My Story. My Perspective. My Way. With Humanly Our Story

When I was diagnosed with thyroid cancer, I never thought about publicly sharing my story—let alone, starting a blog. In the immediate aftermath of my diagnosis, I was consumed with learning as much as I could about my options: how to find a surgeon, what to ask during the consultation, and when to schedule my surgery. As a patient, I was quickly haunted by the horror stories I came across on the Internet from those who came before me, many of whom were writing about the very things I feared myself—a misdiagnosis, an incompetent surgeon, or worse, reading about people never feeling like themselves again. You can imagine the relief I experienced when none of the worst-case scenarios I pondered came true. I was fortunate and I wanted to find a way to give back—to offer hope to those who were struggling with their diagnoses and provide a voice to those who were searching to find their own. I had to share my story.

Thankfully, there’s a platform that recognizes the importance of allowing those touched by cancer to share their unique story, in their own voice, and in an open and honest way. Humanly Our Story has created a community that offers cancer thrivers the opportunity to be heard and allows them to be more than their diagnosis. On this platform, people can share what makes them human—a short personal anecdote, a memory, an emotion, or their entire story. Through uploading their written words or using their voice to make an audio recording, cancer patients, survivors, and caregivers can create a dialogue around difficult topics like fear, or talk about things that have helped them, like self-care tips or mindfulness tricks. In this community, nothing is off limits.

People touched by cancer will experience their own range of emotions, from sadness and anger to loneliness and longing for the life they had before they were diagnosed. As a cancer survivor, sharing my story has been cathartic and it has allowed me to connect with other incredible patients and survivors on a deeper level. By telling my story, I strive to inspire newly diagnosed patients and give them some sliver of hope during a difficult time in their life.

The community that Humanly Our Story has created is something I wish I would have come across during my own diagnosis. I am grateful to be able to share my story on this platform and lend my voice to something I feel so passionately about.

I invite you to learn more about Humanly Our Story, listen to my story on the platform, explore the playlists of the community, and share your own experience.