Par
Solène Lavenu
Published on
Oct 6, 2024 at 9:07 a.m.
See my news
Follow La Presse de la Manche
2018. Charlotte Dugué gives birth to her third child. After having twins four years earlier, she and her partner decided to have a new child. Birth is trying. Little Gabin has a heart defect and has to have surgery when he is only 10 days old.
But he is two months old now, and all that is now behind the young mother. Gabin is fine. She can go to the postnatal visit with peace of mind. She decided to stop breastfeeding, so she felt a small size to the chestbut everything is fine. THE gynecologist advises him mammographybut don’t worry, everything is fine. It is necessary to check with a biopsybut everything is fine.
So here she is, in her gynecologist’s office, to listen to the results. She has her newborn in the stroller next to her, everything is fine, but… The doctor finally tells her the worst: she has a cancer be you. A triple negative, which therefore does not respond to hormones.
Charlotte a 30 ans. “I am truly amazed. It wasn’t possible for me. I couldn’t be sick. The image of this ad haunted me for a long time. Once the treatments past, I still had this anxiety, this image, of that day of the announcement, which came back to me several times a day with every little detail,” she confides.
Bear up
2024. Charlotte Dugué is today a real estate advisor. She changed jobs. Left her disease on the side of the path. But she still thinks about it often.
It changed me completely.
Today, she no longer sees life the same way. She takes more care of herself, listens to herself, lives as she has decided and dares to say “no”. “I think more about myself, that’s for sure. The doctor told me: you will see, you will find good sides to your illness. I got there today. »
A panel for 10 euros
At the time of Pink October, Charlotte Dugué also wants to make her contribution. She took advantage of social networks to launch an operation to support the cause. She pitched the idea of hanging her IAD sales signs. For each sign posted on a business, a home, etc., it donates 10 euros to the League Against Cancer.
In a few weeks, 100 panels of Charlotte have appeared on facades in La Hague where she lives and even throughout Cotentin. The panels will be on display throughout the month of October. “I wanted to participate on my own scale. It’s obviously a cause that is close to my heart.”
Because she knows. She knows how much the little gift from the Heart and Cancer association at Christmas time brings balm to the heart. She knows the little touches or the simple drawing in the waiting rooms that boost morale. She appreciates the advice, the testimonials which allowed her to find the nail polish, the scarf… which could have suited her. “Today, if I can be useful, share my experience, I will. I know that a testimony can help.”
And after the success of the first operation, Charlotte is already planning to repeat the experience next year. And why not launch a new challenge: hang not 100 but 200 panels.
“Hair loss was what I feared the most”
But to get there, there was a operationand treatment with a chemotherapy and one radiotherapyfull of consequences that are difficult to bear. Like the hair loss, “horrible”, for Charlotte.
“That was what I feared the most. When I went to the hairdresser, a friend, to shave my head before lose my hairI was crying, the hairdresser was crying, and my partner was solid and tried to lighten the mood, but it was really very hard. For me, hair is femininity…”
But Charlotte doesn’t let it get her down. She found a “great wig that looked like my haircut, very nice.” She won’t leave her. “I lost my hair, but no one has ever seen me bald, not even my husband. I slept with my wig on and only took it off to wash it, locked in the bathroom. »
“Children force you to be well”
The bald head is synonymous with illness, and Charlotte does not want to see herself weakened. She must be strong for these little ones aged two months and four years.
“Today, I don’t know how we did it! But children force you to be well, that’s for sure. However, I couldn’t find the words to explain it to them. I didn’t want to disrupt their little lives and make them worry about mom. I wanted to protect them, no matter what. Today the twins are 10 years old, but I still haven’t talked to them about it. I don’t think they know I had cancer. »
The end of carelessness
It’s not shame, she assures us. She always accepted being sick. She doesn’t hide it. Perhaps even less today. “It’s part of my history and me today. I have scars that remind me of that too. » His hair which changed as it grew back too. “Hard to accept,” she admits. To be able to see the good sides, we had to accept this new body.
“As soon as I had pain, I thought of a metastasis”
You also had to learn to put the illness behind you. After the treatments, there were also hypnosis, psychology and sophrology sessions. “As soon as I had pain, I thought of a metastasis. With triple negative cancer, there is nohormone therapy for five years. And that was hard for me to accept. I felt that if I took this treatment, I would have been more protected from relapse. »
She recognizes it easily, cancer has taken away her serenity, her share of unconsciousness. “I smoked, for example. I forbid myself today. I eat healthier, do sports… It’s rather positive, but it’s doing the best I can, because I know it can come back. »
Today, she also knows how to see what cancer has brought her. “My husband was a wonderful support, it united us even more. I have friends, a family, I take advantage of it and savor every moment. I put things into perspective much more, I do what I want and live in one word! »
No more putting off a trip until tomorrow, a desire until the day after tomorrow. Because she still readily admits, she still feels thesword of Damocles. Even if six years later the risk of recurrence is diminishing. “I never claimed victory. »
Follow all the news from your favorite cities and media by subscribing to Mon Actu.
