Courtesy of Lindsey Walker
Two years ago, St. Louis native Lindsey Walker, CEO of Walker + Associates Media Group, was “just living her life like a normal 27-year-old” in Atlanta, Georiga. She had achieved her dream of starting her own public relations firm six years earlier and had just signed a big client. She'd noticed she was feeling more tired than usual but assumed she just was working too hard.
Then one day, she wasn’t feeling well. A fever of 101 degrees rose to 103 degrees. Her mother, thinking it was only a cold, gave her some soup which reduced Walker’s temperature. During this time, while talking with a friend over the phone, she mentioned that she felt as though she couldn’t breathe. The friend convinced her to see a doctor.
So, Walker visited the emergency room where they took an X-ray that showed a huge mass in the front of her chest. A doctor decided to do a biopsy. Walker had IV Hodgkin’s lymphoma and had to start chemotherapy immediately. At this point, Walker chose to move back to St. Louis because her support system is located here. She went on to receive six months of chemotherapy at the Siteman Cancer Center.
While undergoing treatment, Walker looked to her faith, often listening to worship music and writing prayers in a journal. But keeping up with her career became her salvation. "Working helped to provide that sense of normalcy because I love my work," she says. "I attribute that to being victorious over the diagnosis because I had something to look forward to.”
Walker's oncology team was optimistic about her prognosis; her response to the treatment was working. She longed to return to her life—traveling, coordinating events, and more. Now, as a cancer survivor, she's been able to do all of those things. Here, she looks back on what else encouraged her to keep going—and what lessons she's learned along the way.
She kept people around her who were positive. This included having a virtual community of social media followers. “If I felt that [my support system] was going to be sad or not going to be positive, I really did not want them in my space at that time.”
Remember to breathe. Walker recommends people have an “attitude of gratitude,” she says. Take some time to appreciate the good things and people in your life.
Listen to your body. “There will be times when you feel tired. Don’t pressure yourself to perform,” Walker says. “You really need to take time to care for yourself first.” Likewise, she encourages people to be gentle with themselves and focus on getting better. “We get so caught up in the hustle of life, we tend to forget we are not robots,” she notes.
Set boundaries. Don’t allow anyone—including clients—to stress you out, Walker says. She told people what was going on and asked everyone to adhere to her new limitations.
You do have autonomy. “Even if you don’t have control over what’s happening around you,” Walker says, “you have a choice in how you decide to view it and in how you decide to [handle] it. No one can take that choice away from you.”
