BRCA1 positive - How do you come to terms?

Hi Sazipan and a very warm welcome to the online community which I hope you'll find is both an informative and supportive place to be.

I'm very sorry that you lost your mum to cancer recently and it's natural to worry because you've found out that you also carry the BRCA1 gene.

I haven't been in your position but I noticed that your post hadn't had any replies yet. Responding to you will 'bump' it back to the top of the discussion list. I'm sure some forum members will be along soon to share their experiences with you.

Hello Sazipan,

Wow I feel for you, losing your mum, finding out you’re at higher risk this is a lot to carry. It has taken me years to come to terms with being BRCA positive and while it’s coming up on ten years soon I still have days where I wonder am I doing the “right” thing. If I could get a crystal ball that tells me yes you’re going to get cancer if I don’t go through with preventative surgery that would be fantastic. 
The being ok one minute and not the next was how it was for me too. You’re grieving and I hope you have at least one person you can get support from. There’s also the community here and the helpline if you need to speak to a human. Self compassion is key and taking your time with deciding how you want to move forward. I also hope you’ve been offered counselling after getting your results…

Take care and I’m around if you need to chat,

Marie

Hi Sazipan,

Firstly I am so sorry about the loss of your mum. 

I have a very different diagnosis story to yours.  I found out through an unrelated genealogical research study.  However, I can relate to the chaos a BRCA mutation diagnosis can cause.  I feel the same fear and worry regarding developing cancer and have also felt every emotion under the sun thinking about how my life may look going forwards.  Life turned upside down is the perfect descriptor.

I personally have found comfort in trying to view the knowledge that we have as a positive.  Whilst having the mutation is clearly not a good thing, knowing about it is in my eyes.  I know not everyone may feel this way, but I see it as being given foresight.  We can use screening and knowledge of cancer symptoms to look out for any changes in our bodies and hopefully catch them early.  It also means we can make decisions regarding any preventative options available to us.  I know these decisions are not easy to make and take a lot of consideration from many different points of view, but I think having choice and options in any situation is a positive.  

I hope you've been feeling better since you posted this and I'm wishing you all the best going forwards.