In this episode, Jodi-Ann Burey speaks with Shayla Martin, who was diagnosed with Invasive Ductal Carcinoma - IDC. Shayla shares how her journey of surviving cancer and her mastectomy has completely changed the trajectory of her life: how do you cope with cancer when it's the thing that put you on the path for your purpose? Shalya provides details on the happenstance way she found her tumor and her path towards treatment. There are several parts of the cancer journey others do not see and this episode reveals a bit more of what that looks like for Black women. 

Jodi-Ann and Shayla bond over always having appointments with Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center on the calendar, Black natural hairstyles and the markers we have in our lives because of cancer.  Jodi-Ann and Shayla also discuss passages from Audre Lorde’s book, The Cancer Journals, and how breast reconstruction has changed her relationship with her body and what it means to face your own mortality.  

Post show goodies: 

• what we do with all the cards 
• what work schedules and life plans looked like after the moment of diagnosis, and 
• how we try to be more present in our lives. 

Here are Shayla’s listener recommendations: 

• Someone to know: Brene Brown 
• Someone to read: Brene Brown’s books on vulnerability 
• Something to listen to: music - throw yourself a party! 

Episode transcripts on blackcancer.co. Click here for the transcript for this episode. 

This episode was created during the 2020 global COVID-19 pandemic and the movement for Black lives.