In Feb. 2026, I was lucky to spend 5 days at True North Trek's Walden Institute in the Michigan UP. TNT offers nature retreats and wilderness treks for young adult cancer survivors, and I was excited to spend time in this stunning winter landscape as a way to celebrate my upcoming 4 year anniversary post-treatment for Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma. It was incredible and made more meaningful because of the experiences I shared with the other cancer survivors on the trip. Our trek focused on connection to the land, each other, and ourselves through mindfulness meditation, yoga, ice cave exploring, snowshoeing through the forest, sauna (and cooling off in the snowbanks), lovingly prepared meals by the fire, and majestic views of frozen Lake Superior (and the Northern Lights!).

Cancer at any age is awful, and research shows that the psycho-social impact of cancer on the young adult (19-39) community is much higher because of the interruptions to typical adult milestones that affect this age group (education, career advancement, partnership and marriage, family/fertility, financial stability, etc) and the subsequent feelings of isolation that emerge from those interruptions. Young adult survivors also suffer more than other groups from under diagnosis and misdiagnosis, leading to more advanced stage cancers and harsher treatment regimens. I am still recovering mentally and emotionally from how cancer has impacted my life, and I can't fully describe how invaluable it was to spend restorative time with other survivors who just understand these lingering effects at 1, 5, even 10 years out from treatment. 

There are a lot of things happening in the world right now that need our attention and financial resources, but  I'm asking for support to pay it forward so that another survivor can go on a trip like this. If you have a spare $10-50, please consider making a donation.