Fighting for My Family While Facing the Fight of My Life

My name is Sharni. From a very small age, my life was marked by hardship — but also by a determination to survive.

I was born into poverty and chaos. My father was a bikie and my mother was a prostitute. I grew up facing abuse, instability, neglect, resentment, abandonment, and rejection. With no siblings, it was just me and my mother, who moved us constantly — across three states of Australia and through fifteen different primary schools.

I endured sexual abuse several times as a child. At 16, when I met my father for the first time, I was abused by him. He took advantage of my desperation to be noticed and loved, and what had already been stolen from me as a small child was taken again.

The impact of these experiences was profound and lasting. I have been formally diagnosed with Complex Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (CPTSD) as a direct result of my childhood and teenage abuse. This is not just a label — it is something I live with every single day. CPTSD affects how I sleep, how I cope with stress, how I respond to fear, and how I carry myself in the world. It is a constant reminder of what I endured and survived.

Later, I spent eleven years in an emotionally damaging and violent relationship with the father of my children. Despite this, I refused to let my past decide my future.

⸻

Education and Achievement

As a teenager, I studied music for two years at the Northern Rivers Conservatorium of Arts and achieved a High Distinction. It was one of my first tastes of real accomplishment, and it showed me that I could achieve more than what life had handed me.

As a single mother, I worked hard, raised my children, and pushed myself to achieve what once felt impossible. With sheer persistence and a passion for practical science, mathematics, physics, and chemistry, I graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree.

I then went on to complete a Graduate Certificate in Disaster and Emergency Response — because I wanted to use my knowledge to help people facing severe, life-changing situations brought on by natural disasters.

Every step of study, every qualification I earned, brought me not only knowledge but also a sense of real accomplishment. It elevated my self-worth and proved that I was not what I grew up believing I was. My education gave me something no one could take away: proof that I was capable, intelligent, and strong.

⸻

Love and Family

Eleven years ago, I met Steven. In him, I found my soulmate and true love. I am grateful every day for the life we share and the strength we give each other.

Together we built a small business from the ground up. It took sacrifice and long hours, but it gave us stability, purpose, and pride.

Our children are at the heart of everything we do:

• Joshua, 15, who lives with us and is thriving at school.

• Sabastian, who has endured a childhood scarred by violence but continues to grow stronger every day.

• Jessica, 24, Steven’s daughter, who is doing well in her own life.

• Aprell, also Steven’s daughter, who lives in outback New South Wales and, though we rarely hear from her, remains part of our family.

Each of them is our child. Every decision Steven and I make is with them in mind.

⸻

The Fight of My Life

On January 13th, 2025, my life took a devastating turn. I was diagnosed with pancreatic adenocarcinoma, an aggressive and lethal cancer. The tumour is in the head of my pancreas.

Pancreatic cancer is one of the deadliest cancers in the world, with a survival rate of only 13% at five years. This means that 87 out of 100 people with my diagnosis will not live beyond five years. That statistic hangs heavily over every decision, every treatment, and every plan for the future.

On February 19th, I underwent major surgery — a pancreaticoduodenectomy (Whipple procedure). My surgeons cut and reattached my portal veins to remove the tumour. I spent 8 days in Intensive Care, fighting to recover, and soon after developed a blood clot. The experience was traumatic and left me physically and emotionally scarred.

And that was only the beginning. Chemotherapy has brought its own challenges — far beyond fatigue. The side effects have been relentless:

• Esophageal spasms that feel like a heart attack

• Muscle spasms in my legs

• Bone pain that makes it difficult to walk or sleep

• Episodes where I lose my speech

• Blurred vision

• Hot flushes

• Severe back pain

• Gastrointestinal cramps and diarrhoea with pain

• Neuropathy — painful nerve damage that leaves my hands and feet burning, tingling, and weak

• Lost of taste with food

• Sudden onset of menopause in last couple of months

• Intense nausea, but minimal vomitting

• Insignificantly, a lot of hair loss, but not total.

Hospitals, tests, and treatments have become my new reality. Each day is a fight, and the toll on both body and mind is immense.

⸻

Why I Need Help

Cancer does not only attack the body. It takes away stability and peace of mind. While I focus on treatment and recovery, the everyday costs of living continue. Rent, food, medications, and school expenses pile up — along with the normal costs of raising children, like clothes for Josh, his ongoing sports activities, and the little things that make life feel stable and “normal” for him.

This GoFundMe is not just about medical expenses. It is about helping keep our family together through an incredibly difficult time. It is about ensuring my children have stability and security while I fight this disease with everything I have.

I cannot change the past, and I cannot control what cancer is doing to me now. But I can continue to fight — and I am asking for support to give my family strength and stability while I do.

Every contribution, no matter how small, will help us continue forward. If you cannot give, that is completely okay — I expect nothing. Even sharing my story means more than I can say.

⸻

Thank you for reading and for standing with us.

With gratitude,

Sharni

PS

I hope in the good of humanity and that it prevails over all the bad we easily create. I really do. This GoFundMe is much more about telling the story rather than taking donations.

But it’s just hope.