Financial Woes

I was now seeing first hand the financial impact that a cancer diagnosis can create. This impact also brings with it a number of unique concerns when the person in question is a young adult. We are a stage in our lives where there is tremendous pressure to become educated and be successful as an undividual. Many of us are in university or just coming out of university. Many of us have thousands of dollars accumulated in student loans, all waiting to be paid. Many of us cannot recieve disability or unemployment because of our university careers. Those of us who did not choose the university route are just beginning our financial lives and have little expendable income. A cancer diagnosis is a HUGE blow to a young person financially.



This was suddenly becoming a dark reality for me. I became overwhelmed with financial stress. My credit cards bills began piling up, rent needed to be paid, RBC was awaiting their money. Every bit of money I earned was immediately being handed over to a bill. I couldn't afford anything extra, which was creating a deep sense of unhappiness for me. I felt as though I couldn't enjoy my life because I didn't have the money to do any of the things I wanted to. It was an extremely stressful time. If it weren't for the help of my parents, my credit would probably be completely ruined by now.



I think that there needs to be more awareness about the financial strain caused to young people who receive a cancer diagnosis or any other life-threatening illness. We are the gray area-- a tiny population of individuals who have a completely unique and unusual set of circumstances. And we are oftentimes overlooked. I hope that in the future I will be able to create a fund to help ease the financial burden of a cancer diagnosis for other young cancer survivors. I know it would have been extremely helpful to me. It is a time when financial support is a necessity, but unfortunately there are very few resources available for unique situations as such.