Justine Morris: Diagnosed at 28, in Surgical Menopause at 29 - What Every Woman Needs to Hear | #161

**Justine Morris** (0:00)
You think I'm going to have a dry vagina? I am 29 years old, so I'm fine.

**Dr. Vonda Wright** (0:05)
Right.

**Justine Morris** (0:05)
I was not fine.

**Dr. Vonda Wright** (0:07)
Many years ago, I met Justine Morris. There is so much to talk about, Justine. Just tell us your story.

**Justine Morris** (0:15)
I found out I had breast cancer at 29 This is carcinoma. Like, you need an MRI immediately.

**Dr. Vonda Wright** (0:22)
Oh my God. Oh my God.

**Justine Morris** (0:25)
We just went straight into medical menopause and then surgical menopause.

**Dr. Vonda Wright** (0:29)
I know what it's like to go through brain fog from not having estrogen, but chemo also has its effect on your total body functioning. How did you manage?

**Justine Morris** (0:39)
I think it was finding a community.

**Dr. Vonda Wright** (0:55)
What does living fully mean to you?

**Justine Morris** (0:57)
I do what makes me happy, what outputs love and joy into the world, because at the core, that's what we need more of.

**Dr. Vonda Wright** (1:04)
I love that you, through hardship, have unburdened yourself of that baggage.
Hey, everybody. Welcome back to The Dr Vonda Show. You know what? I get to do so many amazing things in this career of mine, and one of them is meeting truly remarkable people. So many years ago, I don't know how many years ago, maybe five, I'm going to say five, three to five, I met Justine Morris in a marketing capacity. We were working around the same companies, and I really came to value her honesty. And then as I began really following her life and her work online, I realized that there is so much to talk about Justine. So you are one of the most joyful people I know. When I watch you online, and when I talk to you like this, I'm like, you just effervesce joy. And given your story, I think some people would wonder, where is that source of joy? Where does that come from? Where is the daily satisfaction? And so just tell us your story, because your story is so heart-filling for me, but you are gonna help so many people that I care for online. So tell us about who you are and what's important to you.

**Justine Morris** (2:28)
Yeah, thank you so much. That is very kind. And it is something I hear a lot, even going through cancer treatment, a lot of people were like, how are you smiling?
And we'll go back to the beginning. I found out I had breast cancer at 29, which for all intents and purposes, is very young to get any sort of cancer.

**Dr. Vonda Wright** (2:47)
Yeah.

**Justine Morris** (2:47)
And on top of that, I had a misdiagnosis.

**Dr. Vonda Wright** (2:51)
What?

**Justine Morris** (2:51)
So at 28, I found the lump myself, which is why it's so important to know your breast health, be aware of that, what it might look like to do a monthly exam, just kind of have that overall awareness of what's going on. And I did everything correctly. I just moved to New York. I didn't have a doctor. I found a gynecologist online. I went there. They did everything correctly. They felt it as well. And they immediately sent me to get an ultrasound, which is very interesting. I skipped the mammogram, probably due to my age and the fact that around 50 percent of women have dense breasts and an ultrasound is what would help. Did the ultrasound. The nurse, everyone's telling me, you're so young, it's going to be okay. You're going to be fine. At this appointment, they told me, we need to book you for a biopsy, which, hindsight's 2020, probably not a good sign. But still, I went to this biopsy. Every single nurse holding my hand, they're like, you're so young, you're going to be okay. Ten days go by. I call my doctor's office because I have not heard from them. I'm 28 years old. I do not know how the medical system works. I do not know about portals. I do not know about reports. I call the front desk, say, hi, I haven't heard from you guys. I got my biopsy done 10 days ago. I was just wondering about the results.
They said verbatim, after fiddling around, they said, oh, it's benign. We do not call people if it's benign.
I said, that's weird. I would have wanted to know, but okay, I trust you. Six months go by and I'm like, it's just hurting. It's getting bigger. This isn't what it is. I try to find a portal, doesn't have anything in it. Janky. I'm like, okay, it's fine. I'm busy. I'm 28 I'm living in the city.