Tish

After being diagnosed with Stage III high-grade serous ovarian cancer, Tish found that much of the experience was shaped by the uncertainty of what would come next: the next treatment, the next scan, the next blood test.

Treatment brought both highs and lows. One of the hardest parts for her was something that might seem small from the outside: needles. She would sing and pray each time a nurse needed to access a vein, trying to manage the fear and panic that came with it.

Around her fourth treatment, Tish and one of her nurses found something that helped. She put in her headphones, turned up her favorite music, Taylor Swift, and focused on the songs while the nurse worked. It did not make treatment easy, but it gave her a way to get through a moment that had repeatedly felt overwhelming.

Today, Tish has been no evidence of disease (NED), or showing no evidence of disease, for the past six months.

Her experience has also changed the way she thinks about support. She learned that some friends or family members may not know what to say or how to show up, even when you wish they would.

That realization was painful, but it also opened the door to another kind of connection. Through the ovarian cancer community, Tish found what she calls her “teal sisters,” people who understood the experience in a way few others could.

Her message to others is to be gentle with yourself when people do not respond the way you hoped they would. Support may look different than you expected, and sometimes the people who make you feel least alone are the ones you meet along the way.