“I have what?,” I fearfully asked.
“You have breast cancer,” said the doctor in an empathetic tone. “Your biopsy came back positive.”
I immediately thought, “What did I do to myself?”
“Am I going to die?”
“What about my parents?”
“They need me.”
So many emotions were going through my mind at the same time, and the last one was “I am going to beat this!”
After consulting with my surgeon and the surgical team that was established, they explained that breast cancer is caused by three factors; however, none of those caused mine.
They explained my cancer was triple negative. At 41 years old, I found out I had a terminal disease the doctors could not tell me the cause of.
So now, the fight begins.
I had a lumpectomy performed on September 9, 2018, followed by two months of AC (chemotherapy), four months of Taxol (more chemotherapy), and twenty rounds of radiation. I figured after I healed from surgery, participating in exercise would help me persevere through my remaining treatments.
So, that’s what I did.
AC on Friday; a personal trainer on Tuesday; jogging on Wednesday; personal trainer again on Thursday. Friday through Monday would consist of more jogging. Then, I would start the week all over again.
AC was a little more difficult, but nothing close to the horror stories I heard. Finally, I had Taxol — a breeze. Weekly Friday treatments, running on Saturdays.
I was done March 31, 2019!
I had successfully completed chemo, worked full time, continued to smile, dressed up and put on makeup. My co-workers never knew what I was going through, and I figured if I felt good, I should continue to look good.
So that’s what I did!
Radiation was physically easy, compared to the chemotherapy treatments. I was able to work all day and have treatments afterwards.
Done, done, and done!
As I moved past radiation, I began to feel somber again.
“What did I do to myself?”
“Was it my love for fashion and beauty products?”
I began to research the ingredients in the beauty products that I was using on my face. After months of research, I discovered that paraben, sulfates, toxins, chemicals, carcinogens made up many of the products that I was using. I did not realize what I was putting on my skin was just as important as what I was putting inside my body.
My research led me to “clean beauty products.” I needed to change my skincare and makeup products. I now use Acure cleansing systems that can be found at Sprouts, Whole Foods, and even Marshall’s or TJ Maxx.
Initially, when considering makeup products, my first thought was to find a foundation for my skin tone.
I could not have been more wrong.
I have been able to find several different brands of “clean beauty products.” I settled with Lawless and Ilia and both products can be found at Sephora.
From foundation to eyeshadow, eyeliner, mascara, lipstick, and setting powder, Lawless and Ilia have everything I need. When I want to experiment with smaller “clean” companies I shop at Safe and Chic.
I am now a “Clean” Beauty!
