My name is Jessica I’m a 32 year old bartender from Lake Hughes and proud mommy to a beautiful young lady of 10 years . My world came crashing down a few months ago when I found out that I have metastatic breast cancer. I scheduled, what I thought w as going to be a “routine” appointment with my ob/gyn after experiencing some pain in my breasts. On October 4th She told me that I have irregular shaped and abnormally dense breast tissue which wouldn’t be as concerning if It weren’t coupled with an inverted nipple. She said not to worry too much because these things can be consistent with trauma, and it’s very rare to see Cancer in women my age, but we’re going to do more tests just in case. Between my rambunctious child and working in the food service all of my life I’m no stranger to taking an elbow or service tray to the chest or arm while colliding coming around a corner. She sent me to an imaging center for more tests. On October 11th I received a call saying that my test results were in and that I should come in immediately to discuss my results. I knew it wasn’t good because she told me that I should have someone drive me there. A diagnostic mammogram and ultrasounds revealed 3 masses, one in each breast and one in my lymph node and an ectopic pregnancy. Because the pregnancy was unviable it would have to be terminated. She told me that my imaging labeled me as Bi-rads level 5 meaning that’s there’s a 95% that it could be cancer. I was in shock, I didn’t cry at first but I didn’t make it to the parking lot before I hit my knees. The first few days after receiving the news felt unreal. On October 15th I was involved in a car accident, I was hit by a county utility truck. I walked away with nothing more than a little whiplash but my poor car wasn’t so lucky, it was a total loss. I stood on the side of the road on couldn’t help but laugh because I was thinking what you’re probably thinking now… “this is like a bad movie, who’s writing this madness?!” After several weeks of chasing down doctors and referrals we finally got some good news! The initial biopsies revealed only one malignant tumor in my left breast, it hadn’t spread yet. My official diagnosis came on November 19th, Invasive ductal carcinoma with focal central necrosis. This was the beginning of many scans, needles, testing. I’ve suffered from depression for as long as I can remember but I’ve always managed to keep it under control with therapy and help from my family, but this time was different. I began to have panic attacks and severe social anxiety. I went from social butterfly to hiding from the world. In the first six weeks I lost 22 pounds. Come December I received a contrast imaging MRI that revealed the masses growing at a rapid rate so my oncology surgeon fast tracked my surgery date, but because of the size and placement of my tumor they would be unable to save my breast. On January 28th I had a mastectomy. While they were in there they tested my lymph nodes with a special dye that reacts to cancerous and precancerous cells and my nodes lit up. They removed 8 lymph nodes, my entire left breast and all of the surrounding tissue. The surgery was successful but I’m not out of the woods just yet. I’m still going to have to do chemo and hormone therapy so I know I still have a long road ahead of me. My doctor says I’m healing beautifully and with the help of my wonderful family I’m back on my feet. trying to keep my head up. I thank god every day for my amazing support system, because without them I don’t know where I would be. From the countless rides to attend doctors appointments, to the shoulders I’ve cried on, to the hands that have held mine when I was being poked and prodded at, to the ones who have climbed up my fire escape to check on me when I was buried in my bed and not answering my phone… thank you all from the bottom of my heart, I am forever grateful and with out you guys I don’t know where I’d be. I haven’t worked since I received the initial news and Because of this my mental health isn’t the only aspect of my life that spiraled out of control. It is with a humble heart that I ask for help one more time. I would love to get another car of my own but not having an income coupled with my depression I, foolishly, let my credit tank; so financing isn’t an option. I don’t need a Maserati just something comfy and reliable to drive my sweet girl to school in. If you’ve made it this far thank you. Even just hitting that share button can make a difference. Much love! ❤️‍