By Kathleen Brady – The Guardian.
I’ve been forced to pause my life before it’s barely begun. Facing the unknown is petrifying – but facing my friends is almost as hard.
While it’s fair to say that a cancer diagnosis at any age seems unfair, to be diagnosed in your 20s goes against everything we expect. You’re supposed to be getting started in life, finally finding a job you enjoy, learning how to scrape together some savings, maybe finally moving in with a partner. Perhaps you’re buying a home, trying new things and meeting likeminded people. You’re meant to be healthy: healthy enough to hold down a good job, go out every weekend, travel at a whim and generally enjoy your life.
I found out that I have cancer two months ago. Not horrible, terminal cancer, but the kind that ensures you will never feel safe and complacent again, the kind that makes you rethink all you’ve ever known.
I’m in that “inbetweenness” of adulthood. I’m no longer young enough to live at home protected by my family and their financial security, able to rely on them for all I need, yet I don’t have a family to call my own and I am still climbing that career ladder…read the full article.
