It’s not what happens, but what happens next that counts

I was born in Raleigh, North Carolina. I grew up in a small town outside of Raleigh called Youngsville. I seemed normal as a kid. Played sports. Got into trouble. Things all kids do. At 10 years of age, I started having balance issues. I started throwing up once a week. My parents took me to the doctor’s office. They always misdiagnosed me. They would say “It’s a virus” or “It’s just inner-ear” I was told later in life that a small town doctor’s officer usually never treats a person with brain cancer.

On July 18th 1995, the doctors at Wake Forest Family Physicians ran a CT Scan. They found a huge mass and rushed me to Duke University in Durham NC. I was diagnosed with an Astrocytoma. I spend weeks in the hospital and weeks later at Lennox Baker Children’s Hospital. I had to learn everything again. How to talk, how to walk, even how to put on my socks. I went through 3 rounds of chemotherapy and several surgeries. I believe prayer, fish oil, and exercise play a huge role in someone’s recovery. Nearly 25 years later, I am alive and well in Cookeville Tennessee. I have a house and a beautiful fiancee named Nora. We have a beagle named Muffin. I also have a cat named Amber.

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Opinions expressed within this story belong solely to the author and do not reflect the views or opinions of the National Brain Tumor Society.