I Never Quit Trying: A Breast Cancer Survivor's Story

By Ruthie Lanigan

I Never Quit Trying is a book based on courage, strength, perseverance and most importantly, love. Ruthie walks you through her journey of breast cancer from the day of diagnosis through the day she finished this book.

Ruthie was subjected to an abusive childhood that led her to believe she could only depend on herself. Her breast cancer journey taught her to lean on others for support and trust that they would be there for her. And they were. With her husband at her side and her friends surrounding her, she learned to surrender and trust.

Her journey takes us through her vanity, her fear, her perseverance and her survival. Her writings are honest and raw and show the emotions that accompany hair loss, surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation. And once it’s all over, how to move forward. You will find humor and anger, love and hatred and in the end, a true appreciation for life. Her spirituality is strong throughout her journey and there are many instances of her spirits guiding her.

Ruthie also walks us through “cancer in the workplace” and how she navigated her career in commercial real estate during this time.

Walking through this type of journey is hard. Knowing that others have walked the same path is comforting. She wants to spread the word to Never Quit Trying.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Balboa Press
• Release date: Jan 28, 2021
• ISBN: 9781982263027

Ruthie Lanigan

Ruthie Lanigan has been writing since she was a child but it was a breast cancer diagnosis that made her realize her words could help others. That day, she started writing her book. Ruthie resides in Nashville, TN with her husband and has already started writing her second book. You can find other writings on her blog at www.ruthielanigan.com.

Book preview

Copyright © 2021 Ruthie Lanigan.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means,

graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by

any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the author

except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

Balboa Press

A Division of Hay House

1663 Liberty Drive

Bloomington, IN 47403

www.balboapress.com

844-682-1282

Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in

this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views

expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the

views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

The author of this book does not dispense medical advice or prescribe the use of any

technique as a form of treatment for physical, emotional, or medical problems without the

advice of a physician, either directly or indirectly. The intent of the author is only to offer

information of a general nature to help you in your quest for emotional and spiritual well-

being. In the event you use any of the information in this book for yourself, which is your

constitutional right, the author and the publisher assume no responsibility for your actions.

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Getty Images are models,

and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Getty Images.

ISBN: 978-1-9822-6301-0 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-9822-6300-3 (hc)

ISBN: 978-1-9822-6302-7 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2021901654

Balboa Press rev. date: 01/26/2021

CONTENTS

Preface

Chapter 1     The Diagnosis (aka the Beginning)

Chapter 2     The Medical Jargon

Chapter 3     My Treatment Plan Revealed

Chapter 4     Telling Your Family and Friends

Chapter 5     The Surgery

Chapter 6     Becoming One with Your Port

Chapter 7     The First Million Questions

Chapter 8     About Your Doctors

Chapter 9     Chemotherapy/Radiation for Dummies

Chapter 10   Cancer and the Internet

Chapter 11   Cancer in the Workplace

Chapter 12   Trusting Your Friends

Chapter 13   Hopelessness and Motivation

Chapter 14   Feeling Better and Moving Forward

Chapter 15   Portraits of Hope

Chapter 16   Quotes

PREFACE

W hy am I writing this book? I’ve asked myself that question a lot. The truth is, I wanted to share my story for others. When I was diagnosed with breast cancer, I immediately wanted to read stories of women who had gone through the same thing. I wanted to know their stories from beginning to end. I wanted to feel what they felt and be somewhat prepared for what I would be going through.

Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to find many of these stories. I would find brief summaries of survivors or a case study here or there but came across very few actual books that would walk me through someone’s journey. I was not naive enough to think I would find someone who’d had the exact same diagnosis with the exact same treatment, but I really wanted to read an actual story written by an actual survivor. I wanted to get real information on someone’s journey. There just wasn’t much out there.

I decided to keep a journal (as much as possible) throughout my journey and, if possible, share my journey when I was able. At the time, I did not realize this would result in me writing a book. I am so excited to have made this decision.

This book is as factual as my memory will allow. It will show the best and the worst of me. Cancer beats a person down and takes all humility away from you. I had to learn to laugh at myself at times (when I had the energy) and I had to learn to be kind to myself. My husband reminded me of this constantly. Never give up. Always be kind to yourself.

A little side note about me is that I am also an empath who cares deeply for others. Seeing my friends and family upset or trying to be strong for me was very hard. I have always been the person who is there for others. That put an interesting twist on my story.

I must give thanks to the many family and friends who stood by me and cheered me on. I cherish every single one of you—those who called or sent cards, lotions, scarves, blankets, or food; those who came and cooked dinner; those who made snacks for me to take to chemo treatments; and those children who drew me pictures.

And I must also thank the man I love the most—my husband, Jim Minie. The man who never shed a tear in front of me. The man who encouraged me and told me daily that we would conquer. The man who held us both up when I had no strength. The man who never gave up. There are no words to express my undying gratitude to him. Throughout my story, you will notice I reference we in a lot of cases. This is because it was a journey that we went through. He was there for me 100 percent of the time—right by my side. He had to put away his own fears and emotions to care for me, and he did it with the strength of a lion. So when I reference we, it is because we were, and will always be, a team.

I am so grateful to say that I am now able to share my story. If this book helps even one person in this growing community of cancer victims, I will be happy. I wish anyone who has been diagnosed with breast cancer or any other type of cancer the strength and the courage to fight. Know that cancer research continues to grow, and the survival rate continues to grow also.

This is my personal journey with breast cancer. These are my thoughts, fears, victories, and hopes. Throughout my journey, I have always remembered that life is good, and if you ask the universe for guidance, you will get guidance. Peace and love to each and every one of you!

~ Ruthie

CHAPTER 1

The Diagnosis (aka the Beginning)

Rise when you think you can’t, crawl if you can’t walk, and try

even if you think you’ll fail. Life is short so make it count.

—Genny Small

Hi, Ruthie. This is Shelly from Midwest Breast.

I ’ll never forget the phone call. It was January 15. Four days prior, I had gone in for my annual mammogram. When I received the call, I was not concerned at all. I had received the same phone call in the past for previous mammograms, so I didn’t feel alarmed in the least. The conversations were quick and easy.

Hi, Ruthie. This is Shelly from Midwest Breast. Your mammogram shows some abnormalities, so we would like you to come back in for a few more pictures.

Although I have never been good at doing self-examinations, I knew my body fairly well and had not noticed anything out of the ordinary. I set another appointment with her, trying to keep it from affecting my work schedule. I saw this as just a minor inconvenience to my schedule, not anything to be concerned about. Right? I was confident I would go in and the doctors would assure me everything was fine. They would tell me again that I had dense breast tissue, and it was just harder to get a good reading. I had gone through this before. No, I wasn’t worried. I was pretty sure how the conversation was going to go.

On January 17, I went in for my