almeera, Pakistan

My name is Almeera. I was diagnosed with cancer when I was 13. I didn't get to enjoy my teenage like others. Cancer made me mature faster than I should have. Chemotherapy was the hardest part. I remember lying on the hospital bed, feeling the cold IV in my veins, my body weak and my heart heavy. The days after chemo were even worse because of the side effects. But I stayed strong because I knew breaking down would make it harder, not for me but for my parents because i was already suffering.

Even after I recovered physically, the fight inside me never really ended. I went through depression. Not everyone saw it, and not everyone understood it. On the outside I looked fine, but inside I was carrying pain that words could not explain. I missed the person I used to be before cancer, and sometimes I felt like no one could truly understand me. For me coping with ptsd, depression and anxiety is more complicated than cancer itself. But life doesn't stop and neither can I.

But I learned something important. Strength is not about never falling. It is about standing up every time life tries to break you. My faith kept me going. I believe everything I went through was written by Allah for a reason. Today I am here, alive, breathing, and moving forward.

To anyone going through cancer or depression your pain is real, your feelings are valid. Keep holding on. You might not see it now, but one day you will look back and realize you were stronger than you thought.