2023-11-14 05:00:00
A 36-year-old new mother condemned to incurable breast cancer turned to writing a collection of poetry to express her pain and put into words the ordeal she has been going through for two years.
“There are so many things that I am unable to say, that hurt too much… It’s a bit my way of sharing what’s going on inside me,” explains Gabrielle Regimbal, contacted from Paris, where she enjoyed a deserved vacation with her partner.
The young woman from Lévis learned in 2021 that she was suffering from stage 3 triple negative breast cancer, while she was still on maternity leave for her only child.
Her collection of poetry, “La-Z-Boy Resurrection,” refers to the chair in which she sat during her chemotherapy treatments. Photo provided by Gabrielle Regimbal
This is a very aggressive cancer with increased chances of recurrence and for which targeted treatments are often not very effective.
The two years that followed were the scene of multiple treatments and surgeries in the hope of remission. But the dreaded stage 4, the one said to be incurable, finally fell at the beginning of 2023.
“I was trying to hold on to hope, you never want to hear those words. I was devastated…”, sighs Ms. Regimbal.
Laying bare
It was during the too many moments of waiting following her treatments that the young woman decided to take up her pen to express her feelings and everything she does not dare to say out loud.
“We always hear regarding those who fought cancer and came out transformed. I would have loved to be one of those who might write that, but it’s not possible,” she says.
La-Z-Boy Resurrectionreferring to the iconic chemotherapy chair in the treatment rooms, is intended to be a collection of poetry in which she completely bares herself.
Gabrielle Regimbal’s collection has been available in bookstores since November 7, 2023. Photo provided by Gabrielle Regimbal
In particular, she recounts the place that the medical field has taken in her life, the loss of her bearings, the search for a new identity and the daily bereavements she faces.
“Even if we are surrounded by good people, there is so much loneliness in illness. I would like this collection to reach [les gens]that they understand a little of what we are going through,” confides Ms. Regimbal.
Protect your child
In the meantime, the young mother tries to enjoy life with her partner and her son Paul-Émile, aged 3.
Although she is aware that her days are numbered, she never wanted to ask the doctors regarding her prognosis, for fear of keeping a fateful date in mind.
Gabrielle Regimbal, during the launch of her book, at the beginning of November. Photo Gabrielle Lacasse
“Paul-Émile knows that his mother is sick and that she is going to lose her hair, but there is no point in telling her right away that I am going to die,” emphasizes the 36-year-old woman.
“We want to protect our son as long as possible, so that he has a normal childhood and does not age too quickly,” she concludes.
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