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This is Brave

This is Brave: Five Years Later, I am Stronger

For those of you who don’t know my story, my name is Karolina Jasko. I was diagnosed with acral melanoma in 2016 a few days before my eighteenth birthday. I was a senior in high school dealing with a melanoma diagnosis in the midst of getting ready for college and trying to get excited for senior prom and graduation. It was a scary thing!

My mom had melanoma twice, so I was familiar with the disease, but never in a million years did I think it could happen to me. Especially at such a young age. Luckily, I had a team of phenomenal doctors and a wonderful support system that helped me get through.

Read Karolina’s original story here.

Five years later, melanoma is still one of the deadliest cancers in the world. Five years later, being diagnosed with melanoma still impacts me every day. Five years later, I am stronger…

When I was first diagnosed with melanoma, my mental health fell apart a little bit. I took on a lot of the heavy, emotional feelings that my family and friends were sharing. I didn’t want them to see that I was upset and scared too. I wanted to be strong for my family and show them that everything would be okay. Everything did end up being okay; but holding in that fear during that time was hard.

An experience like this changes you. It changes your family. It changes your support system. You view things differently, you take precautions that maybe you normally wouldn’t have, and you react differently to certain things people say. You also learn to appreciate things more. When I say I’m stronger, I wholeheartedly mean that. Through my diagnosis and treatment, I learned to be stronger for my family, and stronger for me.

For all of this, I am so THANKFUL.

As Miss Illinois USA, I was able to use my title to talk through my experience. I could share the fear I felt, and the shame and insecurities I carried. But most importantly, I was able to help spread awareness and the importance of prevention.

Although I no longer hold the title, I continue to spread awareness and talk about prevention. I’m currently a full-time graduate student at Northwestern University, but I still find time to support the Melanoma Research Foundation and other organizations whenever I get the chance. Sharing our stories and supporting each other matters! Five years later, I continue to get skin checks and body scans with my wonderful dermatologist. I wear sunscreen and avoid UV Rays. Five years later I am stronger and I’m here to keep sharing my story and making sure others stay sun safe.

#GetNaked video: https://www.instagram.com/p/B_yLBVdhDfM/

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