I am a Childhood Cancer survivor.

I am a woman. I am a daughter. I am a friend. I am a sister. I am a runner. I am a childhood cancer survivor.

Most people who know me don’t know that last part.

When I was three years old, I was diagnosed with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (ALL) in my T cells. On my third birthday, my dad noticed my neck was covered in bruises as he clipped on my bike helmet. Concerned, my parents took me to the doctor, only to hear the words no parent should ever have to hear: “Your daughter has leukemia.”

ALL is a type of blood cancer where the body uncontrollably produces too many T cells, crowding out healthy blood cells and weakening the immune system. I started chemotherapy almost immediately and remained on it for two years.

Because I was so young, I don’t remember much of that time. In some ways, that’s a blessing. For my parents, though, those years were full of trauma, hospital stays, watching their three-year-old lose her hair, her energy, and almost her life on more than one occasion.

But out of that darkness came closeness. My family and I grew stronger together, and I believe it’s one of the reasons I have such a deep bond with them today. It’s also where I first learned how to fight, how to be resilient, and how to never give up.

I often think that’s part of why I am the way I am now. That drive, the push to chase big dreams and work for the life I want, comes from within. Going through something so life-altering at such a young age gives you a different perspective. You learn to hold your people close, to dream big, to stay optimistic, to let yourself cry, but to keep moving forward. You learn to never give up.

Nothing will ever be harder than fighting for your life. So I’ll keep pushing through every valley for that little girl who never knew her life would turn out this good.

Sometimes I even forget this is part of my story because it feels so long ago. But when I remember, I get chills thinking about how far that little girl has come. The dreams she’s chased. The gifts she’s been given. The life she’s been able to live, a life no one thought possible back then.

How lucky am I? I’m healthy. I’ve had almost no long-term complications and no relapses. Sometimes I feel too lucky. But then I remind myself it isn’t just luck. It’s something greater.

To anyone fighting cancer, or loving someone who is, please know this: it doesn’t have to be the end of your story. Miracles happen. Keep believing. Never give up the fight for your life.

I share this because it’s part of me, a huge part of my story and my why. I share to inspire, to show that life after cancer is possible, and that you can still do amazing things.

September is Childhood Cancer Awareness Month, and it feels right to share this now. In honor of that, I am fundraising for Blood Cancer United (Leukemia & Lymphoma Society). I want to raise as much as I can leading up to the Chicago Marathon on October 12. Not only is it my debut marathon, but I will run it for more than myself. I’ll run for those who are still fighting, for those who never got their second chance, and for those who need hope.

I was given that second chance. Now, I want to give it forward.

Link to donate: https://diy.bloodcancerunited.org/fundraiser/6635117