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In December 2024, Sarah A. received a phone call saying that her mom, Frida, was in the hospital and in critical condition. Sarah booked the next flight out and traveled from Illinois to California the following day.
“I had migraines for one to two years,” Frida said. “But that day, I had a very severe migraine. I was at work and drove myself home, which, looking back, was not a good idea, right? I waited for my mom to get to my house, and we went to the hospital right away, where I had a couple of seizures.”
After getting an MRI, doctors informed the family that Frida had a brain tumor, and they scheduled surgery for eight days later, on Dec. 27, 2024.
Sarah worked as a school psychologist in Illinois at the time of her mother’s diagnosis, so she took intermittent FMLA leave between December and March, allowing her to fly back and forth to support her mom. In February 2025, they learned that the tumor was glioblastoma, and Frida would need radiation and chemotherapy.
“I’m an only child, and she’s a single mom,” Sarah said. ”By March, I decided to fully move out to California. My boyfriend and I were finally settled from our move across the country by late May.”
Ongoing Challenges
The loss of independence after Frida’s diagnosis, in part due to seizures, was a tough pill to swallow.
“They took away my driving privileges, and that has really bothered me because I have to rely on someone to drive me,” Frida said. “That’s been the most challenging and very frustrating. But on a good note, my chemo is actually pills, so that has been a blessing. I don’t have to be hooked up to anything or rely on someone to take me anywhere.”
“She has gone from being able to cook her own food to now not having that ability,” Sarah said. “She now uses a cane, which we’re very grateful for because she started in rehab in a wheelchair after surgery, so mobility has been a challenge. Another challenge for her has been her speech — trying to remember words, articulate sentences, and articulate feelings.”
Despite her day-to-day challenges, Frida and Sarah are grateful for the time they have together, especially when they’re cheering on their favorite Chicago sports teams.
“Frida is a miracle,” Sarah said. “Her heart rate was in the 20s, and she had multiple seizures. She was not supposed to survive. She made a huge comeback, and it’s so beautiful. I just want to give other people the hope and the belief that there is a way to make a life, even with a diagnosis like this. There are some really, really hard days, but every day on this Earth is a blessing, and we just live it to the fullest every day.”
Becoming a Caregiver
Sarah spends her days trying to navigate wearing two hats — as her mother’s caregiver and her mother’s daughter — and manage the emotions that come with it. Not only is she ensuring Frida’s cooking, cleaning, and other daily household tasks are completed, but she wishes she could take the diagnosis away and heal her.
“I’m 27, so I’m trying to figure out my life,” Sarah said. “I had just finished my master’s program when my mom was diagnosed. Trying to figure out my own life as a young adult is hard in general, but then adding on being a caregiver and a daughter with an ill mom is hard, too.”
Sarah found that setting clear boundaries with her mother has been the biggest help as a caregiver.
“Caregiving is a 24/7 job on its own, and it could become very taxing,” Sarah said. “The burnout can be so real, to the point where you lose your own personality. I would accidentally lash out at my mom because I was feeling tired and burnt out. As a psychologist, I learned you can’t pour from an empty cup, so I set boundaries.”
Sarah prioritizes her Pilates class or a training run and blocks it out on her mom’s calendar. She encourages other caregivers to make time for themselves, no matter how short.
“Some people may not even have the luxury of an hour, and I get that,” Sarah said. “Even if you could get five minutes in the bathroom, sometimes it literally just takes that. Remember to take care of yourself because, if not, you are going to become a different person, and you don’t want the person you’re caring for to feel like you don’t want to care for them.”
“I joined my first caregiver support group, and both Jenna from NBTS and the co-facilitators are so welcoming,” Sarah said. “I can’t thank them enough for just creating that safe space where we can talk and not feel judged.”
Sarah found it impactful to simply be in a virtual space with other caregivers who understood what she was experiencing.
“One moment that sticks out is from the first meeting I attended,” Sarah said. “I cried for the first time. Being able to cry without even having to say anything was a highlight. In that moment, they understood and said, ‘We’re here for you.’”
Sarah’s boyfriend and her grandmother (second from left) also provide care for Frida
Because of Sarah’s positive experience in NBTS’s caregiver support group, she invited her mother to attend NBTS’s Brain Tumor Support Conversations, which is a welcoming space for patients and caregivers.
“I just wanted to listen in my first meeting and see what other people are experiencing,” Frida said of Brain Tumor Support Conversations. “They had the same type of feelings that I did.”
And now Sarah’s grandmother also attends Caregiver Support Conversations with Sarah.
“My grandma is 87, and she takes turns caring for my mom with me and my boyfriend,” Sarah said. “I told her, ‘Grandma, you really need to join as well,’ and she found it very insightful and encouraging that we’re not alone. It really has been the biggest blessing for us to have that and have community.”
Caregiver Support Conversations gives caregivers a space where they don’t feel isolated in their experiences.
“Liz, one of the co-facilitators, is incredible, and she always says, ‘We never wished that we would be here, but we’re happy that we are here together,’” Sarah said. “And that just always sticks with me, because it’s so true. I wouldn’t wish this on my worst enemy, and also, I’m so glad that we are part of that larger community and not feeling alone on a day-to-day basis.”
Attending the Southern California Brain Tumor Walk
Because of the support they’ve received from the National Brain Tumor Society, Sarah and Frida signed up for the Southern California Brain Tumor Walk to fundraise for NBTS.
“It was very emotional because there were so many people there,” Frida shared.
Sarah recalls the moment when they gathered everyone living with a brain tumor for a survivor photo.
“That moment was really powerful,” Sarah said. “I still get chills, and it still makes me emotional because you just see everyone come together. The people around them are just rooting for them. Everyone’s a cheerleader for each other in that moment.”
Sarah found herself struggling to push her mom in a wheelchair for three miles because of the heat that day.
“I felt like giving up, but then I thought about all the radiation she did, all the chemo she’s been doing, and I remembered this is half of what she goes through on a daily basis,” Sarah said. “My mom is a superstar, and I can push her three miles in this heat, so that was really powerful for me, too.”
Sarah, a former cross-country runner, began looking for her next challenge and asked her boyfriend, a former collegiate football player, to join her for a half marathon as a member of NBTS’s Gray Nation Endurance team.
“He loved that idea, so we signed up for the LA Half Marathon,” Sarah said. “NBTS has given us so much, which makes me want to run it even more. The ability to fundraise for such a great cause and run for my mom makes it really special.”
Join Sarah and her boyfriend for the Los Angeles Marathon & Charity Half on March 8, 2026, as a member of the Gray Nation Endurance team. Apply today for one of the remaining spots to run in this event, which starts at the iconic Dodger Stadium!
Find community in one of the National Brain Tumor Society’s virtual support groups that meet monthly. Caregiver Support Conversations welcomes caregivers currently supporting a person living with a brain tumor to connect with each other on topics that matter to them in a safe space. Brain Tumor Support Conversations is a welcoming space where patients and loved ones can have honest, supportive discussions about the feelings and emotions that accompany any aspect of the brain tumor experience.
“The caregiver support group really means everything because during the really hard moments, I’ve been able to get people’s phone numbers,” Sarah said. “If I want to text someone from the support group, ‘Hey, this is happening, I just need to vent or cry or be angry, and it’s been such a huge blessing.’”
