“It’s during those difficult moments when we feel lost, that we are actually finding ourselves.”
These lines capture the painful yet enriching experience that some of the brave souls go through in their lives. And, one such soul is Tahira Kashyap.
Her honest yet courageous journey of battling cancer has not only inspired those who are battling against the deadly disease, but also millions of others to live life fully.
And, recently, when she took to Instagram to share how the battle against cancer has changed her mindset and her stupid ideas about ‘BEAUTY’, we couldn’t stop ourselves from applauding her courage.
While opening about her struggles on being a cancer patient, Tahira opened her honest post with a warning!
“WARNING!! Before you swipe left, some pictures might not go down too well with your palette.”
As her pictures were way different from our society’s distorted idea of beauty, she wanted to warn her followers right away!
We believe, if anyone sees anything less than a courageous brave fighter in those images, then s/he is a problem!
Dedicating her post “to women of all shapes and sizes and to all those posts I get when they fret losing their hair during or after chemotherapy”, she wrote:
“I am hoping there is a change in the perception of that one perfect flavour that we have always had. The last couple of months have been an extreme case of metamorphosis for me.
And I am not categorising it whether it was from a caterpillar to a butterfly phase or vice-versa. I could be the larva or the pupa or any other intermediate stage as each phase is unique and special.
But there is a deep sense of acceptance when it comes to the life cycle of this creature.
Taking a ‘leaf’ from this caterpillar’s life, I feel I have undergone a tremendous change mentally and physically too.”
She further shares how her battle against cancer helped her get rid of her insecurities, her stupid notion of beauty and complexes.
“From my obsession with long hair, associating beauty with rapunzel tresses, and hiding most of the time behind my hair (as I felt secure, lest my crooked nose, or freckles or pimples or simply not so chiseled face isn’t exposed) to losing my hair, wearing extensions and a cap, going bald to now a short crop,
I am enjoying every phase because somehow with hair I lost my insecurity, my stupid notion of beauty and my complexes.”
She doesn’t know whether she will be keeping long hair or not, “In either case, I am not going to hide my face”.
She closed the post with her biggest victory:Â
“I have changed my own mindset and my biggest victory is changing the mindset and perception of my seven-year-old-son, the next generation.
From running to get a cap and placing it on my head when I was losing my hair and had a bald patch to proudly introducing me to his friends when I was bald or now with short hair, I feel I am a part of a change.”
On September 22 last year, Tahira revealed that she was detected with DCIS (ductal carcinoma in situ) in her right breast with high-grade malignant cells.
Many women came forward to thank Tahira for being so honest about her inspiring journey:
Image: Instagram
While struggling with the storms, sometimes, we just need a ray of hope to keep ourselves afloat. And, at IforHer we believe inspiring stories like these can be that ray of hope for many.
If you have an inspiring story that can inspire someone, please share it with us!Â
