Today's my 27th birthday. Because of the cancer I am so so thankful that I've made it here. I know some people don't believe in God but I do and here's some of why. Colon cancer isn't a disease they start looking for in people until they're about 50 years old so when I finally decided I needed to go to the GI doctor to get looked at, they made my appointment about 2 months away from the day I called. I knew I needed to be seen sooner than that.
I really wanted a female doctor because I just feel more comfortable with women. So I called the practice back and asked if they had a cancellation list or something so I could get in sooner. They didn't. So I started looking around for another female GI doctor who accepted my insurance. God sent me to Dr. Jyothi Mann. I was SOOOOO nervous and anxious going there, the preliminary questions they asked me made me cry because I was so mortified about being there and being asked such personal questions.
Dr. Mann was so incredible, she didn't do a physical exam on me at all because she must have known if she had, I would have been so scarred, I wouldn't have come back. I feel like most doctors would have said something like, "well, let's change your diet and see how that goes. We'll see you back in a couple of months." I didn't have a couple of months. She saw me back 2 weeks later for a colonoscopy, the one that saved my life.
I never cancelled the inital GI doctor appointment and when they called to confirm that appointment, I was on my second round of chemotherapy. I had already had surgery to remove the mass from my colon and was on the road for treating the rest of the cancer in my system.
Another thing that has proven to me that God is real is that I am in one of the best locations in the country for cancer treatment. People fly in from other countries to have treatments done where I live. I couldn't understand for the longest time why I got moved from my life in New York (Upstate, not the city) and my family and friends but after finding out about the cancer, I know why I'm here.
I just am so grateful every single day for God putting me where he has. It's not been easy by any means but since this has happened, I'm so glad that it's happened the way it is. The only thing I would have changed is me being stupid and not going to the doctor sooner. I was just too embarrassed. Lesson learned. I may not have made it to my 27th birthday if I hadn't been sent to Dr. Mann, if I had waited and gone to the other doctor, I honestly feel like my issues would have been brushed off because of my age. Luckily Dr. Mann was sensitive enough to my feelings that she must have known if I was there, it was for a reason. She has followed me every step of my treatment and has been such a huge encouragement for me. I can't rave about her enough.
I really just typed this out for myself but thank you for reading it if you have. Things may happen and we may not know the reason for them but there is a reason, rest assured.
