Shawn Young ‘cowboys up’ to breast cancer

When Paul and Shawn Young’s only child was little, her parents would tell her to “cowboy up” to challenges.

“We wanted her to know that life isn’t always going to be easy,” Shawn Young explained. “We wanted her to learn to ‘cowboy up,’ to face challenges head on.”

That same “cowboy up” attitude is how Shawn Young faced life since early this year when she was told that she had breast cancer.

“At the end of January, I went to the doctor for an annual exam,” Young said as she described what she calls an amazing ride. “Everything was fine.”

When her breasts became extremely irritated Young wondered if the fabric in new bras was causing the problem. But taking a shower one morning, she noticed a knot about the size of a marble under her left breast.

Young’s doctor initially suspected that the knot was an abscessed cyst and prescribed antibiotics. The problem did not go away and more extensive medical tests were conducted at the Flowers Hospital Breast Health Center.

“The people at the Breast Health Center were absolutely amazing,” Young said about her experience. “I was treated so compassionately while I was there.”

What Young described as “a veil of peace” enveloped her after her biopsy. “I felt that no matter what happened, I was going to be okay,” she explained. “I’ve been that way ever since.

“That was really where I drew my first strength,” Young said. “I told Paul, ‘You know, I just have too much cooking and sewing to do’ and that’s really the way I felt. “

Her husband was with her when Young received the news that the test results revealed she had breast cancer. “When you hear that word ‘cancer’, it just sucks the air out of your lungs,” he said remembering the moment. “The fear of losing somebody is very real. The fear of the unknown is very real.”

“I prayed to God and I told him, ‘I know you have a plan for me. If your plan is to take me, that is okay and if it’s not then I will wait for you to guide me with your plan.’”

The support of family and friends has been overwhelming and humbling, Young said. Nicknamed “Shawn Strong” by a family member right after the diagnosis, the name has stuck. Her daughter, Cheyenne, had a copper bracelet stamped with words “Shawn Strong.”

Friend and fellow Republican Women of Coffee County member Elaine Ridenour had pink bracelets custom made in Young’s honor. “I’ve given out 120 of them so far,” Young said, displaying the bracelet that she wears. “Seeing this every day gives me inspiration to fight and not give up.

“I have learned about women who have had mastectomies and have never looked at themselves. It makes me sad because your breasts are not your beauty,” Young said. “Your inner strength is your beauty.”

Young has been an active Creative Stitchery Club member for 22 years. The group held a “Think Pink” party for her. “During it, they all laid their hands on me and prayed over me.”

When Young’s six “chemo cocktail” treatments, three weeks apart, caused her to lose her hair, a “head shaving party” was held at her hairdresser’s. “God is going to take care of me. It’s his plan,” Young said. “I’ve got to make this fun. I can’t let it get me down.”

“My suggestion to her was to get ahead of this thing but I didn’t know she was going to have her head shaved,” said her husband, shaking his head and smiling. “I’m really proud of her. She is the best looking bald headed woman I ever saw.”

Young’s crocheted 1920s style cloche hats are becoming her trademark. Ridenour ordered Young some from London, England, and Kristi Whitehead Peters has crocheted five in different colors.

Young individualizes the hats with heirloom jewelry. “The secret is to get child sized hats,” she said laughing.

Days prior to undergoing a mastectomy, Young posed for a professional photo shoot, complete with the services of a professional makeup artist. “I wanted something to mark this time in my life,” she said. “I wanted to have a photo for my daughter to look back on.”

A memorable moment occurred while Young was awaiting her surgery, her husband said. “The orderly who came to wheel her to surgery could see the apprehension on her face—on the faces of everyone in the room,” Paul Young said. “So, he pats her on top of the head and says, ‘Everything is going to be all right.’

“Then he starts singing it. ‘Everything is going to be all right.’ Sang all the way to the surgical unit,” Paul Young said. “As soon as he started it, you could just see the anxiety leave. It was incredible. It didn’t just calm her down; it calmed all of us down.”

“He serenaded me all the way to the operating room,” added Shawn Young, smiling. “This has been an amazing ride. Through it all, I have experienced the love of perfect strangers.

“All my life I’ve never particularly felt like God has used me but he’s using me now,” Young said. “Through prayer I have experienced the love of perfect strangers. I feel like I have these giant arms that enveloped me and I am moved beyond words.”

Aug. 29 is the day that Young received a report that she is cancer free.

“If I had it to do all over again, I would do it exactly the way it has happened,” Young said. “I know that there is a purpose in this and I hope that in days to come I can help other women be stronger than what they think they are.”