Kim Angell

Kim discovered her lump while laying in bed one night, performing a self exam and her diagnosis was confirmed just a few days after her 34th birthday.

Her treatment, which included a lumpectomy, chemotherapy, radiation and a prophylactic bilateral mastectomy was immediate latissimus dorsi flap reconstruction was intense to say the least.

But as Kim explains it, it was the period following her treatment that she found most challenging. It was at this point that Kim began reaching out to the active online community of breast cancer survivors. "I started reaching out and finding other women like me, struggling with the same things as me- fear of recurrence, body image and the side effects of treatment. "I knew I wasn't alone anymore. I knew that I had this tribe of women who understood exactly what I was going through, and there was a safe space to talk to each other without fear of being judged or having to explain what I was going through. They just got it."

Today, Kim remains an active member of the breast cancer community. You can read more about her journey on her blog Smile Through the Fog.