Recovering Strength One Step at a Time
My name is Melanie Scott-Bennett. I was born and raised in Indianapolis, IN and I currently reside in the Washington DC area. I am currently an in-house legal counsel for a large technology company. I was diagnosed in January 2013 with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia at 31 years old and had never had any illness in my life besides a common cold and had no history of any type of cancer within my family. Cancer uprooted my entire life! I was at the height of a budding career at the time. I was also engaged to be married, I had recently purchased my first home. I was at the beginning of the launch of what I felt was going to be the greatest part of my life and cancer changed all of that. I could not work due to the aggressive nature of my cancer and the treatment that was required. I had to be in the hospital for long periods of time. The treatment required all of my blood being eradicated through chemotherapy and then replenished so there were no “outpatient options”. I had to stop working and I had to postpone my wedding because they were not sure if I was going to live. I ended up having to move back home with my parents in another state because I could not take care of myself on my own. I needed a full-time caretaker.
I tried to stay positive and upbeat, especially early on. It became more difficult over time due to the uncertainty of everything. After I was blessed to receive a life-saving stem cell transplant, things were touch and go, but I miraculously survived. It took me a few years to fully recover and it was a rollercoaster of emotions, but the support of family and friends and my faith in God is really what helped me to continue to take life day by day, stay positive, and hope for a bright future.
I’ve been asked what advice I have for other survivors a lot. This is what I shared on my blog www.melstrong.com, “Welcome to one of life’s most challenging journeys. It will be extremely tough. You will be faced with every challenge imaginable — mental, emotional, spiritual, and physical. Things you never struggled with before will come at you like curve balls. Keep track of your small victories. You will need that momentum and energy as you progress from level to level. You will cry A LOT and you may not feel very strong sometimes. Your faith, friends and family will be the fuel you’ll need to survive this thing. Don’t get disappointed with a bad doctor’s report or low blood count numbers. You will have good days and bad days. Focus on your healing and not the sickness. Surround yourself with positive people and affirmations. The most important thing to remember is NEVER GIVE UP! It doesn’t matter how bad it looks or how tired of fighting you are. Don’t get tricked into thinking it’s over for you. You have so much to live for if you will just keep fighting. I can’t tell you how long this journey will last, but remember waiting time is not wasted time. It may not seem like it now, but it will all be worth it in the end. You can do this. Just hold on.”
Livestrong has been an amazing resource for me in my cancer journey and they’ve been with me at various points. It started when I was actually in the hospital. One of the hospitals where I was treated had a donation of Livestrong stationary bikes and they put one in my room so that I could move around and exercise even though I was unable to regularly exercise outside of the room or outside of the hospital. That was amazing! While in that hospital, I also received a set of resources from Livestrong. The resources included a planner, a book, and a way to keep really great records that I utilized at hospital visits and throughout my journey. I posted the Livestrong manifesto to my Instagram page because I thought it was such a powerful message. After I received my transplant, I had to learn how to walk again and gain strength in my arms and legs. Some months into my recovery, I got connected with Livestrong at the YMCA. I enrolled in that program with one goal — getting strong enough to walk down the aisle at my wedding without having to use a walker. When I first started, I was the second youngest person in the class, but the absolute slowest. After being in the program, I was able to stop going to physical therapy earlier than what my therapists anticipated because I was doing so much better and healing a lot faster than was expected. Months later, I was able to walk down the aisle without assistance from a walker or a cane and stand throughout my entire ceremony. I was so strong, I could even dance at the reception.
Livestrong has been extremely valuable to me and was instrumental in my recovery. I highly recommend it to cancer patients and survivors, especially for those who are interested in staying active throughout a very sedentary process or need to recover from muscle atrophy. I included Livestrong as one of the resource links on my website.
