Press play to listen to the audio version of this post. The voiceover was generated by Speechify AI.
To Whom It May Concern:
Growing up as an Asian American, I felt like I was constantly stuck between two worlds.
When I lived in Korea, I was never Korean enough, and when I lived in America, I was never American enough.
And just when I thought I couldn’t feel more displaced, at 27, I was diagnosed with breast cancer, adding yet another layer to my identity crisis.
Here’s my biggest takeaway. In the midst of feeling like I didn’t belong anywhere, silence never solved anything.
Traditionally, Asians are often raised to be reserved. And maybe that’s one of the many reasons we feel like we don’t belong – because our voices are muted and stories go unshared.
If you are a fellow Asian American, your story matters. Let’s share unapologetically and be the representation we need more of.
If you never really fit one particular mold, create your own and share it boldly.
In honor of AANHPI month, my first goal is to share my story and empower all my AANHPI friends to check your breasts, open a dialogue with your doctor about screenings, and get to know your one and only body. 1 in 8 women are diagnosed with breast cancer, a disease that is not hereditary only and can impact all ages, genders, and races.
My second goal is to encourage my fellow AANHPI friends impacted by breast cancer to share your story boldly and be the representation we need more of.
When I was diagnosed with breast cancer, it was really hard to find others my age who looked like me.
4 years later, I sometimes still feel this way. We need more AANHPI representation in all corners of the breast cancer community, and there’s a lot more work we need to do to make this happen.
Breast regards,
Michelle
P.S. View the short-form video version of this post on Instagram
