Breast Cancer Survivors ????????????

Hi- I survived stage 3 triple negative breast cancer that had spread to my lymphnodes. It is the most aggressive type, doesn’t always respond well to chemo, there are no targeted treatments for it, and it has the highest recurrence and mortality rate of breast cancers. I was 48 when diagnosed in between regular mammograms.
I had very aggressive chemo, then bi lateral surgery, then radiation. I just passed the five year remission marker so am officially considered a survivor. My likelihood of recurrence is now just as low as anyone else’s. I had a lot of post-chemo related challenges and ended up putting on a lot of weight (I was shocked to learn that to add insult to injury most women diagnosed with breast cancer end up gaining rather than losing 20+ pounds on average). I overcame all of that and have lost all the weight I gained from medications, the shock of sudden chemo induced menopause, depression, injuries and lack of movement associated with the above, laziness and lack of time, plus the extra weight I was already carrying before diagnosis, and although I have had to change some of my preferred fitness regimes, I am generally living a healthier life now than I was pre cancer, all things considered.
So, this is intended to be a yes, I hear you! It sucked! But it gets sooooo much better.

I do want to say though, please don’t succumb to the feeling that you have to be strong for everyone - I did act that way so that no one would worry too much about me, and that has sucked a lot these past 5 years as well, and made getting better way harder than it had to be. Tell people when things are hard and when you need help with something. I did not. Not when I was sick. Not when I was healing. I am only now realizing how many problems it created that i could have avoided. Weight gain was probably among them.