Christen’s Dash In Life | Sesquicentennial State Park, Columbia, SC
Psalm 46: God is within her she will not fall.
On a beautiful October Fall morning, I met with Christen at Sesquicentennial State Park for her portrait session. During the session, I enjoyed getting to know more about her while we talked about our families, future life plans & more. Being that this was Christen’s first professional portrait session she requested some soulful tunes from Jill Scott to help her to relax…Yes, I always bring music since it helps relax the client.
Discovery
November 21st is the day that Christen will never forget. This was the day she was told she had breast cancer. Christen routinely administered self-checks but never really thought how serious the checks were. After recently moving to Columbia and being a new patient at an OBGYN office who would have thought she would receive some potentially disturbing news. During her routine exam, the doctor conducted a breast exam but this was more intense than normal. Christen noticed she circled the right breast first then the left, then back again. She then asked “You ever noticed a small knot on the left breast?” Then she had me feel it and said, “ I want to follow up with a mammogram due to your history of breast cancer in your family.” Christen thought nothing of this and brushed it off as her being cautious because she was a new patient.
Christen scheduled her appointment for a mammogram per her doctor’s orders. She was hesitant initially because she was only 34 and thought she didn’t have to have one until she was at least the age of 40. During her exam instead of going in just one time on each side she noticed they completed the mammogram again, she thought since her breasts were small they needed to complete the exam multiple times since I did not have much tissue. After her mammogram and sitting for a long time in the waiting room she was finally called back to receive her results. She was told some calcifications were seen and wanted to look further could so they could perform an ultrasound and biopsy on the spot.
“I remember the radiologist saying Ms. Thomas-Legette I am so sorry to tell you; you have breast cancer.” The cancer was consumed in the ducts of her right breast. He explained that she had DCIS (ductal carcinoma in situ) breast cancer, which meant she had cancer only in the tissues of the ducts of her breast and it had not spread from that spot.
After hearing the diagnosis everything else that was said was a blur but she quickly remembered the words from Luke 1:45 ‘Blessed is She who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what had been spoken to her by the Lord.’
Treatment
Christen decided to have her treatment done close to her support system and began her treatments in Florence. She also registered her kids for school in Florence and her mother stepped in to care for her sons. On December 17th she had a successful bilateral mastectomy. A common feeling after having a similar surgery she felt defeated but her mom enforced in her that she cannot lay there and she needed to keep fighting. She also knew she had her sons depending on her, so she had to fight.
Each morning when she woke up she thanked God for allowing her to see another day and posted a positive message on Facebook to bring joy and inspire someone else who might read the post. Little did she know her journey would indeed inspire another person who was going through the same thing. “So today I say to you don’t allow life’s battles, illness or obstacles to stop you from praising God every day for the gift of life.” She said.
Thriving
Christen now is an advocate for women to perform their self-checks and to have their mammograms done early if possible. She has since had numerous speaking engagements sharing her story. She recently spoke at two women’s conferences in Greenville and Lake City.
This is just the beginning for Christen and she plans to keep sharing her story. “I want to make my dash count. I no longer take moments for granted I want to use my life and my testimony to inspire others and show others you can fight and beat cancer.”
Christen plans to make her walk with God stronger. “I know with him I can accomplish or overcome anything.” She also stands by her personal affirmation from Psalm 46: God is within her she will not fall.
“I know with him I can accomplish or overcome anything.”
In conclusion, I would like to thank Christen for her courage and for sharing her story with me. I truly enjoyed meeting her and capturing her images. While reading Christen’s testimony she made it known that no matter what she keeps faith in God.
Thank you for taking time out to read my blog post. Please like the blog post, comment and share it on your social media pages with your friends. If you want me to capture your story please email me at henry@henryjonesphotography.com so we can discuss documenting your life story.