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After months of having excruciating headaches on and off, my OB/GYN doctors told me they were “just hormone headaches and postpartum issues.” After multiple days of another episode of these headaches, I woke up on December 16 with impaired vision.
I called her husband, Peter, who hurried home from work to find me in distress and my 6-month-old baby boy unattended on the bed. Peter rushed me to the Spanish Fork Hospital, where I was given a CT scan that showed a mass in my brain. I was transported by ambulance to Utah Valley Hospital and admitted to the ICU, where I was evaluated by a team of doctors. A neurosurgeon determined that Il needed emergency surgery to remove the tumor to relieve the pressure and swelling on her brain.
A few hours and several seizures later, the neurosurgery team performed a 5-hour surgery on me and was able to remove most of the tumor. In the hours following the brain surgery, I suffered a stroke as a result of the trauma and bleeding to my brain. This additional heartbreaking setback has damaged the area of the brain that allows me to see peripherally on the left side.
Two weeks after the surgery, I had gained most of my physical abilities back, thanks to the swelling in my brain receding. However, the pathology report revealed the tumor to be a grade 4 astrocytoma, an aggressive form of cancer.
It has caused a lot of fear for the future, especially with having a young child. It is sad to watch those around you struggle with helplessness and see the unknown in their faces as well. I need more help being a mom. I take a lot more medication. I try to be healthier. I had to stop working.
It helps with the comfort knowing that there are other young adults struggling with this, and we aren’t alone in our stories. To know that you aren’t the only one and that others can relate. But also knowing that everyone has different stories and statistics aren’t always accurate to you.
