Isabela’s story: The responsibility of raising the next generation of men

My husband’s testicular cancer diagnosis

I first got involved with Movember when my husband was diagnosed with testicular cancer. He was on the run for the Olympics and it was a really big hit for our family. I was engaged, in love and young. We had all these dreams and aspirations. Finding out your partner has cancer is one of the worst things, honestly, because you feel hopeless, you feel like your world has collapsed and you can't do much to help them besides being by their side.

There’s a narrative out there that men don’t like to go to the doctor, and my husband was one of them. It was a long journey of getting him to go. He figured he was fine, “Look at me! I’m competing at the highest stage possible. I don’t have anything.” But I continued to push for him to go get checked.

The experience definitely brought us closer together. Our relationship grew in strength by going through those challenges together. Cancer doesn’t define what you can accomplish. My dream had always been to have kids and Grant wanted to continue to compete at the highest level in his sport, so his testicular cancer was very scary for us. Since then, Grant competed better than ever before, and we had two beautiful boys.

Why men’s health matters to me

I have to be honest. When I first joined Movember, it created a little bit of anxiety in myself. I was worried about proclaiming my support for men’s health as a woman. But then, I looked at our situation and realized this isn’t just about men or women. It’s about health, period. Your health matters. That’s when Movember’s mission hit me. If I’m in a position that can help more people feel like their health is a priority? Great! That’s what drove me to join. I’m so grateful to be involved with an organization that has given me knowledge on mental and physical health.

Men are challenged by society to perform, be the male figure of the family, to be strong and not cry. It can be hard for them to be themselves with all those predetermined ideas and biases that were put on them throughout the years. Grant and I both challenged ourselves to deconstruct these types of biases when it came to our own health, but also how we want to raise our sons.

How this experience impacted me

My experience has made me more aware of my own health. I’ve found that the more in tune and aware I am of my emotions, the better my physical health is. The mind and body are very connected. Sometimes we get too into our daily lives and we don’t realize that something is going on internally, mentally, emotionally, or physically. This is why I think going to the doctor is so important.

Going to the doctor gets us to slow down, whether it’s for mental or physical health, whatever it is, it allows us to slow down and pay attention to what’s going on. We’re able to look at ourselves more closely.

We want to continue to deconstruct these biases around men’s health in our home, so our boys can grow in a place where everything they feel is valid, and we can talk about it. I want emotions to be natural and for our boys to feel comfortable and safe telling us if something with their body is bothering them.

I feel a huge sense of responsibility to raise boys. We want them to know it’s okay to be vulnerable. Movember has given me a lot of motivation as a mom to two boys to create a house that is a safe place for our kids and ourselves to be whoever we want to be without hesitation.