Throughout life, individuals are bound to come across challenges. These confrontations present a certain unknown. Despite this fogginess, herein lies the key. For it is within these unknowns, seen initially as bad, or even in some cases dreaded that in turn create a remarkable ending result. This result gives great courage; a drive others who have not overcome a similar test cannot understand. A drive to live life to its fullest, for the ones most treasured, enclosed by the arms of the ultimate force of love along with an updated attitude for the joy of living, just living for it all.

In 2018, Journalism and English teacher Beth Brubaker was diagnosed with cancer. A week from that very day she learned an even more life-changing piece of news; she was pregnant.

“My pregnancy from the start was a combination of 9 months of planning, praying, worrying, anxiety, and then my daughter was born and perfectly healthy. For us it was a beautiful moment of miracle as well as many thanks for modern medicine,” said Beth.

After overcoming this, she and her husband, Jason Brubaker, set out to write a chronicle of those “25 Months” in their lives. The book is an account of her survival through breast cancer as well as the true rarity of their situation.

According to statistics, explained Brubaker, the likelihood of being diagnosed with breast cancer while also being pregnant is 1 in 3,000 people. The scarcity of this needed to be shared.

“We always had the mindset, early on, if we made it through, we wanted to make sure other people in our situation would never feel as isolated,” said Beth.

According to Jason, this was a time of looking to the past. As hard as it was to recount, they both had a shared goal and were determined to create a story with a lasting impact on those who may need to hear it. “It was very difficult to relive many of the moments in the book because in some ways, writing about it put us right back in those moments and we remember just how scared and/or uncertain we felt.”

He added that it also forced them to reconcile and fully face some of the immense feelings that they didn’t quite deal with fully before the book, adding some much-needed closure for their family.

As her partner and husband, Jason had a message for outsiders and caregivers who are directly in the midst of these hard times alongside the patient.

“It was very difficult because I often felt there was nothing I could really do… It’s tough to watch your wife in physical pain and in emotional pain, and feeling like you’re powerless to really help.”

He said, however, that at the same time, he didn’t want his emotions or fear to become anyone’s focus. He wanted all care to be on his wife.

What they have learned throughout, said Jason, is that many caregivers feel the same way–they feel the same fear and feeling of helplessness that he had.

“So part of our mission is to try to speak to those caregivers, to let them know that what they’re feeling is normal and part of this journey…sometimes, it just helps to know that other people have felt the same way you’re feeling, and we hope that this book can speak to people in that situation,” said Jason.

Beth said that for herself, however, this fragile time was a strong reminder of the importance of those most dear to her heart, above all.

 “I felt like so much of my self-worth prior to this came from things that were more tangible, I felt like I got self-worth from being a teacher, things that aren’t the only parts in my life…after cancer I prioritized and gained perspective on what’s most important, being a mom and wife.”

“At the end of the day, family is most important. My husband and daughter are the biggest parts of me, they are my biggest priority,” said Beth.

Now their remarkable history is shared with all who want to listen.

“So in many ways, writing the book allowed us to relive the entire journey, good and bad…But while it was difficult, what kept us going was knowing that we wanted our daughter to know her story, and to know how courageous her mom was (and is!), as well as trying to provide some hope for others who may be going through a difficult period of their own,” said Jason.

This story was originally published on The Hilltopper on January 26, 2024.