Sally Obermeder celebrates 5 years cancer-free
Sally Obermeder has much to celebrate, she’s just passed the five years mark of beating a rare and aggressive form of breast cancer.
"We celebrated [five years all clear] by having Elyssa [her second child]!" she says. "We really felt like it was a new beginning for us."
Reaching such a milestone came with such an immense sense of relief that it was overwhelming at times, says Sally.
"I feel like I’ve been holding my breath for five years and I can finally breathe properly again," she said.
"There’s always a low-level anxiety you live with – will it come back? Is this going to be it? – especially before a scan. I know the routine well but the inner dialogue and emotion is so full on, I was nervous going to that scan and when it came back clear... My gosh, the relief!"
But the TV presenter, author, mum and businesswoman said while she felt great joy and relief, she also experienced an unexpected emotion: guilt.
"The thing I’ve really noticed after reaching the five-year mark is survivor guilt. You know how blessed you are to have made it but it makes you deeply aware of all the other people who haven’t and how unfair that is. You want everyone to get to that point, so if anything it makes you realise how important it is that we find a cure," Sally told Body + Soul in a recent interview.
For Sally though, it just inspires her to work harder to raise awareness of cancers that effect women and the importance of funding research to find a cure.
"If I can help one person, then it was worth it. I believe that firmly," she says.