02/16/2026
Melanie sent us her story to share:
My story begins in 2015 when I was diagnosed with a Ganglioneuroma in my left temporal lobe. I was in my mid-30s when the surgeon told me I needed immediate brain surgery to remove the tumor. I couldn't hear anything he said after that. It felt like my surgeon was like Charlie Brown's teacher from Peanuts - I couldn't understand him. My dad accompanied me, and when I asked him what the surgeon said, he told me he had trouble listening too after a certain point. It was a fluke that they found the tumor. I was told it's a silent killer.
Due to an autoimmune disease, I have severe back problems. My doctor suspected I might have MS, so they did a brain scan and discovered the tumor. They also noticed my neck was extremely bad and needed surgical attention before the brain surgery. So, they scheduled me for neck surgery immediately, followed by brain surgery two months later.
After the brain surgery, I was left with many disabilities. I had to relearn how to speak, eat, walk, and use electronics like phones. I was very weak and had to fight to regain my strength. I felt miserable and wondered why God kept me alive in such a state. I wanted to die at that time. However, I decided that if I had to live this way, I would try my hardest to make things better.
Every day, I would lift hand weights and walk back and forth in my backyard with a walker to regain my strength. I had speech, occupational, and physical therapy, which were all helpful in my recovery. After the surgery, I struggled mentally and was scared of everything, including riding in cars and traffic. I became paranoid, thinking people were watching me, but they weren't. I still struggle with comprehension and speech.
Right after the surgery, people would talk about me as if I wasn't in the room, thinking I couldn't understand them. However, I did understand, but I couldn't respond. This was frustrating. I grew closer to some people and lost friends along the way. You find out who your true friends are when you go through something like this. Unfortunately, I didn't have a good support system, but I fought on my own and accomplished a lot.
Now, I have a support system, although it's a bit late, but I'm still grateful. It's been 10 years, and I've had no new growth or regrowth. The surgeon removed 99% of the tumor, leaving one piece that couldn't be removed without affecting my speech. I still deal with disabilities like balance issues, speech, comprehension, memory, mental health, seizures, and bad headaches.
However, I'm doing well compared to how I was after the surgery. I've learned to accept this new life. One of the most difficult things now is that people think I'm fine because I don't have physical scars. Thankfully, my hair hides it, which is both a blessing and a curse. I'm still unable to live on my own, drive, or work.
I'm still dealing with my mental health daily due to losing my independence. You don't realize how great it is to be working, mentally and socially, until you lose it. However, I'm thankful for overcoming so much in the past 10 years and continuing to improve. I know I won't be my old self again, but I've become a more compassionate person due to this experience.
As many of you know, these tumors can come back at any time. Yes, I've made it 10 years, and I hope I have another 10 before it comes back, but we never know when it will happen. My surgeon said it would come back, but he didn't know when. At this point, when it does come back, I won't do surgery again. I'll wait until it's too late. I love life, but I don't want to go through all that again. I know that doesn't sound helpful or encouraging, but it's the truth.
I hope my story can help someone who needs to hear that you can overcome disabilities. You may not be completely healed, but you'll learn to improve and deal with them. Just choose to be happy and fight - there's so much good in life!
~Melanie Babcock
