No one was more excited for me to go back to work than my local dry cleaner back in 2012. As I heaped multiple pairs of black suit pants along with an array of jackets and blouses onto the counter, she smiled and exclaimed, “You got a job! I was so worried about you. I’d see you walking around the neighborhood, going nowhere, for so long.”
The truth of the matter was, I wasn’t going “nowhere.” She had been watching me shuffling back and forth to my oncologist’s office that was located around the corner. At the age of 32, I had been diagnosed with breast cancer and for a year and chance after my diagnosis, I spent most days either on the couch. Every 21 days, I was walking to my doctor’s office for four-hour chemotherapy appointments. Then for two days following my treatment, I was walking back for Neupogen® injections which are designed to help cancer patients produce white blood cells, something my body seemed to have a difficult time doing.
Before my diagnosis, I had a career in marketing and had recently started a new job at a digital agency.When I started that job, I didn’t yet know the full extent of my illness. The prognosis was good, but the treatment was intense: a mastectomy, reconstruction, 12 rounds of chemotherapy, and six weeks of radiation.
About a year later, I was cancer-free but unemployed. I had stayed at my new job as a freelancer, but my full-time role had been filled. When my doctor gave me the green light to return to “normal life,” I wasn’t sure what that even meant anymore. Returning to work after cancer wasn’t just about updating my resume but rediscovering myself along the way.
After almost a year of searching, I was hired as a PR and marketing manager at a boutique hotel, an industry I had spent almost five years in prior to my diagnosis. Getting hired was just the beginning—the real work was learning how I’d changed over the past year and change and how to build a sustainable, fulfilling career post-cancer. Here are five tips that helped me manage my work/life balance after a cancer diagnosis.
1. I Needed to Listen to My Body
My mind was ready to be busy again, but my body wasn’t. Three days into the new job, I got knocked out by a cold. I hadn’t accounted for how much my body had been through or how much more rest I needed. Now, I don’t hesitate to take a sick day or work from home when I feel something coming on. I’ve learned that protecting my energy early prevents bigger setbacks later. Listening to my body isn’t a luxury—it’s a long-term strategy for staying in the game.
2. I Had to Embrace My Health History, Not Hide It
At first, I avoided talking about my cancer with my new colleagues. It’s hard enough starting a new job without the pity looks or awkward silences. But eventually, questions came about why I was only eating vegetables, or why I hadn’t worked in over a year and I finally just decided to be honest. The more I shared, the more I felt like myself again. It made my work relationships deeper and more real and over a decade later, those colleagues are close friends.
3. Not Everything is a Crisis
Early in my career, I had a mentor that was rather obsessive about every detail, and I took that with me until one day; I crashed out, hard. That moment forced me to ask myself: What’s really worth the stress? If no one’s going to die because of a typo on the website, then maybe it’s not worth losing sleep over. That mindset shift saved me.
4. I Needed to Redefine Success
Before cancer, success meant climbing fast, being everywhere, saying yes to everything. After cancer, I had to rewrite that definition.
Success now means doing meaningful work, having energy at the end of the day, and showing up fully for my life outside of work. I stopped chasing the image of what a “perfect career” should look like and focused on what felt good and right for me.
This meant maybe I didn’t need to be at every photo shoot or attend every marketing mixer and you know what? Other than the free snacks, I did not miss much. Redefining success gave me permission to set priorities based on joy and purpose—not performance. I became more selective, more present, and ultimately, more fulfilled.
5. I Started Enjoying the Ride Again
There was a reason I chose to go back to working in hospitality after cancer; I loved it. I loved that every day was different, that I could be creative and take chances and while the hospitality landscape has changed A LOT since I rejoined the industry, over 10 years later, I’m still in it, but now I work with more prospective.
I loved that every day was different—I could be creative and take chances. The hospitality industry has changed significantly since I rejoined it over a decade ago. Now, I work with greater experience and perspective.
When something goes sideways (because something always does), I will often say to my coworkers, “It’s okay. This is a hotel – it’s not like we’re curing cancer!”
What I Know Now
Returning to work after cancer was more than just getting back to my everyday routine. I was rebuilding my life and redefining success in the process. I came to respect myself, my mental wellbeing, and prioritize my overall happiness. I’m grateful for the determination and resilience that came from one of the hardest chapters of my life.
