Stage Four
A Survivor’s Story
by
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While I’m sitting here hooked up to the IV, I’m glancing over at it from moment to moment watching the clear liquid in the bag drip through the wire connected into my left forearm. I put on my disc player with my headphones listening to my Alicia Keys CD zoning into it, just trying to keep my focus off the fact that I’m here in the hospital, in this room, and two weeks prior, doctors told me that I have stage 4 cancer; these things relentlessly keep circling around in my head. My mind just keeps racing, and it isn’t trying to slow down, not one mile per minute. So, I lean in again to try to eat my lettuce and in my first bite, chew and swallow, I start to notice that I am having a little trouble swallowing it. But I didn’t think it was anything, so at first I didn’t say anything to the nurse; I just kept it to myself, just trying to swallow my next bite. Finally, I signal to the nurse after trying again for the third time to chew and swallow my lettuce, saying to her, “Nurse, I’m having a little trouble swallowing over here and I don’t know what’s up.” And as I am trying to push the saliva down my throat, the nurse just stares at me for a moment with a blank expression on her face like “Uh Oh, oh Shit” and then runs over and picks up the phone calling, “A code in the chemo room, code in chemo room.” In my mind I’m like, code, what code? I’m not dead! It was only seconds after I told her it was hard to swallow, that now it started getting a little tough to talk to her as I was trying to ask her what was wrong with me. I could feel my throat getting a little tighter, and a little harder to take a breath to speak, and it was getting even harder to swallow feeling my throat getting tight. So, I look up and see the nurse rushing over toward me and quickly unhooks the IV line from my forearm. She just stands there in front of me holding the IV line in her hand, and I watch it dripping on the floor while she stares at me. I’m still trying to swallow, thinking I was probably looking very confused like “what the hell….is ….” but then it just started getting harder and harder to talk, and then it started getting challenging to breathe.
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About the Book
Imagine two months after your twenty-first birthday getting a diagnosis of stage four cancer. For this young mother, it was a reality that could seem to anyone to be a death sentence. Still, despite the odds, now twelve years later and still going strong, Wendy Zizzo felt it necessary to share her experience and point of view in hopes to inspire, and ignite courage, love, grit and to see into the mind set and attitude that helped her beat the odds. In this truly inspirational memoir, you will get an up-close and personal look into this young woman’s journey of stage four cancer, along with the trials and tribulations leading up to her diagnosis. Giving you an intimate look into a survivor’s story of her enduring through treatments, and how she mentally, emotionally and spiritually overcame her disease. Showing you, that you never know how strong you are until being strong is your only choice.
About the Author
Wendy Zizzo is a writer, artist, musician, mother, survivor, entrepreneur and always a student of life. Born in Staten Island, NY, since a young age Wendy was naturally curious as well as very expressive with talents. Growing up with many challenges in being biracial, and misguided, she learned hard life lessons that today she can attest to her growing knowledge and to the fruits of her wisdoms. After being diagnosed with stage four cancer at the age of twenty-one, set her on a journey many would think they wouldn’t survive, and for many, have not. After her win over stage four cancer she set out to live life and pursue her dreams. And over the last twelve years, she has gone on to create her own catalogue of original music, as well as numerous performances throughout the east coast. Which also includes multiple performances and a win at the world famous Apollo Theater. In having a strong passion for business, led her to obtain a degree from University of Phoenix, contributing to her expressing her entrepreneurial spirit in creating her own brand called “The Full Aspect”, which focuses on inspiring people to find their internal happiness with life coaching and self development practices. From having a strong desire for her own happiness especially after her cancer ordeal and coming from a background of her own deep hidden and internally violent depression for decades, she became determined to improve her health, understand life and learn the arts of self-love. After years of study and practice then having tremendous success with releasing the anchors of her depression she felt it necessary to share her experience and the information in hopes others could be inspired to find the relief they seek within their own lives. You can find out more by visiting www.zizzolife.com