MBC and Family

Khadijah: When I told my father about my diagnosis, he said “daughter, you beat this thing before, you can do it again. You’re strong, you got this.” And I had to gently tell him “Dad, this is different this time. I am going to be fighting for my life.” And when I had to share the news with Deja, I was really… I was devastated to have to tell her this news because she had been my biggest cheerleader when she was younger because mama was a survivor. She wore pink with me to all of the conferences I spoke at. But this time I was dealing with life and death, and I knew she was older so she would understand this a bit more.

Khadijah: Dej, how did you feel?

Deja: Um, when you told me about your diagnosis, I couldn’t wrap my head around it fully but it wasn’t until you started having the symptoms and I did my own research and that in itself scared me.

Khadijah: Often times, family members don’t understand the nature of this disease. That it’s an ongoing battle.

And that they are going to need love and support, the endurance to support them through the whole process, through the journey.

Deja: Yeah, I agree. You know, there was a time where we both sought therapy together and separately. You know, at the time I didn't really know how to talk about my feelings, but in hindsight, I see the importance of going to a therapist.

Khadijah: You've been my co-survivor many years, so you've experienced the ups and downs of this disease and it's, it's really comforting knowing that you're there and even though it's not an experience I want you to have but it's an experience that we have together and that we are able to support each other through this.

What I would tell anyone about this metastatic journey is that it's not going to be easy, but it's important to continue to have hope and to continue to love each other and to create new memories as much as you can because none of us knows how long we have on this earth, but the time that we have… just make it as special as you can.