Pediatric Physiotherapist Vanessa D’Souza of Calgary was diagnosed with breast cancer at 44. She is a mother, daughter, sister, niece, cousin, partner, friend, neighbor, advocate and lover of life.  Today Vanessa reads her piece “Bindis & Bangles, Onions & Shame-ectomies” from Wildfire Magazine’s 2022 “Canada’s Young Survivors” issue.  This is a layered piece about intuition, family life, professional life, and cultural expectations that wrap around a cancer diagnosis.  April and Vanessa will discuss the range of emotions experienced over time with a cancer diagnosis, looking at illness and the family together holistically, being the change you want to be in the world at home, and how storytelling is important to immigrant lives. 

Connect with Vanessa: https://www.instagram.com/vanessal.dsouza/

or Vanessadsouzapt@gmail.com

Get the free Wildfire email newsletter: https://www.wildfirecommunity.org

Learn about Wildfire writing workshops: https://www.wildfirecommunity.org/workshops

Shop Wildfire merch & more: https://www.wildfirecommunity.org/shop

Send your voice recording testimonial to editor@wildfirecommunity.org