Sharon Nardin has always been healthy and active. As a benefits manager at Chico Hot Springs, she has also always understood her health insurance and taken advantage of her preventive care benefits. She saw her doctor regularly, got an annual mammogram, etc. There was never a question in her mind about taking care of her health.

When she began getting mammograms at 40, the doctor found that Sharon had fibrocystic breasts. “Since I found out about the fibroids, I have had three biopsies following regular mammograms,” explains Sharon. “All of them were benign.”

Although it wasn’t a shock when, in 2008, she was called back for a diagnostic mammogram, it was a shock when they told her that it looked like cancer. A biopsy in May 2008 confirmed it. “The biopsy was followed by a breast MRI,” she recalls. “The MRI showed that there was more cancer, and the surgeon recommended a unilateral mastectomy.” After the second surgery, she had eight chemotherapy treatments. Tests showed no sign of cancer, and Sharon began estrogen blocker therapy and the process of breast reconstruction.

As a benefits manager, Sharon knew all about her coverage and her options. Her experience served her well and she was able to use that knowledge to really advocate for herself and to become a breast cancer awareness advocate at her workplace and in her community. “Chico had always participated in Relay for Life,” she says, “but now, Chico and many companies have become involved on such a larger level.” Chico raised $10,000 the year Sharon was diagnosed and $6,500 the following year. “It was so easy for me to be involved and sell raffle tickets,” Sharon adds. ”I felt like I was really giving back to the community and all of the people who had supported me.”

 “I had a lot of support at home and at work, and I was constantly meeting people who had been through this,” she says. “That’s when you open your eyes and ears and just listen; you learn so much.” Sharon also went out looked for the support and inspiration she needed by reading about other people’s experiences. People dropped off books, she bought books and collected stories, and she says that has inspired her to tell her story and to help others.

Sharon is now trying to take life one day at time. She says of her experience, “Of course I worry about whether the breast cancer will come back, but I try to be positive, focus on today, and be proud that I am where I am and can be as active as I want to be. I know that things could be worse, and I hope that this is just a stumbling block.”

Because of her experience as a benefits manager, Sharon has some advice for everyone, “Understand your health coverage, and take advantage of any wellness or preventive health benefits. See your doctor annually, and make your health a priority.” For women in particular she says ”You are as important as the people you take care of, and you need to be proactive about your health.”