So my name is Sherry Overstreet, and I am a single mom. I have two adult children. I have a daughter that just turned 21 in August and my other son is 19. And then they have one left in school. He is a senior this year. He's 17. I'm retired Air Force I. I served in the Air Force for 23 years. I retired in 2017. I'm back to school in my forties. So I got my master's and clinical counseling and became a therapist and ran a full private practice for about five years. And so, yeah, so that's basically a little bit about me. I thought I was healthy and I was, you know, I was working out and I was running my business and I was feeling a little bit burnt out. And so I decided to take a trip. So I went to Costa Rica. I thought, you know, this is going to be great. You know, I'll take some time away from my business and just settle down and do some unwinding and in a beautiful place. And so I went there for about a week and I didn't notice when I was there that I was out of breath a lot more. And I just was like, you know, it's probably just, you know, a shift in altitude or whatever, and maybe it's jetlag. And so I started to, you know, say things like that. And I you know, I went on a little bit of a hike and I was out of breath and that wasn't too bad. I didn't really have anything significant happened until I got back, which actually is a blessing in disguise, which I was walking up to the post office and I was carrying a couple of boxes and I thought I was going to pass out. My heart started beating really fast and I'm like, okay, there is something really going on here. I might have a virus or something like that. And so I was I met my one of my friends for brunch and I said, Yeah, I just don't feel right, like I'm still off. Not sure really what's going on. So came back home and I called the nurse triage line and I was just telling them like my symptoms. And then she was like, You need to go to the E.R.. Right? Which I should have just done. So I went. I drove myself to the E.R.. I just you know, I just thought that, like, I picked up a virus or something from Costa Rica. That's what I thought. And I got to the E.R. and they were like, Your oxygen is like a 70. You have to stay here. And it was very weird. It was just a whirlwind of things going on. I'm like, okay, there's something off. They did blood tests and they were they said that my platelets were tanking. My hemoglobin was tanking, and I need a blood transfusion, I need a platelet transfusion. And it was very weird for me. I was like, What? Like this is insane. I felt fine, like two days ago, I got the you know, I started getting transfusions, obviously admitted to the hospital. And they so the hospital I was in a neighbor like, we don't really know what's going on. We they did find a mass under my right breast. They because they were they were just turning over everything. They were testing me for everything because they did not know. And so we need to do a mammogram or, you know, we need to look at that and we're going to have to send another hospital. So I got transferred to an ICU in Denver and they ended up finding out that I had the that the mass under my right breast was cancerous. And the reason why my blood was tanking was because it had metastasized to my bone marrow and so, anyway, after Thanksgiving, they diagnosed with stage four metastatic breast cancer. And so that was the beginning of the that's the beginning of the whirlwind story. I didn't feel anything. And so my in fact, my last mammogram, they were like, you know, your breasts are very you have very dense tissue because, you know, I guess the older you get, your breasts get more dense. And I never I never you know, I never felt anything. And so I also had a a swollen lymph node in my armpit. And I didn't buy this and I didn't recognize any of that. And I my sister was with me at the time. And they said that I mean, I knew it wasn't good, you know. So they said that. And they also said it's aggressive. They use that actual word. And I just lost my body. You know, I think that, you know, being in mental health, you know, we can go into a lot of we, you know, tend to go into like fight or flight or freeze. And I totally froze. I was in a freeze response. I don't think I was even in my body, to be honest with you. I just I left the building, basically. And so I think I needed to to actually get through that part. And my sister cried and she goes, You didn't even have a reaction. And I. I just didn't it wasn't it wasn't hitting me. I just didn't it didn't hit me. It didn't hit me until way later. So I think it was I think it took me a couple of months to really get out of the fog. So part of it, too, was like I had loved what count. So I wasn't I had no energy. I was tired, I could barely walk. I could barely walk from the couch like five feet to the kitchen, you know. So that's how how tanked I was. So I think part of that was why I didn't have a reaction is, well, because I was just so, so much in the fog. And I all I wanted to do was rest. You know, everything was wearing me out. And so it wasn't until probably a couple of months later I attended a support group, which I wasn't ready for, and it was cancer, you know, people that have been through, you know, are going through cancer stuff. And they were all younger than me, I mean, very young. And they all had they were on different stages. I was at one stage for and I'm listening to their stories and I'm like, I'm doomed. I felt like I was doomed because they had all gone through all these things. And I'm like, Well, what about me? I'm stage four. Like, like I don't even have a chance, you know? Like, that's how I was taking it. And what I learned from that was, you know, my story is different than their story. Like, we don't all have the same story. And anyway, I had a massive breakdown, which I think needed to happen, and then came coming out of that. That was when I came to acceptance, like I was accepting that this was what was happening and now what can I do now? And the other important thing is to is that I'm still alive. I'm here. Like, I'm not dead yet. So what can I do now that I'm here in this moment? You know, I can succumb to it or I could just love, you know? And so that's what I just started to put one foot in front of the other and go, you know, I'm alive and I'm going to make it count. And so I believe that's been really that mentality has been so crucial to my healing. I don't think I would be healed if it wasn't for that piece of it and the attitude. Yeah. So they didn't, you know. So the first part was I had to have my blood levels, had to be a certain point before they would do anything with me. They wouldn't treat anything, They wouldn't do surgery, nothing. They didn't want to touch me because my blood cancer so low. So to put it into perspective, my platelets were about 20,000. And then to be at a healthy level, you need to have 150,000. So I wasn't even close and they were not going up very fast. And so I started to get really diligent about seeing the numbers go up in my mind. I said, Look, what number do I need? Okay, well, you need at least 90,000 before we could do anything. And so I just started to picture 90,000. And then it happened right? So then every time I would just ask, okay, well, what now? What do I need next? So I would just visualize it and then it would happen. And so pretty soon I was put in, they put me on a targeted treatment and pertuzumab and so they put me on that and I started to get better. I kept getting better and better and even like the blood transfusions helped me to get better as well. And so I just kept getting better and better. And then I ended up transferring from a VA in Aurora and Denver to Banner, and the Anderson transferred there. And then they started me on her septum, and I was on that for 12 rounds. Programs of chemo washed my hair. Obviously I have really long hair, lost the hair, and now it's growing back, which is great. Yeah. Oftentimes, you know, we're going to be here. I mean, I see. Do you know? So I went through that part. Yeah. So I have a great I've had such great care. You know, sometimes I think some of the language would get to me when, you know, one of the one of the nurses had said was like, yeah, you're it's aggressive, you're really sick. She kept using those types of words. And I was like, okay, I have to switch that in my mind because if I focus on that, like I'm going to just be depressed. So I just started going, okay, that's an opinion. And I, you know, a diagnosis is an opinion also. And it's like, okay, what can I do different? Like within my body and myself and my mind. And I just started practicing visualizing myself healthy and on that track, like, what's next? What could I, what can I visualize next? And I just kept I just kept getting better and better languages, everything. And your words, the things that you say really do matter. And one of the things that has come up for me with all of this, you know, the cancer stuff, is that there were things in my body that needed to be healed, and it sounds a little weird. However, I will talk to my body like, what is what is this mass mean to me? Like, what is it? What does it mean to tell me? And I sense of healed so many mother wounds like some nurturing that I was missing. You know, the breast is all about nurturing yourself, and I just wasn't taking good care of myself like I thought I was and giving myself what I what I needed. You know, I remember something goes, what do you need? And I automatically was like, I don't need anything. I didn't even check in with myself to ask myself what I needed. So I think that definitely getting a second pending yeah, is great. And then also just realizing that it saves for is not the end. Like I think that when you hear cancer, at least when I used to hear the word cancer, I'm like, Oh yeah, that person's just done and it's just not true. You know, it's it's really actually a misconception that I've learned is that you, you can still live, you know, you can still live a long time. And listening to your doctors is so important. And I think that that's something I've learned, too, is there's so much misinformation. And when I was first diagnosed, I was like, I got to figure this out. I got to figure out what to do. And I started going on all kinds of crazy diets and supplements and I mean, just to have some sense of control. And it wasn't until I let go of that or it was like, okay, it's going to be okay. I don't I don't need to do all this crazy stuff. I'm going to be okay. I just going to live in the in moment as much as I can. And, you know, the truth really is that nobody knows our timelines, like even a doctor doesn't really know. I mean, they can speculate. And so I just think the most important thing is listening to yourself and listening to your body and what your body is saying to you, I think is key to the whole thing, the medication I'm on. So for stage four breast cancer, HER2 positive that I have, I've got to do infusion every three weeks. So I'm still on that every three weeks. I'm not. I'm done with the chemo for the breast cancer and I have had three PET scans since November. And I will tell you the good news, which is that first scan was awful. It was they said that it was riddled with my bones are rubble of cancer and that it was not going away. Well, so that was in that was in November. And then I had a scan three months later, February, I believe there was no evidence of disease in my body. So just in that short amount of time, I have no evidence of disease in my body. Yeah, even I was like, Are you sure? But I was even questioning like, Wait, I'm positive. So it took me. I had the same reaction I had when I got the diagnosis. I was numb. I didn't have a reaction because I just didn't believe it. I was like, How? What? How's that even possible? So I so I asked the nurse, I was like, Is it really like, what do you call that? You call that remission? And like, what do you call that she was no is no evidence of disease. I'm like, really? So they showed me on the scan that like, no mass, the mass gone. No, the lymph node is swollen. Lymph node is, is gone And I just was I it just blows my mind. It still blows my mind, actually. And so those scans are every three months I just had another one like a couple of weeks ago. And that one is also clean. There's no evidence of disease on that one. And fact, I had a fractured rib in January that showed it's like up here they showed a fractured rib and they had some other stuff on the bottom of my ribs. And those are completely healed as of this last scan. So the doctors are like, Yeah, you're doing great. Like you're healing, your body is healing. And so, yeah, so every, every three months those are my infusions or every, every three weeks, you know, which at first I was like, Oh my gosh, this sucks, you know? However, like, I don't have a lot of side effects from that, that infusion at all. Like, it's just like going and getting vitamins to me. I don't like chemo that I got her sucked in. The side effects were, you know, I just, I the way that I could describe it was heaviness felt very heavy and I just did a lot of resting. I didn't have any noxious nerves or anything like that. I didn't I mean, I, I didn't have a lot of side effects. It was mainly just heaviness and like, not just feeling like I just wanted to lay down a lot. And so I didn't do a whole lot during those 12 rounds they were every week. So I was pretty tanked. And when you do chemo, your your blood levels tend to go down. So, you know, I was in and out of anemia, you know, was like a rollercoaster. So I just rested a lot during that time. I didn't do a whole lot of anything. So yeah, not it wasn't bad. It was just black like a blah feeling. I see that things don't don't happen to you. They happen for you. It's a weird thing to say that I'm grateful for it. Like I'm grateful for cancer is so true, though, because I. I have just healed so many things in my body and I have more inner freedom and peace in myself than I ever have had before in my life, because I started to face it versus like running from it. So, you know, fear is is totally happens, right? It's like, oh my God, like what's going to happen to me and what's going to happen to my kids? And all of that is real and that comes up and and it's like, okay, well, I have a choice. I could either face it or I could run from it. And there, you know, another thing is, you know, I heard a long time ago it was a get to know fear. And as you get to know, the dissolves, right, It starts to melt away a little bit. And it's like, okay, I could do this. Like, I don't there isn't anything to be afraid of. You know, we're all going to die at some point. I just don't you know, of course, we don't know when. And so for me, it was switching this to, okay, I get to love today. I'm so grateful to be alive. I mean, because in November I could have been dead and I and I am so, again, appreciate that I'm alive. And I think that she is like, okay, I'm my breathing today. So I get to live today and I started a podcast to help other people. And that's helped me because it's like, you know, I'm back to life. You know? And I, I realized that one of the big things too, for me was realizing how, how disconnected I was spiritually and that is totally changed. And I just feel so much more connected to to God and my faith. And it wasn't something I don't think I would have had with all of these things wouldn't have come into place. Right. So, you know, again, key for me is living, you know, being appreciative and grateful for where I'm at and also giving. And this is one of the reasons why I wanted to do this story is because I do think that we need a lot of really need a lot more hope and inspiration out in the world and especially around this disease, you know, cancer and and people being in disease, you know, I think this could help lots of people have some hope and faith in themselves. So the message of hope I would give is that you have to remember that your story, that your story is different than everybody else's. So somebody's story, somebody else's story is not your story. And it goes always right. So I was in a big and I think a lot of cancer patients do this is going and the comparison of this person to them this person did this and then this person died in this person didn't. And I think that, you know, the most important thing is that your story is your story. It's not you're not your it's not the same as everybody else. And your body is different than everybody else's as well. And so that's why it's so important to listen to yourself. And going along that line was like, you know, I had this dense breast tissue. I didn't investigate it. I just looked like, oh, hard. I, you know, So I think the biggest thing I've learned is like, look at your labs, man. That is one of the most important things I could say is look at your labs and ask lots of questions. You know, that's one thing I've learned. It can change very fast. And so I think it's really important to investigate yourself and definitely get your your exams done on time Every time and ask lots of questions, especially if you're feeling like something's off. And my hemoglobin was off for a long time and the doctors downplayed that. And I, I was like, okay, well, I trust what they're saying. So whatever. I just didn't, you know, I just listen, I trusted that. And I think that you should trust it to an extent and also ask lots of questions because of your health. So now I'm very hyper vigilant. It's like, okay, my labs are this like I know exactly what they mean. And so you get to learn, you know, learn about that, that part of it. So that's been really important to me. And then the other piece of it is the other piece of advice I would give or highly recommend is have a lot of people around you to support you. And I, I've had so much support and, you know, I have really good people in my corner where I'm like, Hey, I need you to come with me because I don't know how I'm going to hear it. I just think that that's really critical because there have been so many times on this path where I've heard something and it's not what was said. And, you know, even what's a clean scan, It was like I just heard like it's getting better. I didn't hear that. That was no evidence of disease. I just heard it was getting better. And so when my friend request me, I was like, Did they say what I think They said? She goes, Oh, yes. That's what they said, okay, now I'm now I'm now I trust it. Right? So I think having that, that person in your corner is really, really important as well. Like.
