Mother and wife undergoes preventative double mastectomy | Boudoir with a purpose

Meet Marisa, a mother and wife undergoing a preventative double mastectomy. Marisa is one of the strongest and most inspiring women I have ever met in my life. This is her story.

Marisa was diagnosed with alopecia when she was a young girl. She spent years trying to hide her diagnosis, covering her symptoms with wigs and hats. At age 19, she chose to shave her head with her boyfriend, now husband’s help. After nearly a decade of fighting, she started to embrace her natural beauty which prepared her for what happened next.

In 2019, Marisa was diagnosed with the BRCA1 gene mutation. “With my diagnosis I was given 3 choices; do nothing, 6 month off and on mri’s and ultrasounds to check to see if I had cancer, or have preventative surgeries that would make sure that my 80% chance of breast cancer and 40-60% chance of ovarian cancer will go back into a low risk and normal range. I chose the preventative surgery because it gives me the best chance to be able to watch my son grow up.”

After just having her son Abraham, Marisa knew the decision she would make. “I knew the moment my ob gave me my options that surgery would be it for me. I never changed my mind once about my decision. Every day that I was around my son was my big reminder that I was making the right choice.”

Marisa’s has shared her alopecia journey with her social media following for years; creating a community and building awareness to change society’s beauty standards. Post-op, life looks different for Marisa but she is now able to share her mastectomy scars and new story with her audience. Her journey hasn’t been glamorous by any means, but it is the story she’s lucky to be here to share with us.

To see more women embracing who they are, check out this blog post!