Today, I am a healthy, whole (despite missing a leg) individual. Although the emotional scars of cancer have not left me, my tumor is gone. The last feeling I ever expected to feel at this point in my life is guilt for surviving. Not everyone makes it out alive. We all know this, but it gets a bit harder to swallow when you remember these are people like you and I. It could have been me that didn't make it. Why was I spared when others weren't?

Power is a funny thing. It comes more from a mindset than it does from a title. Some people can command a room with their presence alone. Perhaps they were born with something special, or the confidence they have gained, crafting their skill now seeps out of them like sweat in a Florida conference room. Either way, when they speak, people listen. Today, more than 50% of these people are men. As a woman who is a boss and is disabled, I have to work a bit harder than most to prove myself and gain the respect I deserve…

Below is the story of a Mother and daughter who have deeply inspired me over the last 4 years. Stay tuned for future posts from the "People who inspire me" series. I hope these stories will help you dig deep to find the hero that lives within you and pick yourself back up. You just might find yourself lifting others up around you at the same time…

Scrolling through my Facebook feed, a seemingly endless carousel of joyous moments brings back memories. But not the kind that comes with alerts reminding you about the year you had a cake fight that spanned 4 blocks ( all of which you ran shoeless) after the national football championship. Instead, I remembered times in my life when I have had to close the app to avoid envy swallowing me whole…

So you’re missing a limb or two, you’re not an athlete, but you still want to live an active life? Start here:

I did gymnastics as a kid, but those skills were long gone by the time I lost my right leg in December 2019..

Thank God It's Friday, a sentiment felt around the world. There is a bit more pep in your sneaker-clad step as you head out on your lunch break, dressed in business casual attire. Plans for happy hour margaritas are made, and the clock ticks ever so slowly toward 5 pm. Today I asked myself what Friday means to me, and I thought that perhaps it means something a little different to each of us…

My heart starts to pick up pace as my chest tightens up. Then the tension rolls down my neck towards my shoulders, locking them in an upright, stiff position. I can already visualize my chiropractor smirking and correcting my posture as he reminds me to sit up straight and bring my shoulders back…

This week at work, I felt like a dartboard. It seemed like even the most patient and kind of people came barreling towards me, one after another, with verbal attacks and accusations using hurtful words as swords…

July is Disability Pride Month as well as Sarcoma Awareness Month. Both heavily intertwined in my life in such a way, that one caused the other. I still remember the first time I realized that I had a disability. It wasn't when I woke up from surgery in the hospital with one less limb, it was actually later on while filling out medical leave paperwork…

It’s sunny, the frozen margaritas are flowing, shorts-and-sandals season has arrived. Cities are reopening after lockdown, and travel restrictions are slowly being lifted. You’re feeling ready to gallivant in the sunshine and work on your tan at the beach. The only problem? You wear a prosthesis…

I don't have many regrets. I could have studied a little harder in school and mended some friendships sooner, but looking through old photos over the last week has stirred up some emotions about the person I once was. Maybe it was how clearly I could spot my tumor on the side of my right knee, or maybe it was that I still had a right leg…

Alas, bikini season is upon us. Although I've taken countless dips in my own pool within the privacy of my backyard at this point, my residual limb has not yet made her debut in a more public setting…