The words ‘you have cancer’ isn’t something anyone expects to hear, especially in their 20’s. The reality is, a cancer diagnosis is unfair, you can be left feeling angry, lost and alone. My first piece of advice would be to let yourself feel it all. Coming to terms with a cancer diagnosis can trigger feelings of grief, it is so normal to feel angry, sad, depressed or even numb.

During my own cancer journey, I found it helped me to take everything moment by moment. We often hear the phrase ‘take it one day at a time’ but when were talking about chemotherapy, radiation and many other elements of cancer treatment, a whole day can still feel extremely overwhelming. Breaking up the day, remaining present and tackling each tiny thing one at a time definitely helped me cope when I felt anxious.

A little word of advice Delta Goodrem (what a queen) gave to me during my treatment was to find something, anything, to look forward to each day. Whether its planning a post treatment holiday or something simple like a hot chocolate, it can really help to have something positive to focus on.

Going through cancer treatment in your 20’s can be made extra tough when you have the added layer of comparison to the rest of your peers. It can be a hard pill to swallow when you’re sitting at chemo scrolling Instagram, watching the rest of your friends enjoy Euro summer. Unfortunately, I had to remind myself that life isn’t always fair, nothing about cancer will ever be. What I do know is that each person faces challenges at different points in their life, mine just happened to be in my early 20’s. What I’m most grateful for is that I now understand, it is these challenges that mould us into who we are, that make us stronger, more empathetic humans. While I’m not grateful cancer came into my life, I know I wouldn’t be where I am today without the experience.

Written by Liv Jennings. Liv was 20 years old when she was diagnosed with stage 3B Hodgkins Lymphoma. A skincare girl at heart, she is determined to get her sparkle back and live her best life after beating cancer, while continuing to spread awareness. To find Liv on Instagram click here. To follow Liv on Tik Tok click here.