MY LIFE Matters: Health and Wellness Issue - 4

Health THE EVOLUTION
discharge that eventually enhanced into an
8 cm tumor in my right breast where I was
told it was just a " cyst. " Given my past and
all the trials and tribulations I have been/am
still going through, I should feel that my life
is full of sorrow. I have been living with this
disease for seven years and my longevity is
truly a privilege. I wholeheartedly believe
it's greatly due to my mindset.
Let's take a deep dive on my evolution
of wellness and how I tackle this through
mindset, intention, action, and something
I call alternative.
MINDSET
There is light and love pumping in my
veins, yes cancer is there, but I am not
that! Nobody wants to have cancer, it isn't
planned, it just pops in out of nowhere. We
don't want it, but no pep talk I can give, can
wish that away. So, let's speak about the
truth, what keeps me living and loving life.
It started in my childhood, I carried
Evolution
of Wellness
THE IMPACT OF LIFE CAN WAVER NEGATIVELY OR
POSITIVITY, BUT IT'S ALL IN HOW IT'S HANDLED.
WHICH WILL YOU CHOOSE?
BY SHONTE DRAKEFORD
H
4
iya, my name is Shonte Drakeford, if you've heard of me, awesome, that means
my mission is spreading. If you haven't well, HELLO! Let me tell you about
myself and why I'm here. I'm currently a 38-year-old African American woman
from Washington, DC. I am the oldest of four, a product of foster care where
I also grew up in an impoverished environment. I was the first in my family
to receive a higher education. I married my high school sweetheart and am now a military
wife; my husband serves in U.S. Army with two combat tours under his belt. I am a nurse
practitioner by trade, infertile, and a farmer who's living with stage IV triple-positive metastatic
invasive ductal carcinoma (breast cancer) that has spread to my lungs, hip, spine, rib,
and hopefully nowhere else for a while. I was diagnosed at the age 31 de novo (initial diagnosis
of stage IV) after being denied and delayed proper diagnostic and high-risk screening
for six years. My first symptoms of breast cancer started at the age of 25 with nipple
MY LIFE MATTERS
HEALTH AND WELLNESS ISSUE SPRING 2023
an optimistic realist mindset of getting
out of my environment; I didn't want to
be poor anymore. I didn't want to rely on
anyone, I didn't want a life full of stress,
and I knew the only way out was through
education and perseverance. Therefore, I
changed my mindset in order to pursue
my goals. Every decision I have made in
my life started by changing my mindset
so I could change the outcome. I was told
I couldn't bear children after trying IVF,
so I moved toward adoption, but after I
was diagnosed with cancer, I was refused.
From there, I moved into being a camp
nurse for foster children and ended up
gaining eight godchildren. Now I have
what I always wanted, even with the barriers
I faced, because I maintained a strong
mindset and never gave up, even though I
had my weak moments. I know I can't control
cancer, but I want to. So do what you
can control. The power of the mind can
truly impact your reality. It's called biofeedback,
it's mind-body therapy that can
improve our physical and mental health.
How many times do you wake up in pain
thinking how much this sucks and begin
to hyperfocus on how bad your pain is as
your blood pressure increases, muscles
stiffen, and somehow it feels worse. If we
switch up our mindset when we wake up
in pain and instead think " this sucks, but
let me take a deep breath, take my pain

MY LIFE Matters: Health and Wellness Issue

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