I couldn’t keep living the way I did, in panic, in tears, in fear, in survival mode. Something had to change! I was ready to make that change. I had to live, not just for me, but for my daughter. I could no longer let fear consume me. Their words finally sunk in. My mind is what I had to take control of. I had faith in God, I needed to trust my doctors, I had to rely on my support system. I had hope and I had to express that joy and fulfilment I so desperately desired, and so without further hesitation, I did.
I had not told many people, only a handful of people knew about my diagnosis. For a long time I had been contemplating on how to tell a lot of my family and friends. I valued my privacy and I really didn’t want anyone to feel sorry for me. There were times I wondered if I would have been more proactive about my yearly check ups if I was aware that cancer was not just a disease of much older women. Maybe, maybe not! however, the thought did cross my mind. I finally knew what I had to do. I had to raise awareness, I needed to help a lot of younger women to be more proactive about their health. That was it, I decided would not only let my friends and family know, I would reach as many young women, and men know that breast cancer could affect the young adults as much as older adults. This epiphany led to the birth of my foundation, Dare to Live with Anjoh.
And so on my 33rd birthday, May 5th, 2019, I made a video to share my story and I shared it. The response was overwhelming. For days on end I was glued to my phone, messages, calls, I held back tears, I had to.
There is something that is key to my desire to start my foundation. The key is support. I made it through because I had support. I am able to laugh and smile because I had support. I am able to stand tall because I had support. I had unwavering support, I had powerful support, I had the support I needed. they saw me through, so I had to see myself through. this support gave me the strength I needed to fight. This support is giving me the strength to be able to help as many people as I can. This support is the key to healing, it is the key to a strong fight. This support is ongoing. Having felt the impact support had in my healing, it was a no brainer to me to be able to not just support those in need. To support with resources they will need on their journey to healing, and also to encourage them to live a full life as much as they are able to each day of their treatment and their healing.