There, in my office, I threw up.
I proceeded to vomit for the next twelve hours.
After spending a very tough thirteen days in the hospital, I was officially diagnosed with Crohns Disease.
I remember sitting in my hospital room, staring at the TV.
I became terrified to eat as I feared I would get sick.
I couldnt look in bathrooms or my office because of all the trauma I endured there.
I knew recovery was going to be difficult both, physically and mentally.
My doctors and I decided I would stay on medical leave until January so I could fully recover.
I could barely look at myself in the mirror.
I knew there was no way I could win a pageant looking or feeling that way.
As the months went on, I worked hard to regain my strength.
I began truly focusing on my health from the inside out.
I needed to truly take this time to focus on my physical and mental health.
I began focusing on things I was truly thankful for and started writing them down in a gratitude journal.
I began to get into a healthy routine and I started to feel stronger each and every day.
Finally, January had arrived and I returned to teaching.
I was finally feeling like myself again.
In pageantry, you typically have a platform or cause you care deeply about.
That is when I founded, IBD Heroes.
A social media platform, where I share patient stories from all over the world.
It was clear this was now my mission in life, to raise awareness for this awful disease.
Finally, pageant weekend had arrived.
In this particular system, 50% of your score is personal interview.
I remember walking into the interview room and as I sat with each judge.
I made sure they knew what my mission was, to be an advocate for the IBD community.
It was the moment my family, friends, and I has been waiting for.
Life can be unpredictable and messy at times.
That is the true beauty of life.
to have those amazing days, we need to experience the awful ones.
Believe in yourself, take care of yourself, and find your purpose.
The choice is yours.
