump I felt on my own one day....
More of Shelly's story on Share Triumph's Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/ShareTriumph/posts/610784082941029
Submit your story here:
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSc0jKFKHUm4jjqx5SREifuDALyXt8yB0tb-bBaVFfYEhElI9Q/viewform?fbclid=IwAR1g8uENQe0MZHdKOmHfUXgAGjAXCAoFd6UJbJJ3gnmIYkJ5eFGmV4aamxk
#sharetriumph #cancer #survivor #survivorstories #tough #hope #livenow #lovenow #thetimeisnow
#Repost @unexpected.launch
• • • • • •
Ep 23 is live! @marquinamarie shares her cancer journey. She’s a creator. A visionary. A change driver. Changing the conversation around cancer. Inspiring women to share their cancer stories. Creating a safe space @sharetriumph that encourages vulnerability. Listen, Learn, and Rock On!!! Marquina is highlighted in #people #newsweek #tedx to name a few ... author of #tough stories of women with cancer, Marquina has something to say that’s worth listening to.
https://anunexpectedlaunch.com/2020/06/podcasts/marquinas-story-the-emotional-elephant-in-the-room-will-my-cancer-recur/
I'm honored that my interview on OneToughb kicks off Season 3 for this excellent storytelling podcast.
"We really thrive on each others' positivity, and when we listen, we grow."
Take a listen: https://www.instagram.com/p/CDjQWBBA8i7/
Share Triumph Story Submission! This one is from the book 'TOUGH: Women Who Survived Cancer' which can be purchased here: https://amzn.to/2MYs47N
Title: Stand-up Comedy to Release the Rage
Name: Emily Strong
Town: Inver Grove Heights, Minnesota
Diagnosis: Breast cancer; stage 3; ER+, PR+, HER2+ (“triple positive”)
Age at diagnosis: 33
Age now: 37
When I was diagnosed, I was on the tail end of “babyland.” I’d had my daughter 19 months prior and was starting to get my body back and feeling good. At work, I had taken on a new and challenging role. I was getting sleep! Our little family was healthy and growing...or so I thought. What I didn’t know was that I had been growing something else—a whole lotta breast cancer.
The doctor who told me “You definitely have cancer,” in the most cavalier manner during an ultrasound, was not sympathetic in any way. He struck me as a kind of hair-plugged, Ferrari-driving, hotshot kind of guy. As I lay sobbing on the exam table, he patted me awkwardly on my naked shoulder and mumbled a robotic, “It’ll be OK. We’ll take good care of you.” It was a surreal experience, and I felt lost and out of control.
All the steps and appointments leading to this moment should have been clear signs that something was wrong. I feel foolish now not to have caught the level of concern from my primary-care doctor and the urgency with which she scheduled my mammogram. I went in one day from mammogram to ultrasound to biopsy. I woke up that day thinking, What if?...
More of Emily's Story on Share Triumph's Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/ShareTriumph/posts/575933453092759
Submit your story here:
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSc0jKFKHUm4jjqx5SREifuDALyXt8yB0tb-bBaVFfYEhElI9Q/viewform?fbclid=IwAR1g8uENQe0MZHdKOmHfUXgAGjAXCAoFd6UJbJJ3gnmIYkJ5eFGmV4aamxk
#sharetriumph #cancer #survivor #survivorstories #tough #hope #livenow #lovenow #thetimeisnow
Follow Unexpected Launch for more stories!
Follow Unexpected Launch for more stories!
Error: Access Token for sharetriumph is not valid or has expired. Feed will not update.
There's an issue with the Instagram Access Token that you are using. Please obtain a new Access Token on the plugin's Settings page.
I’m Marquina – a mother, wife, digital marketer, breast cancer survivor, competitive air guitarist, insufferable karaoke singer, and all-around-goofball living in Brooklyn, NY.
When I was diagnosed with breast cancer in October 2015, my life stopped. We had been trying for a second child – that dream was dashed. I had recently launched a business – that project was sidelined.
I experienced uncertainty, sadness, anger, and pure fear. That fear caused me to retreat into myself. I didn’t want to talk to anyone about my diagnosis because it was too painful to relive with each retelling. Each time I would muster the courage to discuss what I was going through, I left the interaction feeling depleted and raw. At a certain point, I didn’t want to talk, walk, smile, or leave my bed. I was short-tempered with my husband and son. I felt stalled. Stuck.
Depression loomed like a rain cloud that would not pass …and I sought professional help. I mourned the loss of my old life. How could I escape this cloud of sadness?
I wanted to take my life back. But how could I keep moving when I was paralyzed by fear – a fear that never leaves your side, even after you’re in ‘remission’.
I began to create…
It started small. Drawings, sketches, poems, songs.
These small creative projects brought me one step closer to myself. They were my ‘little triumphs’ over my all-encompassing fear.
I started ‘Share Triumph’ to showcase the small steps that lead us on our path back to joy.
My little triumph may not be the same as yours – and that’s okay. We are all on different paths.
As we share our small triumphs we are both encouraging others as much as we encourage ourselves. Sometimes we need a reminder that we should simply start putting one foot in front of the other.
When I was diagnosed with breast cancer in October 2015, my life stopped. We had been trying for a second child – that dream was dashed. I had recently launched a business – that project was sidelined.
I experienced uncertainty, sadness, anger, and pure fear. That fear caused me to retreat into myself. I didn’t want to talk to anyone about my diagnosis because it was too painful to relive with each retelling. Each time I would muster the courage to discuss what I was going through, I left the interaction feeling depleted and raw. At a certain point, I didn’t want to talk, walk, smile, or leave my bed. I was short-tempered with my husband and son. I felt stalled. Stuck.
Depression loomed like a rain cloud that would not pass …and I sought professional help. I mourned the loss of my old life. How could I escape this cloud of sadness?
I wanted to take my life back. But how could I keep moving when I was paralyzed by fear – a fear that never leaves your side, even after you’re in ‘remission’.
I began to create…
It started small. Drawings, sketches, poems, songs.
These small creative projects brought be one step closer to myself. They were my ‘little triumphs’ over my all-encompassing fear.
I started ‘Share Triumph’ to showcase the small steps that lead us on our path back to joy.
My little triumph may not be the same as yours – and that’s okay. We are all on different paths.
As we share our small triumphs we are both encouraging others as much as we encourage ourselves. Sometimes we need a reminder that we should simply start putting one foot in front of the other.
Working from interviews with 40 survivors, Iliev-Piselli has created triumphant essays that will lift readers up like a conversation with good friends (if all your friends had survived cancer!).
During life’s most difficult moments, these women found joy in creative pursuits as diverse as they are, including writing, stand up comedy, drawing, air guitar, and many more.
Get ready for honest, inspiring, uplifting, rock-n-rolling, gut-wrenching, heart-pounding, chemo-brain-fueled tales about cancer and its aftermath.
