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My name is Carolyn Warren and I am from Boston, Massachusetts. I'm a graduate of Clark Atlanta University. On June 5th, 2017 I was diagnosed with stage 4 Gastrointestinal (gastric/stomach) cancer, the doctors at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Dana Farber explained to me that there was a mass over my ovaries. I felt so many emotions like disbelief, sadness, pain, and fear. Prior to my diagnosis I took pride in working out, and participating in activities like yoga, shopping, reading fashion magazines, traveling, eating healthy and overall experiencing and enjoying life like any other average young woman my age. Undergoing day surgeries, chemotherapy treatments and overall being in the hospital sadden me.

 

Ultimately, I prayed for strength, to be able to feel better most days. I vowed to appreciate everyday and live life to it’s fullest potential. My appearance began to change I noticed I was losing weight. I would tell myself to be strong and not let this cancer overpower me. I had to fight this battle with my mind, body and spirit. There is a quote that says, “If confidence is not in your reach at the time, grace and humility make lovely substitutes.” Basically it’s having compassion, treating people kind and having humility for others, just because someone looks fine on the outside, we never really know or understand what they are going through or have been through.

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Fast forward to August 2017, once I gotten better and the tumor had shrunk I wanted to do everything that I feared or didn’t think I could accomplish. Life’s altering events, sickness, and illness will make you appreciate every opportunity to have a positive experience and outlook. From that moment on, I wanted to continue to pursue my fashion dreams of becoming a fashion stylist, and blogger and the list of goals are limitless. I want to inspire others to stay motivated and to never give up.

"It's not how many times you fall down. What's most important is how many times you rise."