Being your own advocate & finding confidence with guest Amy Hart
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Intro (0:00)
Today’s guest is Amy Hart
In an Ileostomy due to colon cancer
Mom to 2 little girls.
She has an amazing story, going through Colon cancer THROUGH covid!
The Beginning Of Amy’s Story And How It All Started (1:28)
Diagnosed in November of 2019.
On the heels of my daughter’s birthday.
Approaching her birthday, started having a lot of changes in bowel movements.
Was always a slow-moving human, but then it started moving fast and furious.
Started seeking therapy thinking it was something to do after having children.
Chalked it up to PPD or other things, but doctors didn’t think anything was wrong.
Her body was speaking but did not know what it was saying.
Intense abdominal pain and cramping.
Bleeding began in the stool and it was not just a little. Alternating with feeling sick and not being able to go to the bathroom fully.
Emptying bowels completely.
Knew something was not right.
Listen to your family history.
Grandmother died of Colon Cancer
Mother died of Uterine Cancer
No concept of genetic testing until was diagnosed with cancer.
Had to fight a doctor to give me a colonoscopy because I was so healthy.
When they did it, they found cancer immediately and said it was in later stages.
Has been a difficult process for her, and continues to be a big challenge for her.
Knowing this information is so powerful because she will be forever monitoring her body.
Have now had other family members get checked because of what she has gone through to make sure they are safe.
Looking Forward (10:25)
Wanted to hide away forever after getting her Ostomy
But THIS wasn’t who she was. How I found her on Instagram!
A lot of people may not understand it, but they see us through it.
She has found confidence that she didn’t have before.
She was not easy on herself, she was mean to her and she did not need to be.
Didn’t pick this life, but you are doing it and you are owning it!
You are not alone doing this.
Surgery & Ostomy (12:18)
Diagnosis November 2019 through colonoscopy.
Then MRI and CT and another colonoscopy afterward to biopsy the tissue to confirm Stage 3B Colorectal Cancer.
Genetic testing confirmed Lynch Syndrome
Predisposition to multiple cancers. Colon, Uterine, Bladder, and Kidney.
Marker from genetic testing came back at 80% Colon Cancer. So when the Surgeon got that they knew they should be as aggressive as possible.
2 years out of surgery and numbers are still scary.
We should all know our genetic testing whether it’s genetic testing or something else.
After Lynch Syndrome Diagnosis went in for Radiation for 6 weeks. December 9th – January 14th.
I had a 6 week break then had surgery in March.
Took the entire colon. – Ileostomy to get everything or less of a chance of coming back.
Surgeon and Tumor board looked at the case and said to remove the entire colon and everything beneath it.
Total Proctocolectomy with an end Ileostomy and ATR reconstructions
BIG thing saying if you looked at the inside picture of a body, she would have nothing from the colon down.
Reason for that extreme version of surgery is because she is young and wanted to be there for her kids.
This is the best thing you can do to have one surgery and have it over with and give yourself the best chance.
At the end of the day, it came down to being done with it and not having to worry about all of the “What ifs”.
Post Surgery (21:00)
Came out of surgery and the minute woke up in the ICU would not let the nurse help her with that.
That was her way of dealing with it
Researched how to take care of it and everything so she was ready!
Woke up and looked at it, puked then got to it.
Because of the lack of personal stuff with covid and not allowing any visitors, gave her a lot of time to get up close and personal with herself and have not spent a week alone in a long time.
Forced her to really say are you going to do this and get up or boohoo through this.
We all have a choice, everything in life is a choice and we all have these choices. The difference is getting better and getting louder.
Do have these moments of why me and poor me, and any of us who have gone through something devastating in our life have these thoughts.
But LOVE to see the other side of it too. We are still all walking this path.
“This is the life we have been given and I am going to do what I think is best.”
Can say this is really hard, I don’t want others to go through it, but you can have good days and enjoy life. You can live and walk with it.
Closing (33:00)
Love the most that you shared about the mindset. The things you went through that it can be a dark path, but you chose not to go down that dark path.
Live your life the best you can. We are all doing it and trying to make sense of what our path is.
Your story is important so live it! We only get this one and when it’s over that is it.
Look at it and say, it wasn’t perfect, but I showed up anyway and I had some fun.
Find Amy Hart on Instagram. @barefootprofessional @barefootostomate
I wish none of us had to go through this, but I am glad it has led us here.