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Cindy Martinez Joins the Komen CT Board of Directors
Cindy Martinez and husband, Luis, of Glastonbury, were devastated to learn about Cindy’s breast cancer seven years ago. But the challenges, both say, have strengthened their marriage and their character.
Cindy was just turning 35 when diagnosed with breast cancer. A diagnosis of cancer at such a young age is tough enough, but she was also a mom. At the time, her son was only 15 months old.
“I went to the doctor for a baseline mammogram and there on the mammogram was my breast cancer!” she said. It’s becoming a common story. Cindy ran and ate right. “It was a shock,” she continued. “I had no family history. It was just a routine test. I felt perfectly healthy, but I wasn’t. I didn’t know.”
The diagnosis took her family by surprise, to say the least. “I remember spending eight hours on my 35th birthday getting opinions and trying to find out what was happening,” she recalled. Later came the mastectomy, chemotherapy, hair loss and fatigue. She took it all in stride and became stronger.
Lessons Learned
Professionally, Cindy is a project manager for Capitol Region Education Council. She said that she’s learned a few lessons “along the way going through my breast cancer, being a survivor, and being seven years out. I like to share those lessons with others.”
“Take care of your health and don’t take it for granted. I see so many people who don’t want to eat right because it takes too much time or they don’t exercise or they don’t go to the doctor because it’s just too much work. I say take care of yourself.” Cindy’s healthy face and vibrant smile was among a dozen survivors featured in a tribute in Westfarms Mall in April. Today, that same poster adorns the Komen CT offices at Metro Center in Hartford.
As she told prizewinning sports reporter John Altavilla of the Hartford Courant, “You can’t expend your energy and time asking yourself why I got breast cancer. You need to use it figuring out how to stay healthy and take care of yourself and your family.”
She constantly reminds those around her, “Your life is a gift from God. We all have one body and if there is anything we can do for our loved ones, it’s to take care of our bodies and take care of our hearts. Do it for your family.”
Cindy keeps on taking care. She has run eight Komen CT races with her husband -- the first, two months after her diagnosis. She doesn’t win but they happily run the 5K in any weather and cross the finish line with hands clenched together high above their heads. Another achievement. Another hurdle cleared. Perseverance!
“It’s so important to remember that if you go to the doctor and you happen to hear bad news, get second and third opinions. It’s so critical. Hear what other people have to say even if it’s the same message. Trust me, you will hear it in a different way and understand it a little better,” she advised.
“Be gentle on yourself,” she added. “Don’t be afraid to rest, take a nap, ask people for help – let them make you dinner, or even clean your house. Talk about your experiences and share them with other people. Just talking about cancer makes it feel not as bad,” she said. “If you need to cry, then cry. And then you’ll smile and you might cry again but your tears will dry.
“Some people who you expect to reach out to you may not be able to because they might not know how. Others will reach out to you and you will be surprised. You just thank them.
“You really learn to let the little things go and you take it day by day. I can no longer be superwoman and I’m really okay with that. Altavilla called it something else: “…her spirituality and effervescent spirit.”
She’ll be taking those qualities with her onto the Komen CT Affiliate Board, where she will be responsible for volunteer efforts. She said, “We’re here for all the other survivors out there to say that you can get through it and early detection truly saves lives.”
Thanks to John Altavilla of the Hartford Courant; NBC-TV 30; and Barbara Puffer ABC, Puffer Public Relations Strategies, for contributing to this story.
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