My GLP-1 Journey - And Why I Almost Didn't Share It

My GLP-1 Journey - And Why I Almost Didn't Share It

A personal reflection on cancer recovery, hormones, emotional eating, and learning that asking for help is not weakness.

There is a version of this story people expect to hear after cancer treatment.

• The brave survivor.

• The triumphant ending.

• The gratitude.

• The perspective.

And while there was certainly gratitude, there was also something else that felt much harder to admit.

I did not recognize myself anymore.

Not everyone loses weight during cancer treatment. I didn't. Between medications, exhaustion, isolation, and a body constantly fighting to recover, I gained weight instead. Then, only a few months after treatment ended, I suffered a devastating fall that left me with multiple broken bones in my arm and shoulder.

• Surgery.

• Months of rehab.

• Pain.

• Limited movement.

By that point, I felt completely broken - physically and emotionally - and I was at the highest weight I had ever been.

At the same time, the medications that helped save my life had also thrown me into chemical menopause. My metabolism no longer felt like my own. Every day felt like a battle against a body I no longer understood.

And for the first time in my life, I realized something I had a very hard time admitting:
I needed help.

The Part People Do Not Talk About

If I had a nickel for every person who told me how lucky I was after cancer, I would be very rich.